Repro taillight panel fit

[judge]

Better spending a few more hours now, than getting 200 more parts on the car and wishing you had done it earlier.

 

[Qcode351mach]

Keep in mind you are working with a 40 year old car that was

rusted and / or wrecked before and a taillight panel replaced.

Then it was wrecked / rear ended HARD on the frame rail

It's bent - these cars bend easy

As you removed the quarter, the trunk floor, the rear cross member it probably all relaxed from when it was hit.

Wrecked once at the back; the first taillight panel was replaced due to rust.

When the trunk floor was removed, a temporary crossmember was welded onto the top of the rails. It didn't have that much of an opportunity to flex.

+1 that car was hit pretty hard on the right rear..As I said before.. the frame unibody measurements should be confirmed on a frame machine before any new panels go on..Would be the best $250.00 you spent..Piece of mind priceless

If it was hit that hard, the framerail would have crumpled more than it did. It does have a warp mark above the rear axle, but it was pulled out afterwards by the PO.

Last time I measured the car (jacked the rear frame rails level on a level surface, then measured the rear rails straight down), they came out identical.

-Kurt

Doesn't mean it was pulled correctly nor does it mean the rails are at the correct height..See the 1st picture both rails exactly at the same height FROM FLOOR BUT OFF BY 1" from the factory spec..I'm not going to debate this Kurt..keep telling yourself it's ok..Truth is with out jigging it using a measuring system (see 2nd picture with the jig setup measuring system I made) and taking measurements to CONFIRM your in spec..your guessing..period end of discussion. BUT I will add that the rails have to be the same height at the measurement given on the chart in relation to ALL THE KNOWN GOOD CONTROL POINTS as shown in the chart..the floor means nothing..it's all from a set datum line which runs off of the unibody chassis not the floor

 

[cudak888]

Frame machine it is, then. Not going cheap at this point.

Time to get a trailer and a hitch for that piss-poor Dodge van of mine.

-Kurt

 

[Qcode351mach]

Frame machine it is, then. Not going cheap at this point.

Time to get a trailer and a hitch for that piss-poor Dodge van of mine.

-Kurt

Smart move..Just make sure the shop you choose has a universal measuring system..not just a frame machine & tape measure Bring the frame spec sheet with you & show to them...

 

[Totalled]

Doesn't mean it was pulled correctly nor does it mean the rails are at the correct height..See the 1st picture both rails exactly at the same height FROM FLOOR BUT OFF BY 1" from the factory spec..I'm not going to debate this Kurt..keep telling yourself it's ok..Truth is with out jigging it using a measuring system (see 2nd picture with the jig setup measuring system I made) and taking measurements to CONFIRM your in spec..your guessing..period end of discussion. BUT I will add that the rails have to be the same height at the measurement given on the chart in relation to ALL THE KNOWN GOOD CONTROL POINTS as shown in the chart..the floor means nothing..it's all from a set datum line which runs off of the unibody chassis not the floor

Hey Q, what measuring system are you using there? Is it obtainable for a hobbyist, or is it strictly pro level?

 

[Qcode351mach]

Hey Q, what measuring system are you using there? Is it obtainable for a hobbyist, or is it strictly pro level?

It's one I made..threaded rod located at the control points to the correct heights 10' lengths of super struthttp://www.homedepot.com/p/Superstrut-1-5-8-in-x-10-ft-Metal-Framing-Channel-ZA1200HS-10/100125003?N=5yc1vZbm55 You may have to go through some on the shelf in order to get 2 that are straight...some aluminum cross bars I salvaged from a shower door..