Need help removing body panels...

HwyStar

Registered User
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I hurt my car by being stupid recently, and I have to save it! I want to know what the best way to break spot welds would be. I peeled the hood back and looked things over. The frame is straight amazingly. The bottom of the sub-frame was rolled back from hitting the curb, the passenger aprons, and radiator core support was either wiped off the frame or bent by the gaurd rail I hit. The last time I removed the engine bay aprons I drilled them(on my '68 Cougar) out using a drill. This time I'd like to burn them all out using a torch and a fine cutting tip, except for the ones on the cabin. Does this sound like a good plan? Any suggestions? I don't owe anything on the car, it was just my dream car, thats all, and I want it back.
 
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nope your back to using a drill bit ,on the spot welds
don't think cutting spot welds out will work and or it will make a mess

cheers
 
Hit the reset button, That car is very damaged to driveway fix. Take it to a shop to do the bulk work and you do the bolt on stuff.
Or start over with another one.
 
i would personally cut them out with a torch... just make sure you don't go thru the firewall

looks to be about $3700 worth of damage, that really sucks, hope everything works out for you
 
They make a special drill bit for drilling out spot welds. Could help, but I think you need to do quite a bit more work from the looks of the picture.
You could do what I am doing to a neighbor's Mustang ( ugh, I know :rolleyes: ) in my driveway right now .. I cut off the front end that was bent after the shock towers, and Im welding on a new front end from a donor car ( turns out the donor car was in an accident also and the bumper support was already replaced ... the parts my neighbor picks up, I dont know. I just cut and weld. ) :D

- Dan
 
Yeah, the idea I have right now is just to remove the bad panels, and then have a good body shop replace them with new parts from Ford, or panels off of a donar car. I'll be replacing the sub-frame with a tube-k-member. Thinking about going back together with a TKO-500 if there is a way to bolt one to a 3.8. I'm really not digging this hydraulic clutch. I like the wire better. Thanks for the ideas, good ones. Was the cost estimate from a Estimater? If it really is that much, I may just drop the car off at the body shop.
 
you could look at swapping all of your stuff over into a donor car, find a base model coug for real cheap and go at it. this would depend on what you're more comfortable with though, i personally would rather do the work of swapping all the equipment over than do body work. but thats me. you would still have to do some exterior mods to make it look right, but it might be easier depending on the amount of damage. good luck man.
 
did'nt see the picture the first time ,im thinking another car now that i did see it
take whats still good
cheers
 
Honestly, if you want to save it, take it to a reputable shop. I've done this for a living for 10 years. This is a major operation that could require the removal of the engine if the shock tower needs to be replaced. It may not look like it has frame damage, but I can almost guarantee that it does and it will need to be pulled on a frame machine. A good shop will want to do this to ensure that everything will be back to factory specs. I know you want to save money, but you will be money ahead to just have someone do it. It is difficult for a shop to finish a job if someone has already started work on the car. Please consider it carefully before you do anything to it. If you are near Omaha, I would look at it for you.
 
Thanks, Ive been having a hard time finding someone that doesn't just do 'insurance' work lately. I have friends that do body work at decent shops, but will not pull anything else in. I will be searching when we get off of cruise, till then it will rest in the garage.
 
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