I was considering modifying my rear doors on my '55 Customline to open the opposite way. I was also thinking that I would move the rear door handles to the front of the door to look similar to the 60's continentals. I've had a difficult time finding any photos of this being done. Can anyone point me in the right direction?
Suiciding doors on 55 Ford is about the last thing I'd ever do. Saw a 66 Nova for sale with suicide doors, the guy couldn't give it away.
self explanatory, some things are best left alone - if you must change things either weld up doors or convert to 2 door
I think it would look neat Flip the handles and latches from left to right ..... maybe ? Sounds to easy don’t it! Lol I would look at some of the kits out there for suicide door hinges , It’s been done before or at least thought about. If you wanna loose the 4 door look, smooth off the handles and get door poppers, cheap n easy lol
It doesn't matter what you are working on suiciding the doors becomes a test of your sanity before your are done. note that my passenger side door is open at the front in the avatar photo over <<<<< on the left. If I had a car that slick I'd pass on the idea though. I had a 4 door 55 like that in Texas that was a great cruiser that we had a lot of fun with and that my wife drove to work every day for quite a while.
The link below is for a tech piece I did 9 years ago. Suicide doors are cool...……..as long as they don't droop. I've seen a few that don't droop but most do. One of the main keys is getting the door to swing out from the body as it is opening. If we did again, I would use nothing else but a single hinge...…………...but I wouldn't do it again. The doors turned out to be several months of twice a week work time. Good luck with your decision This link sucks......photobucket blurred out the pictures......I hate photobucket https://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/threads/suicide-doors-from-scratch-sure-you-can.451530/
Suicide doors can work out well, but they are a huge amount of work. On Taboo the previous owner did the change. With the car being a two door he added a lot of structure in the quarter panel to stiffen up the jamb/hinge area. The quarter glass is now just fixed. He did use the opposite side hinges so its still using the original 56 hinges. I think the biggest thing if wanting to tackle the job is just a lot of measuring and planning, but it can be done and done well. Taboo's doors shut and latch as good as a stock setup.
Apparently it makes it easier to get in and out. Real bummer if they come open at speed. On a rear door there would only be a small section near the original latch mechanism to attach hinges. Doesn't matter how you do it, some goose will still slam the door.
I always believe in the old adage "don't f**k with something that doesn't need it". Theres plenty to do that needs it.
I imagine getting out of the car might be a little easier but it seems like it would be awkward getting in the car.....I don't know...never had suicide doors.
The American 1932 Ford fordor sedan has suicide doors on the rear whereas the UK version has front & rear suicide doors. In the UK the 1932 Ford tudor sedan had suicide doors up front unlike it's American counterpart. HRP
I suicuded the doors on a 40 in my teen age years used rear door hinges from a 50s plymouth the post had to have a lot of bracing to handle the weight this was back before the aftermarket created universal hinges and a few decades of me improving skills honestly it was a ton of work for little reward look at a 49-51 merc 4 door
I have a good friend that after he chopped his 1940 Ford sedan, and did a beautiful job of it he decided to suicide the doors, he got the drivers door working perfect but never followed through with the passenger side, he said it was too much work, he eventually sold the car. We saw it in Pigeon Forge several years later and the new owner had painted the car and it looked great, I ask the guy about the chop and he claimed he did it along with the suicide door, about that time my pal Alex walked up in the middle of his speech about all the work he did, he recognized Alex and his story took a dramatic change. I have never understood people taking all the credit for a build after they purchased the car. I've built quiet a few cars & trucks in my time and I don't recall any that someone didn't lend a hand somewhere along the line. HRP
There was a story about this very thing... Enterprising bodywork student chopped the top at the same time he: 1. Cut the top off all A,B,C pillars; 2. Removed rear quarter panels from 'C' pillars; 3. Removed 'A' pillars from sub frame, inverted the center front-to-back; 4. Welded everything back with 'tub' inverted (front to back) had 4 Suicide Doors. 5. Whew! The car was a '56 Ford Fordor.
Ya I got a reason. I have MS, my left leg and arm do not work. When I get into a vehicle with regular doors, my foot gets caught under it. I am probably the only one who suicided his doors for medical reasons, and I did it by myself with one arm!
Why suicide doors! seems like an odd question on a custom car website. The same question could be asked for just about any mod or improvement that isn't immediately apparent. I like the mod, but yeah, it would be down on the list to get the rest of the car in order first. I have a 35 Lasalle coupe, it has them from the factory, very cool.
Suicide doors on a 4 door has been done for a long time from the factory.. even well into the 60's with the Lincoln continental. If the OP wants to do it let him and coach him. One could use a hinge kit like this one https://www.rockyhinge.com/hinge-kit-for-door-jambs-over-3-1-2-wide.html There are more around let google help you on the correct one for your car. As other have stated though it does limit the potential customers looking for a 4 door with backwards doors. But if you plan on keeping the car GO FOR IT ! In todays day and age 2 doors are getting way harder to find that isn't done, And is why mordoor cars are being done.. That hasn't been cut up already for 2 door parts cars. The only thing I personally wouldn't like about it.. It is a sedan car would be better if it would be a hard top now there is a thought to ponder.. a mordoor 55 custom line hard top with suicide ! Glass would be a BiOtch tho
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