Stripping down
Stripping the car only took a few hours. 3 wings and a door were scrap, but no
major suprises as yet.
Pan was taken to Marawise (024 76687121) in Coventry for shotblasting & etch
priming. I decided to get it done as it was covered in underseal and some
surface rust here and there. We did think about getting the body done but as
large panels were being replaced anyway, it wasn't really worth it. Marawise had
the pan done and ready in a day and they also aluminium coated the 2nd hand BAS
exhaust I'd picked up at dubfreeze earlier in the year. The results weren't too
bad - there's a hole where the jacking point was on one side and the pan edges
are crusty in one place where the channels were welded to the floor, some
accident damage to the corner of the framehead that had been "repaired" some
time in the past and some dodgy mot patch on top of patch work just behind the
framehead where most 02/3's seem to go.
P/s
Rear Quarter
I know some people thought things went a bit ott with the welding but I'm a
firm believer in do it once and once only & not patching things up that will
need further attention a couple of years down the line. First panel to be done
was the complete p/s rear quarter. This was done because the bottom of the
door-wing panel had been cut off, there was a big dent further up, some of the
wing bolt mounts were rotten as was the rear bumper mount. replacing a complete
rear quarter is actually a pretty straightforward job and will take a lot less
time and give a better finish than replacing all the individual panels
individually, plus you don't end up sanding the area under the window for days.
The body was bolted to the newly blasted chassis to make sure the mounting
points etc all ligned up.
I usually cut the panels off through the window opening as it means there is a
lot less filler work to do afterwards and you don't need to go near the roof
seam which would make things more complicated. Once the panel was off the sound
deadening foam was removed the 'hidden' areas were painted and the replacement
panel (which had been in the loft for a few years) was cut to fit and its trim
holes welded up. This was joined via a combination of plug & seam welding. More
pics & info on fitting these panels can be found in the How
To section.
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| This is Andy the cameraman from Skibbly TV | One 'genuine from the factory in Mexico' rear 1/4 - perfect fit | |
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