[T3] Newbie with dumb questions.

[Bobsnotch at aol.com]

In a message dated 1/27/2011 4:51:05 P.M. Eastern Standard Time,  
topnotch at nycap.rr.com writes:

It is a  very stock survivor with no rust or dents.  Ran great when parked
but  the Thing was so much more fun to drive. 

I hate  the "Ivory" off white so am planning a paint job.  I have 3  parts
cars, 1 of which is a older swing axle fastback.

I know the  back fenders are easily enough swapped.  My question is: Does
anyone  know how difficult oe even possible to swap the front clip.  I know 
 I
will have to cut out the front apron but beyond that I don't know how  much
more it would entail.

BOB will chime in here, but its a lot  more work than finding a nice 69 on
the samba and starting  there.

Keith




The biggest problem with "ran great when parked" is that time really isn't  
kind to our cars. Things start going downhill quickly, and usually it's the 
 brake and fuel systems that go first, followed by electrical "gremlins", 
that  just pop up out of no where. So keep this in mind when "resurrecting" a 
parked  car. Our cars suffer from brake hoses "going bad" from not being 
used, along  with calipers "sticking". The fuel pump will most likely be 
rusted  (water/condensation in the fuel tank, and the pump below it), and the 
fuel hoses  rotted (due to age).
 
As for "back dating" the front clip, it's a lot of work. Nothing  
interchanges between the early and the late front clips. If you want an early  clip 
on a late car, you'll need to "clip it" at the windshield posts, and the  
rockers to make it "easier". I went thru this when I "clipped" my 71 Notch,  
although I used another 71 clip. This method worked well, and ALL the bolts 
were  inserted before any tack welding took place. Getting the WS posts to 
line up was  the hard part of the job, but it wasn't bad (take measurements 
before, during  and after cutting). I used a good windshield (without the seal) 
to check the  opening, before I finished welding, in case I needed to 
adjust something. I  also cut long, and trimmed to fit. I think I spent 2 days 
getting it where  I liked before I fully welded it. For the rockers, my outer 
skins had rust on  them, so I replaced the outers after I finished tieing in 
the heater tubes. I  used those couplers you see for bugs to join them 
together, and welded what I  could access. Then the new skins went on sealing 
everything up (epoxy primed  them without the skin first), as I didn't want to 
get back in there again. Like  Keith mentioned, finding a 69 is probably 
easier (best of the early cars, with  IRS, and FI). I hope this helps.  

Bob 65 Notch  S with sunroof and IRS (Krusty)
71 Notch (Krunchy)
64 T-34 Ghia  (Wolfie)
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