Abstract: A door structure system for a vehicle includes an inner panel, an outer panel, and an outer belt reinforcement member. The outer belt reinforcement member extends in a fore-and-aft direction of the door structure. The outer belt reinforcement member creates an overlap joint with a hem flange portion of the inner panel. The outer belt reinforcement member includes touch-down feature that extends toward the inner panel and into contact with a bearing surface of the inner panel that is stepped down relative to the hem flange portion. The overlap joint and the touch-down feature both contribute to an increased upper frame stiffness of the door structure and improve sealing performance between the door structure and the vehicle body structure.