We left the Purple Pig last month with the new EMS lower quarter-panels tack-welded in place, and continue now by installing the rear panel and rear trunk floor section.
I fabricated a lower rear panel some 10 years ago, and will admit to not making a great job of repairing the floor section, as I was rushing to get the car on the road and out of a borrowed workshop. While the outer panel didn’t really need replacing, it sure made installing the floor section easier, plus it meant I could get rid of the old outer panel with its full width seam weld and filled original light holes.
I also took the opportunity to finally install a cable-operated trunk lid latch, as up to now I’d used a bungee cord to keep it shut! While these are available in the aftermarket, over the years I’ve used several early VW Rabbit hood latches for both hoods and trunks. They’re compact, look reasonably nice, work great, and are, or were, readily available in junkyards. My local yard happened to have an early Jetta in stock, which has the same front sheetmetal as a Rabbit, and which gave up its latch mechanism to my project, for the grand sum of $8. Junkyard hot rodding is still possible, if you have an eye for adapting late-model parts. My rear lights are a similar example.
The late-model Fiat lights come as a huge assembly with three lenses. Trimming two of the lenses off, and mounting them vertically instead of horizontally, they match the curvature of the Chevy quarters and provide late-model reflectors and bright lights, unlike the small stockers. I’ve had these on the car ever since I first built it in England, and am always receiving queries about their origins. So now you know!
The eagle-eyed amongst you will notice that I have only tack-welded the latch bracket in place and haven’t welded the center of the new floor section. This is because I have further plans for this area that involve the bumper—not because I forgot. Stay tuned …
[1] Here’s where we left off...
[1] Here’s where we left off last month, with the new lower quarter clamped in place. While there was nothing wrong with the rear panel, the lower 3 inches of which I fabricated around a decade ago, I wanted to replace the rear section of the trunk floor. After covering the fuel tank and RideTech components with a fire blanket from Harbor Freight, and protecting the coated exhaust pipes from scratches, I cut the old rear panel away using a Sawzall. You can see the weld running the full width of the old panel, where I’d previously fabricated the lower section.
[2] The EMS panels; whether...
[2] The EMS panels; whether you have rust repair to contend with, or want a smooth look without the stock taillight holes, the rear panel is ideal. The rear section of the trunk floor above it will save an awful lot of fabrication time!
[3] I elected to trim the...
[3] I elected to trim the old panel away in a dogleg fashion, in order to retain the factory trunk lid adjusters/bumpers. I wanted to join the new panel to the old as high as possible in order to make the joint above where I’d welded up the stock light holes. I retained these end sections as patterns to use later to determine the size and shape of the new light apertures. Note the measurements marked on the primer.
[4] After covering the fuel...
[4] After covering the fuel tank and RideTech components with a fire blanket from Harbor Freight, and protecting the coated exhaust pipes from scratches, I cut the old rear panel away using a Sawzall. You can see the weld running the full width of the old panel, where I’d previously fabricated the lower section.
[5] The new rear panel was...
[5] The new rear panel was temporarily clamped in place to determine where I would cut it, and where the new lower quarter-panel would need trimming to fit.
[6] As I have a sunken section...
[6] As I have a sunken section of floor housing my fuel tank and RideTech compressor and tank, I didn’t need the full depth of the floor repair panel, cutting the excess away using a nibbler.
[7] I trimmed the new floor...
[7] I trimmed the new floor panel to clear the rear body mount bolts. If you use the panel untrimmed, you’ll need to drill it to accept these bolts.
[8] Here’s the new floor panel...
[8] Here’s the new floor panel in place. You can see how it steps down to meet the lower lip of the rear panel.
[9] Self-tapping screws were...
[9] Self-tapping screws were used to locate the floor panel while the outer panel was installed. I didn’t want to weld anything at this stage in case adjustments were required.