Body and suspension/steering

John and I rang in the new year by working on the car a bit.  With the newly refreshed trunk ready, I reinstalled (for the last time?) the gas tank and filler.  You would think she is fresh off the factory floor.

John began trying to figure out the passenger floor and support rails.  The floor itself is long gone and the rails underneath have some rusty spots.  Completely removing and replacing the rails is the best option, but it can be very tricky and is outside my comfort zone.  We will instead fit and weld a piece of steel.  It won't be pretty, but it will be structurally sound completely covered once the new floor pan is in place.

 John managed to cut the steel so it fit almost perfectly (for our purpose) into the existing rail.  That kid is wicked smart.  With the steel support set in place, to be welded later, John started to fit the floor pan.  He says it fits well and minimal cutting and shaping will be required.  Putting it permanently in place will require more welding.  Since all welds will eventually be covered, we are confident we will be up to it.  We will also need a little sheet metal to close in the front floor area. 

We also worked on the front cross member and steering rack.  We picked the better of the two steering racks, replaced the boots which keep the oil contained, and added some fresh oil.  We took some measurements to center the steering rack, and loosely installed it in the car.  It bolts to the cross member, so it is just in place and held by bungee cords right now.  

 Now freshly painted and with shock absorbers installed, the cross member was ready to be bolted back on.  I cleaned the bolts and put on the new pads.

We used the floor jack to help hold it in place while we got the nuts started.  It was an awkward, two-man job, so I have no pictures of the process.  One of us had to hold the bolt in place from the bottom and make sure the pads stayed in the right place while the other got the nuts started from the top.  Tightening three of the four nuts was relatively easy because access was easy.  The fourth nut was perfectly tucked behind one of the lines to the oil cooler (thanks again Nigel!), so John had to loosen the oil line before the fourth bolt could be secured.  Given the importance of this particular piece, we took the time to do it right.

It is really great to be installing new and improved parts.  It also means it is time to open the wallet again.  John's favorite lines: "We should replace that to be safe.  It is fairly cheap.  It is only (insert $8 - $70 here depending on the part).  I will add it to the next order."  I mean, um, thanks for all the help John.  I couldn't do it without you.

I ordered some tires from Tire Rack that arrived today.  I don't know exactly when they will be installed, but they were priced right, so I went ahead.


Up next - more body work and maybe time to try welding.