Fixing door check
 

I finally got tired of that popping sound every time I openned or closed the door. I know I'm not alone. The sound comes from a broken door check. If you don't know what that is, it is the thing between the door hinges that keeps the door from closing on you (Pictured below).

Replacement requires you remove two screws at the body holding the body side of the check. Then you must remove the door panel. The door side of the check is held onto the door by two bolts on the front exterior side of the door, but once disconnected, it must be removed through the inside of the door. The new one is installed in the oposite manor. No more creaking and popping sounds!

Awesome and thanks...........can't wait to git-r-done.

The popping is a worn pin and/or the bracket it goes through. An entire replacement door check is $$$. Go to the junk yard (tons of nice C4Cs) and remove the bracket and pins from the rear doors as they don't get much use. The creaking is the door check telling you it needs grease. I've done this a few times. Good as new and cost almost nothing.

PS- If it's just the pins that are worn, go to the hardware store and get some 1/4" roll pins, chrome if you can find them (lowes). Grease. Done.

Yeah, my driver's door pin is shot as it won't even hold the door open anymore.

My door roll pin broke I just used a 1\4 bolt seems to work ok.

How would you go about getting a good pin out without breaking it?

On mine, the rubber piece shown in the picture had completely dissinigrated. The pin was also shot. The whole thing had to be replaced. I had tried doing just the pin first, but if you have a loud clunk it might also be a bigger problem than a worn roll pin. I paid about $55 for a complete new check with all hardware. It works like new now and is well worth the money.

I've got the typically saggy door and the top hinge was rewelded on there, but there is about a 3/16th gap between the hinge and frame. I also get the clunk and creak. Do you guys think this would eliminate the clunk/creak? I just brought the striker up a little this morning to get rid of the gap on top. I was able to see through the gap and the noise from the wind got quite loud at 50 mph.

Your problem is hinge, door lock mechanism/strike plate alignment.

Eh, oh well. I'm not ripping it apart right now. It's too cold outside to cut and weld new hinges on. It's not like it's a show car or anything.

could i use the door check off of a another cherokee of the same year but take it off the rear door instead.

Yea, I'm pretty sure they are the same front and rear and obviously the rears get less use so it would be logical to use one of them instead of the drivers door.

re: using passenger rear door check on driver door?
 

Hey everyone, my first post, just got my 98 xj. it's my second cherokee, and 6th jeep. 90k original miles, so i'm pretty jazzed.

i know this is resurrecting an old thread on door checks. It appears the driver side rear door check will work for the driver door (from a junkyard for example). Do any of you know if the passenger rear check would work? I found one for $10....

I also just replaced the turn signal switch, fixed power windows (another post on this forum by using the jumper wire) and installed a new headunit and speakers.

Thanks in advance for all your help; i look forward to being able to contribute in the near future.

-CJ -Colorado

is there no good supplier of these on the web? looks like something we have to mine out of junkyards until they're all gone or pay $60 to someone who has salvaged it already.


I would also like to know if the rear door checks are usable on the front doors, as CJ asks above me.

The front and rear door checks are different lengths. The rear one is longer.

They are available online -
Click on the part numbers to search:

Front.... 55235571
Rear..... 55075259

I replaced mine with the newest ones I could find in the junk yard.
The clicking and popping is gone! :thumbsup:

thanks for posting, Snidely. Yes, this part is expensive.

I'm trying to determine what exactly happened to mine; I wasn't the driver when it did happen. the door apparently hyper-extended due to a hit. I assume the check is bad, but I'm looking.

mmm good to know this is so easy to replace. I'll have to grab some good ones at the JY next time i'm there to throw in when i replace my speakers....the popping drives me nuts.

I removed my driver's door stop pin and drove a small punch through the inside of the pin making it bigger. I expected the pin to crack but it didn't. Nice tight fit now and no more pop-cracking noise but I think I'll get some 1/4" roll pins for when it fails.

What year is your Cherokee?

There was a TSB issued in 2002 concerning Doors - Sagging/Creaking Sound for the years 1993-1997. If this includes your year, your hinge welds may be loose. Check the above article for more info.

Hopefully, it's just the door check.

Wait, in about 10 other threads, it was said that the source of the POP is simply that little pin and small bracket (I just paid $15 for these)
They all said it is NOT the top-most item, the long arm contraption that is $55.
https://www.cherokeeforum.com/attach...-frtdoorck.jpg

I replaced the pin and bracket. The pin was very loose and came out by hand.
The pin seemed just fine, and did not need to be replaced.
Just the bracket needed to be changed. Notice the oval hole.
I used a hammer to get the new pin in. It only took 1 or 2 taps to get it past the lip.
There is still some popping from the internal arm, but most of the popping is gone. Good enough.

Video of the popping door check pin.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-xXsN_x1dPc&

http://i48.tinypic.com/14lh09.jpg http://i47.tinypic.com/2nld005.jpg http://i47.tinypic.com/29mvgr6.jpg

You can get the pins in the self-help section at Oreilly's.

http://www.quadratec.com/products/pr...eck+&submit=Go

Also if you have the two piece bracket that mounts on the fender side, that is no bueno. Go to the JY and pick up the one piece bracket. It's a whole lot better at holding the arm and keeping it from twisting.

I just welded mine back together, no issues yet!

Door Check help
 

Does anybody here know if a door check from a 1998 grand Cherokee will work for a 2003 grand Cherokee. Mine snapped all the way through the other day and we are in our windy season here in Idaho and I don't want to damage my Jeep!!!

Thanks in advance for your help!!

Didn't want to post a new thread so I figured I'll post here. I recently had a door check fail on me and when I went to inspect it, I found that the spring of the mechanism was broken. Can the spring be replaced? Or do I have to get a whole new door check?

On 90 and earlier, you an get rear door checke and simply change out the rod from your front door. It's shorter.

While the rod/bar is out, polish off the sharp edges for smoother operation.

I am on my third door check in less than a year they keep breaking, is there anything I can do to the next one I put in to stop this? The springs keep breaking

My first question is which ones are you using?
I decided to bite the bullet and used Mopar ones for both my front doors.
Also the little bracket and the pin I bought Mopar ones too.
Did you replace them?
Frankly I don't really think that was necessary but bought them anyway.
People say to slather a good deal of grease on them before you install them.
Is there anything weird about your doors?
How are the hinges?
Don't really read about this sort of problem so it makes me wonder.
Also not that this is causing it but I did my driver's side first. Then when I did the passenger door I noticed that I had this
little nylon washer there. Which I did not have on the driver's side. The one on the left is what I found in the Jeep.
https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.che...2eee497311.jpg
So I went to the hardware store found something I thought would work, one on the right, and did this.
https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.che...528b2b9b98.jpg

The door checks on the front and rear are not the same. When you do check your door check, open the front door and see if if drops. Usually, over time, they all will. You can get a kit at NAPA which has new pins. I got a local body shop to do 5 driver side doors for me at $80 each. They had the equipment so one guy can do it because they have a jig that will hold the door.

good luck on finding a door check at the JY. It is one of a standard list of things I check on every XJ I find when I make a trip. Usually they are missing on the donor vehicle. It is usually harder to find parts at the JY than some of the people who post would have you to believe. Remember, cash for clunkers took away a lot of donor vehicles.I have made at least a dozen trips to multiple junk yards in the last three years. i have some experience.

The bolt size?
 

You guys by any chance know the part number or the size of the bolt that holds the hinge.
https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.che...bde4194189.jpg
This circled in blue

So this is strange.
Assuming I am looking at my parts catalogs properly they show the bolt in the illustration but there is not a part
number assigned to it.
Do you have any of the old ones? Cause I guess you are going to have to match it up at the hardware store.
Or hit up a boneyard.

yea I guess thats what I will eventually end up doing. Unless someone has the size for the bolt.

I have a habit of replacing hardware when I am doing things but I know that I just reused my old bolts when I did the door checks.
If I did not then I would still have the old bolts cause I don't throw anything out. LOL.
Unrelated but maybe you might want to give this a read.

https://www.cherokeeforum.com/f2/research-249236/

There is a link in the thread for parts catalogs. Maybe help the next time you run across something like this.
Most but not all nuts and bolts have the specs for them listed which helps when you want new hardware.
Cause sometimes the hardware store will have what you need.

thanks i will check it out. Worst case I will head to home depot since all the doors except for the drivers side is intact

https://cimg4.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.che...8ff5c306e7.jpg

Tough to tell for sure cause of the angle and I really don't know what mine looked like cause I just slapped in the new bracket but
those holes look a little FUBAR to me.

only one way to find out. Maybe ill take one side out and test fit it.

Might explain why it is missing.
Thinking a little creative thinking on your part should solve that problem.
Assuming there is a problem. LOL.
For the life of me can't remember if it was a bolt or a self tapping screw of sorts.
If it is a self tapping screw instead of using a bigger one a riv nut comes to mind.
A traditional rivnut gun would require you taking off the door to get at the hole.
Harbor Freight makes one that might let you get in there.

https://www.harborfreight.com/45-pie...-kit-1210.html

Things that come to mind.
Is 1/4-20 big enough?
And part of the rivnut sits on top of the metal. Which means the bracket will be pushed out a bit sitting on top of that.
Wondering if that even matters?

Does anyone know if the door check on the 2-door is different than those for the front/rear of the 4-door? I'm in the market for one but finding that little tidbit of info is killing me.