Nerdlinger

Hi, I just purchased a 1990 Mustang GT 2 days ago, and I have a couple of problems. First of all I had to replace the hydraulic arms that support the hatchback. The hatch never had a problem closing before, but once I replaced the hydraulic arms (they were shot), the latch started to hit the plastic panneling of the trunk, making it extremely difficult to shut. Is there a way to re-align the entire hatch and fix this problem?

Also, my drivers side tail light lense snaps off with almost no effort at all. Does anyone have a few suggestions? Any and all help is greatly appreciated. Thanks.

1989convertible

did your arms have a left sideand right side marks diff part #s

Nerdlinger

Each (new) arm had the same part number. I measured them and they are the same length, and there is no visible warping or twisting of the brackets they mount to.

1989convertible

r both sides hitting or just 1side,i replaced my jeeps and there was a right and left with diff part#s. thought my experiance with that could help but i have a vert.

Nerdlinger

The part of the latch that is hitting the trunk is the metal "L-shaped" piece on thepassenger's side that functions to press the button that turns off the the trunk lights. But I think the problem may be the entire hatch itself because when closed there is a large gap between the hatch and the body on thedriver's side.....it's almost like the hatch shifted to the passenger's side.

5.0 MPG

get inside the hatch and see if the latch is lining up with the striker correctly. if its not loosen the striker with a star and maybe move it up a little. it really boils down to trial and error there is no real easy solution here.

mjr46

adjust the striker..and jb weld the lenses back in after cleaning and prepping surface

Nerdlinger

Oh yeah i never even thought to see if I could access the tail light bulbs from inside the car. Thanks man! I'm gonna try to adjust that striker tomorrow. Wish me luck!

Nerdlinger

It was the alignment of the hatch. It must have moved when I reefed on it to get the stock hydraulic arms off. It works great now though.