My 1970 B roadster is in pretty good shape -- still gets lots of "Wow,
it's in really good shape for its age" comments. I can see all the flaws,
though -- one or two rust bubbles, the dent from the Jeep driver who
forgot to step on the brakes, the smaller dent from the minivan that
really, really wanted to be in my lane, two cracks of doom.
Basically, I want to fix things before they get worse.
The one panel that absolutely, positively NEEDS to be replaced is the
passenger floor. I wonder about the sills -- how should I check them?
There are no holes in the outer portions, and I know that there is no
filler covering possibly bad sheet metal there, but the car does flex,
when it's up on jack stands etc. The door gaps seem pretty reasonable,
*but* they do not close easily. Even with the latch adjusted to its
limits, the part on the door hits the bottom of the plate on the car,
pushing the door up & into position. Is this a hinge/latch problem, or is
it indicative of a basically crooked car?
The driver's door has a bad COD, one rust bubble. The quarter panel
behind it is a mess -- I'm hoping that once the filler comes off, the
portion abive the trim will be fixable. Below the trim strip, there are a
few rust bubbles and cracking filler -- I guess this too is a must-fix.
So:
Sills?
Door skins?
part of the left rear fender
lower sections of both front fenders (slight
rust bubbles
a front valance (original in bad shape when purchased 10+
years ago, replacement fiberglass spoiler removed by 36 inches of snow in
24 hours)
at least one floor
plugging a few holes (radio antenna, etc.)
I did most of the work ten years ago, but at fifteen wasn't up for welding
-- yeah, I'm my own DPO on the filler in the left rear. I'm looking at
doing a great deal of the work myself this time, I can get a pretty good
bead with MIG, and I'm not afraid of a challenge.
I'm looking for some helpful suggestions about determining exactly what
needs to be done, the order in which I should do it, and how to make it
last.
Any thoughts on filling box sections -- especially the sills -- with
structural foam? It has been suggested and widely endorsed on other
lists, and Audi has been using it for structural purposes for years.
Your thoughts, experiences, or recommendations are greatly appreciated.
Many thanks,
Matt
&sidney, '70B
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