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I recently had a annoying issue with my 2 door blazer driver side door making the loudest squeezing sound. No amount of lithium grease, dry silicone lubrication, 3in1 oil, bearing grease or praying made it go away longer than 2 days. After further inspection, I noticed the upper hinge bushing were beginning to crumble. The lower hinge pin was also creeping up. I got some OEM bushing and pins and got to replacing them. The job is straight forward with a couple of tools and a jack the job can be accomplished fairly quick. Start by using a spring tool to remove the indent spring. The biggest hassle is pounding out the upper pin. A large, long drift tool is key here. The door should be propped up with a jack before removing the pins. Replacing the bushing is best done with a homemade press. I read hammering this back would result in premature failure, making you redo the work once again. A bolt and couple of washer do the trick. Then just pop the pins back in, with the upper pin getting a retainer clip. Keep in mind the upper and lower bushings are not the same PN, however the pins are. Use the spring tool to reinstall the spring.
Crumbled Bushing Lower Pin Spring Tool Drift Tools Old Hardware Press Washer new upper retainer new upper pin New lower pin
Here is my Issue after the install the door doesn't seem to want to close right. The door latching mech seems to struggle to engage the striker. It takes more force to close then before, and the sound is off. It almost sounds like it's hitting something. I used a flashlight to peak between the door and a pillar frame and latch. The striker appear to be center and not misaligned. I solved one problem but got another just at annoying problem as a result. What gives??
Nice advice about using a nut, bolt and washers for installing the bushings. I need to redo mine this spring and will use that.
As for the door not closing correctly, is the door aligned to the body? Does the door want to move up or down as the latching mechanism engages with the striker? With the door slightly open does it look like it aligns with the body?
The Gaps look flawless left and right. It appears like the door is slightly too high, if anything. I put my weight on the door while closing it, and it seems to help the latching. I tried to adjust the striker, Warning, please read this before removing the striker screws. The striker has no adjustment. In fact, if you back out the screws completely, the backing plate will fall inside the body. This means you will need to remove the entire interior trim of the same side. That's a huge pain, believe me, I used a flashlight to peek in-between the door and frame and the striker seems to line up. I will try to take a photo. When the door shuts, there is a subtle thumbing sound. This sound was not there before, and the passenger door does not make the sound.
The latch does not have real adjustment. I used a T30 to loosen up the screws to the latch and managed to drop the latch only 1mm. This however, was enough to get rid of the annoying thumb sound. I did spot wear from the impact on the latch see image. I am not 100 satisfied with the door closing, needs to be dropped another 2mm to be perfect. I am hoping the bushings will wear-in and allow for a bit or natural sag on the door. This will take some time of course and for now this will have to do. Also does anyone have the torque spec on the latch screws?
Last edited by mugenmundo; Mar 31, 2025 at 12:58 PM.
Front door striker bolts are 16 lb-ft, rear door striker screws are 88 lb-in and rear door latch screws are 88 lb-in. Front door latch screws are not given but I would think they are the same as the rear.
It almost looks to me like the lower bushing is installed upside down. If I understand correctly, the lip of the bushing is supposed to ride between the ears of the door and frame hinges. If so, do you suppose this could cause misalignment?
I am not an expert on this so maybe someone more knowledgeable than me could take a look and advise.
Correct, this is really import for the upper hinge ear as the weight of the door rides on the bushing washer. This acts like a bearing surface. The lower hinge ear does not make contact with the bottom of the hinge, only the pin. I don't believe this would affect the height of the door, as it's only there to hold the pin in center alignment with the upper bushing. Look at the photo I took of the right door that has the OEM bushing. It is as you described upside down, however notice there is a gap between the ear and body hinge. old right side door bushing gap
Door Sqeak gone but now doesnt close right???
