Automotive vehicle body side structure

A vehicle body side structure includes a wheelhouse upper member (22) reinforced by an upper member stiffener (40), a front pillar (10) reinforced by a hinge patch (46; 32) attached to an inner side of the front pillar and a front door (20) reinforced by a door beam member (48), and these reinforcement members include mutually at least partly overlapping parts as seen in the fore and aft direction so that a frontal crash load can be favorably transmitted from the upper member to a rear part of the vehicle body substantially in a linear path. The hinge patch serves as a backing plate for an upper hinge (24) of the front door, and may include a bulkhead piece (46D, 46E; 38) that extends across and welded to opposing inner walls (10A, 10B) of the front pillar (10).