My drivers door is sagging.  The old hinges were shot, and I've replaced the top hinge, including welding in a new hinge to the post.  I also installed a new door guide.  The door still sags.  I can move it and it will stay for a while, but then falls again.  Since this is strictly for off road use, I was wondering about using hinges outside, similar to what they use on the Jeep CJS.  Has anyone tried this? 

I suspect fitting external hinges will require a lot more "re-engineering" that repairing the existing hinges - you're going to have to reinforce the sheet metal, on both the door and the front fender, to support the weight of the door, or face the same problem you have now - you're also going to have to align the upper & lower pivots so that they are in the same vertical plane or every time you open the door, you'll be twisting the hinges which will cause the sheet metal to fatigue and tear.

If you've done what you say you've done with the results you report, my suspicion is the hinges were not properly aligned when the new one was welded in.

Oh - no I haven't tried external hinges on a Suzuki, but I have worked on vehicles with them, and that is how I know what happens when the pivots don't align properly.

Thanks for the response.  I've done door hinges before albeit on Ford pick up trucks.  Am pretty sure the hinges are within specs.  I can get the door to stay in place for awhile, but everything whats to move after a bit.  Not sure why.  If I tighten everything up any more, am going to start busting bolts. 

Wasn't thinking about removing the original hinges, just adding the external hinges as a "booster" so to speak.  I figured I'd have to add support inside the door and fender where I add the hinges.

How do they back up the exterior hinges?

I guess another thought would just be to remove them altogether.  I just like to be able to use it in the fall as a hunting vehicle too.

First - there's NO way you can have both "interior" & "exterior" hinges at the same time - the pivots would be in different vertical planes.

Second - you need to find out WHERE the movement is occurring- if the sag is caused by - just as example - wear in the hinge pins  - you can tighten the bolts until they shear and not solve the problem.

This reminds me of the last car I bought - the chap I got it from said the front end "rattles a little", so I asked the guys to go over it & tighten it up - now bear in mind, this chap & his wife OWN an auto dealership, and the guys he's referring to are the mechanics at the dealership.

"Rattles a little" was an understatement - I got under the car myself and went over the front end - every damn bolt & nut had been torqued down beyond the factory spec. and something still rattled - about a week later, coming to a stop at a traffic light I discovered I could quiet the rattle by resting my foot on the brake lightly.

Five of the eight anti-rattle clips in the front calipers were missing - picked up a set of them & replaced the missing ones and never heard it rattle again.

Just as that rattle from the front of the car was not in the front end, the sag in your doors may not be in the hinges, or may not be where the hinges bolt up.

If the bolts holding the hinges are tight and the door is moving, IF the movement is at the bolts, it will be because something is out of alignment and you're forcing it.  It is also possible for the hinge pins to be worn/wearing, allowing movement there, and also sheet metal torn/tearing or stretching.

Any idea where to buy either new hinges or hinge repair kits for these trucks?  I've had no luck searching online.

What's wrong with the hinges?

All the hinge repair kits I've seen contain is a new pin and a couple of brass bushes - nothing that couldn't be turned up in a local machine shop.

Would certainly be cheaper and easier if there is a kit out there rather than have a machine shop create them from scratch.  As I asked, anyone know if there is a repair kit or new hings out there?