Full of surprises. A 72 tii from the northeast

[Tommy]

There is just something quite satisfying about re-creating parts out of metal. Especially without any real metal working tools (I am quite proud of myself if you haven't noticed).

You got that right. You can take each part as a new challenge and the feeling is nice when you're happy with result. Sometimes it may be a bit boring when you need to do the same again on the other side. I'm so glad to see there's few guys who get some help from my blog.

Tommy

[LS1CMR]

Just curious, what kind of shipping cost for the replacement panels? I live in Atlanta and need to order some stuff for my 76 2002 project and was wondering how easy they are to deal with. thanks Chris M.

[markmac]

Pretty amazing. Maybe I missed it somewhere but did you know going into the purchase of the car how bad the metal was? ..... and based on what you know now and what you have done what would you say is the percentage of metal that is original (or what percent have you replaced).... seems like a very small number as to what hasn't been replaced or worked on. Nice work though.

www.alpinabmw2002.com

[stymee]

Just curious, what kind of shipping cost for the replacement panels? I live in Atlanta and need to order some stuff for my 76 2002 project and was wondering how easy they are to deal with. thanks Chris M.

I've placed 3 orders with Walloth & Nesch so far, and each time they have been a pleasure to deal with. They are quick to reply, quick to ship and the panels have been high quality and fit very well. Shipping is expensive but not unreasonable, my orders have probably averaged around $70. Each time I have received my parts within 7 days of placing the order, some times it was the same week! It would probably be cheaper to buy the panels in the states, but I believe some of the panels are W&N exclusive.

[stymee]

Pretty amazing. Maybe I missed it somewhere but did you know going into the purchase of the car how bad the metal was? ..... and based on what you know now and what you have done what would you say is the percentage of metal that is original (or what percent have you replaced).... seems like a very small number as to what hasn't been replaced or worked on

I was blinded by a decent, recent bare metal paint job, fresh rubber/seals everywhere, new motor, 5 speed swap and a ton of receipts. Unfortunately, the "bare metal" didn't include any work on the underside!

I knew there was rust. I didn't think it was any where near as bad as it turned out to be. This car has been saved from the crusher at least twice before. I feel like an archaeologist some times as I dig into the layers. I bet some of the repairs are at least 20 years old. The most recent ones (and some of the worst) are only a couple years old. Here is my guess on what has been replaced/repaired.

Before me:

Nose (it's a late nose on a roundie, doh!) (done well)

Trunk floor (done well)

Both rear quarters (done well)

Passenger Door

Both rockers (done well)

Both rear subframe mount areas (passenger side ok, drivers was crap)

Some random spots on the rear floor (done ok, but lapped)

Drivers floor (possibly several times) (terribad)

Passenger floor (horrendous)

Passenger frame rail (bad bad)

Since I've had it, here is the rust repair I've completed (or will eventually):

Both A columns

Both front and rear floors

Inner rockers both sides

Both frame rails

Drivers rear subframe mount area

Drivers rear wheel well, wheel arch, lower quarter

OMG. I never listed it all before, so I would say over 50% by weight of the sheet is not original! As my first endeavor into rust repair, I think I picked a winner (LOL). Would I do it again? Probably not. But after this I ain't skeered of nothin'. (queue southern twang)

Thanks for watching!

[stymee]

I'm so glad to see there's few guys who get some help from my blog.

You have no idea! If it weren't for your thread and a few others I would have just gave up. I hope some day another '02 is saved from the crusher because of my thread.

[kris]

Unbelievable work! You saved that car from the crusher!

[LS1CMR]

I've placed 3 orders with Walloth & Nesch so far, and each time they have been a pleasure to deal with. They are quick to reply, quick to ship and the panels have been high quality and fit very well. Shipping is expensive but not unreasonable, my orders have probably averaged around $70. Each time I have received my parts within 7 days of placing the order, some times it was the same week! It would probably be cheaper to buy the panels in the states, but I believe some of the panels are W&N exclusive.

so i take it you just e-mail or call with what you need and they give you a quote and total price?

[Tommy]

so i take it you just e-mail or call with what you need and they give you a quote and total price?

E-mail in english works well with W&N.

Tommy

[stymee]

so i take it you just e-mail or call with what you need and they give you a quote and total price?

E-mail in english works well with W&N.

I always send them an email with the items I want (sometimes I even copy the picture). Include your address! They will send you back an offer in a pdf that will include the shipping charges.

[adamjspooner]

I pulled the vent window assembly from my car over the weekend. I've attached an annotated image of your door. The vent window actuator is attached to the vent window by one bolt (blue). The actuator is held to the door by two bolts (purple). The rest of the bolts (yellow) attach the vent window assembly to the door. Note, the vent window assembly and the front of the main window track are one piece. So, be careful not to bend it.

[stymee]

I pulled the vent window assembly from my car over the weekend. I've attached an annotated image of your door. The vent window actuator is attached to the vent window by one bolt (blue). The actuator is held to the door by two bolts (purple). The rest of the bolts (yellow) attach the vent window assembly to the door. Note, the vent window assembly and the front of the main window track are one piece. So, be careful not to bend it.

DOH. I missed that bolt up near the front (inside the door). No wonder I thought it was stuck. I will give it another try with this added info. Thanks a ton for the help!

[LS1CMR]

i do suggest once you are done with all the metal work use a cavity wax to preserve what you have done, it will put a coating on the inside where you cant see and keep it from rusting again. its used in all newer cars and often referred to as corrosion protection.

[stymee]

i do suggest once you are done with all the metal work use a cavity wax to preserve what you have done

I will definitely do this. I want this car to last another 40 years.

[stymee]

I had a pretty good week working on the car. Finally got the vent windows out of the doors. It was actually the little tab on the mechanism that was hanging up. Just took a little persuasion to get it separated. I then removed all of the trim and everything from the doors. I did this because it looked like there might be some rust starting around the trim holes. I figure I can take care of that easier with all the trim removed.

I am still wondering why my passenger door has a lot of extra reinforcement, while the drivers is nothing but the skin.

I also found that the tie in at the top of the drivers door was completely separated. This may be the source of the rattle when I would close the door! Should be an easy fix. The passenger side was still connected by one weld.

Enough with the doors. Lets get on to something more fun! Here is the part of upper frame rail that I fabricated all grafted in.

Then I tacked in the floor so I could finish fabricating and fitting the rest of the new frame rail. Once again, these little clamps were awesome. My short arms wouldn't reach from both sides to install them, so I used a magnet to hold the little bar in place while I tightened the wing nut. I had some pretty big gaps to fill, but I am getting good at that!

I spent some time with a hammer and dolly to get the indentions to line up better.

Here is the new passenger frame rail all fabbed, fitted, prep'd and ready to be welded in. I coated as much of the inside as I could with POR-15, and then gave the rest of it a nice coat of weld thru primer. I did the same with the underside of the floor pan.

Here's a shot from the top after all the plug welds were in.

And a shot of the rail before I sewed up all the seams. I used my jack to hold it tight agains the floor while I got a few plug welds in.

Almost done. I decided to weld the entire seam along the front of the pan (like I did on the other side).

And cleaned up (some). I still need to go back over it again with the sanding disc. I need to learn how to make a flatter weld!

Feels good to have a solid floor again! That old repair was a little flimsy. I can jump up and down on this thing and it doesn't budge! Now I can jack the car up under the rails or the original jack points, imagine that!

Hopefully my rear subframe will be back from powder coat soon so I can finish up the drivers side subframe mount area and wheel arch. Once that is done, it's time to drop the motor/tranny out the bottom and start working on the front wheel wells and the engine compartment. Stay tuned!