gizmatix

My dad put about 4 dents into my drivers side door when he gases up at the station and he hits those metal poles they use as barriers. I was just curious is it normal that the door just swings open with no resistance at all and no limitation as to how far the door can open?

tfischer

The only resistance is the friction in the hinges and the pull of gravity (I don't believe any autos build in a resistance to make a car door harder to open than it would otherwise be), and as for a limitation on opening, my hinge has the usual indent at about the half way point, and fully opens to something less than the 45 degree point, all of which is pretty standard and pretty normal.
Also standard and normal: hitting those posts with a car door at the gas pump.

MDames2

iTrader: (1)

I was just talking about the doors on the SC with my wife the other day. The doors do open out quite a bit, more than my ES350. The first stopping point is OK. But the wide open stopping point is pretty extreme. We have to be careful when opening the door in tight spots because of this.

tfischer

All two-door cars have longer doors than four-door cars, because access needs to be provided to the back seat. This makes them more unwieldy. Even the special double-articulated hinges on the SC400 (and 300) doors did little to alleviate the problem. (I was surprised that the 430 did not have these famous hinges.)
In practice, this means that drivers of such cars need to be concerned about how close they park to something capable of causing damage, and that drivers of all cars have to be careful when parking next to such cars, as a wide swinging, long and heavy door can cause some big damage when operated carelessly or when it gets away from an elderly or weak occupant or a child.
It's safer to just park next to vans with those sliding doors.

Yes

i've had a few friends bang my passenger door into cars. most doors put up more resistance. and the sc doors are heavier. so once they get going, they take more to stop. once you're used to them, they're not a problem. but i'm in the habit of warning new passengers that they'll jump out.

mrblister

The only ding on my door caused by door swinging out and hitting one of the gas station poles. Sucks