Quote:
Originally Posted by dataway
I'd bet that a ton of people that have mystery front end sheet metal problems actually have a body on the chassis slightly askew problem.
I'm definitely going to keep the body mounts loose till I get all the panels sorted.
Going to hate taking my doors off ... they are absolutely perfect right now, open and close like a brand new car.
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While in the body work stage, I probably test fit all the panels about 5 or 6 times. Breaking it all down to just bare body on frame each time. I struggled a bit with the front sheet metal fitment and then I discovered that I needed shims under the right body to frame mount pad on the firewall/cowl. I actually needed about 3/16" there which I accomplished by adding some thick washers that were the same size as came with the body mount kit.
For me, everything started atthat point. Once I found the right position at those two body mount points at the firewall then everything seemed to fall into place from there. The remainder of the body to frame mounts aligned nicely and the front clip fit so much better. My only slight complaint is how the rear bumper fits. I would like it to fit a little closer to the body but I haven't finished adjusting it yet so maybe I can find some improvement there.
My advice is to fit the body (with doors) to the frame where you like it and tighten the mounts and then fit the core support to the frame loosely. Then fit the fenders and square it up horizontally as well as vertically. If you find fender to door gap issues then you might need to shim one side of the body at the frame mount points to raise one corner slightly.
I found that measuring from the frame to upper fender mount point in the firewall was helpful to get the body positioned on the frame.
I hope you find some of this info helpful with your build.