 | As you can see, the left quarter is a different shade of yellow. It is harder to see in this picture how the whole quarter has a different shape to it. |
 | Stripping has begun revealing the true reasons for the oddly shaped quarter |
 | A close up of the thickness of bondo that had been sheetrocked on |
 | Some of the residue falls on the floor after being chiseled away |
 | The quarter was patched but no thought was given to the shape. That is why there is so much bondo in the quarter |
 | Front suspension removal has begun |
 | Suspension crossmember is bent |
 | Left front bumper brace is cracked and missing bolts |
 | Left shock tower is rotted |
 | Left front upper control arm and spring are installed |
 | The right front suspension is installed |
 | The left front is also installed along with a new coil cover we obtained |
 | Brakes are now being installed. We will be cleaning up the rest of the underside at a later date. |
 | Rear axle and suspension has been completely removed. Underside is being stripped and made ready for priming and painting. |
 | Underside is primed |
 | Rear axle disassembled |
 | Bead blasting has begun |
 | This is the result of removing all the grime and rust. This is light shining through the holes we found. |
 | Now the holes have been repaired. |
 | Rear axle has been reassembled |
 | Rear axle has been reinstalled |
 | Heater core extraction has begun |
 | Upon removal of the hood hinges, some rusty areas have been found. |
 | Engine compartment needs a good cleaning. |
 | Suspension crossmember has a slight bend in it. |
 | Striiping of original undercoating and paint has begun in engine compartment. |
 | Priming of the engine compartment has begun |
 | The 351 Cleveland motor has been removed and is going to be rebuilt. |
 | Here are the used quarter panels found in Oregon |
 | Disassembly of the rear begins to begin quarter panel removal |
 | The former patchwork is seen here |
 | Trunk floor reveals some small rust |
 | Trunk water trough also reveals some additional rust |
 | We found riveted panels covering the rust and then thickly undercoated to cover the rust in the right wheel house. |
 | The backside of the rear valance panel reveals a lot of bondo remnants indicating prior damages that were repaired and then filled with bondo. |
 | Trunk trough being removed so we can cut the replcement one off of the replacement quarter. |
 | We found a riveted together box made to hang in place of the rotted panel. That has been removed now. |
 | This is an inordiante amount of bondo in the rear valance panel. Very thick! |
 | Here is the right quarter with the riveted box removed. |
 | Here is a rare look inside a rocker panel. While rust colored, it is in pretty sound shape. We will clean it up and shoot rust preventative and converter inside to maintain the integrity. |
 | A close up of the wheel house after the riveted panel was removed covering the rusted metal. |
 | Removal of the rear seat and convertible top parts in progress. |
 | The right rear quarter panel has been removed and the inside structure had all the rust removed. We will rustproof this area before we install the panel back on so it will not be prone to rusting again. |
 | The rear body panel where the trunk latch support attaches was rotted and held together with bondo. We cut it out and welded in a new patch |
 | While cleaning up the right rear wheelhouse, we came acroos a large glob of seam sealer around the passenger seat belt mounting area. This is the seam sealer after being removed. |
 | This is where the front passenger seat belt mounts to the rocker. Rusted out and held in by very thin rotted metal and seam sealer is a recipe for disaster in the event there would of been a collision. |
 | Here is the largest area where the seam sealer was residing. There is supposed to be metal in that hole. |
 | Upon removal of the rear body panel, we found the rear had sustained a pretty good collision and the floor was bent. Guess what was used to "straighten" it? |
 | An overview of the rear body panel off the car |
 | This floor is supposed to be flat. All the grind marks are the seam sealer and bondo we removed. |
 | Left side view of the trunk floor. The left side is slightly better. Most of the impact was to the right. |
 | Removal of all the rust is progressing. We also are cleaning up the inner panels as we go. We will also be priming and painting them to further protect them from any future rusting. |
 | Here is the rear body sill panel with new fabricated end on it since the other piece was rotted away. |
 | A shot of the rear with the support removed |
 | This is the seat belt support. Not any metal or strength left to it. |
 | Here is the right rear portion of the rocker panel after we have rebuilt it. |
 | The inside portion of the rocker, wheel house and floor have been rebuilt and reinforced to be stronger than stock. |
 | Here is the used portion of the outer wheel house being fitted to mate with the solid portion of the existing wheel house. |
 | We have rebuilt the rear body panel. |
 | Here is the wheel house welded together. |
 | The wheel house installed. |
 | The rear portion of the wheel house is being rebuilt along with the trunk extension. |
 | Welds have been ground down on the wheel house. |
 | The trunk floor will now get patched. |
 | This panel is the gas tank strap support panel. It will require patching. |
 | Here is the rusted panel cut out of the trunk floor and a new panel made to replace it. |
 | Additional patching was required on the trunk floor. |
 | Used right rear quarter has been trimmed for fitment and will be fitted prior to welding. |
 | Upper original quarter has been melded into the replacement used lower section |
 | Quarter is stripped |
 | Fitment continues |
 | Front fender is completely stripped |
 | Left rear wheelhouse is fitted in with quarter panel |
 | The left outer rocker panel was in fairly good condition but the inner was completely rotted. |
 | Here is the rear portion of the left inner rocker after the outer panel was removed. This is also where the seat belt mounts to. |
 | The new fabricated inner rocker is being fitted. |
 | After rebuilding the inner rocker, the outer is reinstalled. |
 | The right rear quarter is being finished out with body work |
 | The forward portion and jamb are also being finished |
 | After doing the body work to the trunk, it is time to check the lines and gaps. Looks pretty good! |
 | Left door had some minor rot in it. We fabricated a patch for it. |
 | Left door had a lot of small holes from prior body bowk and some other metal fatigue issues that required welding. |
 | After the patch was welded in, body work to the entire door has begun |
 | The left upper apron rail was completely rotted so we fabricated a new upper rail and have begun test fitting it. |
 | The rotted rail has been removed |
 | Final fitment before being weldeded in. |
 | Now that the rail has been welded, drilling for the fender attachment clips has begun. |
 | Rail is now drilled. |
 | Now for the right side rail. It is not as rotted as the driver side. |
 | The bumper shock box is rotted also |
 | The frame rail shows some weakness after the bumper box has been removed. It also is apparent the front end was hit also and not properly repaired. |
 | New patch is being made to strengthen the rail |
 | Passenger rail is finished up with the patching. |
 | New patch is fabricated for the apron under where the battery tray is supposed to go. |
 | Now that it appears as though we have finally won the war against the rust monster, body work to the panels and fitting has begun |
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