ok i'm gonna start fixing the damage on my 89 iroc-z but i'm wondering if there's gonna be any interest on this thread so please reply and let me know if you guys want me to keep posting my progress on it on a "HOW TO" type of thread

this what i would be covering if INTEREST IS SHOWN:

how to:
decide were to make your cuts
cut damaged panel
prep panel to be welded
overlap and fuse panels together
general body work
reseal seems
*maybe* straighten supports
proper way to fix plastic bumpers (bumper from jnkyard might need work)
fiberglass

and probably more along the way

i'll leave it under the discretion of the MODS to either lock or delete this thread if no interest is shown.....

here is what the damage is:

 

Looking forward to seeing the process. Post plenty of pics.

 

any rear frame damage ? suspension damage? axle bent? is it all cosmetic ? looks like a lot of work, but yet again looks like sail panel, inner fender, rear bumper taillight, and some metal work to the trunk floor and corner. Good luck. it looks like an easy fix, but take the time do it right, great prep work makes for a great finish product... dont forget pics too

 

mainly cosmetic most of the panels will be replaced I WILL take lots of detailed pics... hope you guys benefit from this thread...

 

I for one am looking forward to it(there no telling what terrors lay under my primer) and being a former body man myself it may jog my memory

 

I'll be watching your rebuild, Good Luck.

 

Heres a link to Fyrchickens quarter panel replacement on his ride.
Excellent description and great pics of the whole process from start to
finish! A must read for anyone!

https://www.thirdgen.org/forums/body...ter-panel.html

 

Looking forward to seeing this. Hope it all goes well for you.

 

Consider me interested!

 

AAALLLL RIIIIGHT THANX guys i just wanted to find out there were people interested on something like it i will be posting alotta pics and i will be detailed step by step... since im taking my time to fix it right bare with me please....

I'll keep u all posted

 

bump.....good luck

 

You beat me to it! Although, I didn't have to replace the inner panel. All the damage on that car was external. It's A LOT of fun...

There is a factory seam at the top of the sail panel that I cut on. If you sand the paint off to bare metal you can see it very easily. Everywhere else I suggest drilling out the pinch welds. If you do that then it will all come apart relatively easy...except for where it has the adhesive.

 

ya i know spot weld drill bit its my girlfriend and for the parts with seem sealer wire brush wheel and air chisel are my helpers lol done this dozen times its gonna be easy but i wanna do the write up very very detailed for people to get something out of it.

 

Im interested.

When are you gunna start tearin into it?

 

wow. I have an 89 firebird with rear end damage too just about as bad too let me know how it works out for you

 

im gonna start chopping it on friday after work..

 

ill be into it. Always love seeing camaros gettin fixed up and put back on the road instead of parting and crushing them.

good luck! looking 4ward to pics

 

and the fun begins

this is the tool used to drill the spot welds out:






when drilling spot welds you gotta be careful not to go all the way through the first couple times you might do it but after a while you get use to feeling the drill bit cutting through each individual panels so you just fill when you drilled the first layer.

 

My initial cutting will be right here to get the old qt panel out of the way but it will probably be my joining point also...



BUT WHY THERE AND NOT HIGHER WHERE THE OG SEAM IS? many of you might ask

well it has a simple logical explanation but i will explain why when i get the new panel in place

 

this is the donor vehicle.... NO OFFENSE but this is the only thing Camaro rs v6's are good good for (donating their organs)

now you see it



now you dont

 

its easier to cut the majority of the panel with a a sawzall (without damaging reusable parts) and then trim the small pieces left behind to clean up and get it ready for the new panel to go in. i separated the spot welds with an air chisel, its faster easier and, MAN U GOTTA LOVE THAT NOISE!!!!!!!!

 

Am I the only one who can't see the new pictures?

EDIT: never mind thanks for fixing that lol

 

I saw em' yesterday, but now I cant.

 

i apologize i had the album on private lol sry.

 

enough for today ....after 2 hrs in the junk yard and 4hr workin at home the iroc its ready and waiting for the new panel to go in heres how it looks right now







total hrs so far: 7.5
total $ invested : $87.50

 

looking good, did you put the car on a frame machine at all to get to pulled straight again??

 

I was gonna say the same thing I would have had that thing pulled instead of just cutting it all up but it looks like you know what your doing

 

you should always get the car checked before cutting, i have to do the same thing to my firebird that got hit way less and iam still having the frame measured so nothing comes back for a surprise.i also wish people would be nice enough to hit your car so that you could just buy the aftermarket skins and not do the work twice.

 

i checked everything before cutting the car didn't have any frame damage, any time a car gets hit to that point it shows it right away ( doors are crooked, frame rails buckled, unibody supports shows damage etc) since i own two camaros i compared every single measurement, joint factory shapes b4 deciding where to cut, i did pulled a little with a comealong just to release some stress from the metal but IM 1000000000000% sure it didnt required the use of a frame machine .

 

time to prep the new panel







in some cases you get better results if you weld inside the car, its esier to work and it looks cleaner on the outside so that means lesssssssssssss cosmetic work ...

 

Lookin real good!

And this car came with a PBR rear?! Hell of a deal for $500.

 

here are some pics of the wheel well if you look closely you'll notice they're not joined together by spot welds like the rest of the panels



the red line shows where gm welded all the way down to join the outer and inner wheel well.... the blue line and circles show where i will weld... i will be drilling wholes on the inner wheel well of the iroc and where the blue circles are and weld it from the inside and then the contour line will be welded from under the car





i decided not to separate the outer wheel well from the quarter panel, instead im gonna wild it together to the unibody of the car, that saves time and work and you end up with a factory looking wheel well edge without using any bondo to cover the welds


this is what i got so far:

 

heeeeeelllll yea and i stiiiillll can't believe it lol

 

the air compressor i was using gave up on me, i guess couldn't handle my tools lol guess i need to go get mine after all... so i'll update soon as i get it.

 

We Want More!! Get your air compressor all ready

 

Indeed looking forward toward an update

 

IM sorry guys i had to stop project CALIFORNIA dmv wont let me get it back on the streets, when the insurance got involved they notified dv that it was only gonna be used for parts and wouldnt be fixed so they wont let me fix it so i will be using some parts on my z28 and the rest i will sell, if any of you is looking for something let me know...

SOOOOOOORRRRRYYYYYYY

 

wow that is such a shame. you obviously know what your doing and would have fixed it rite.

 

yea too bad previous owner didn't know how to deal with the insurance and dmv WOULD let me get it back on the street but the fee is outrageous thats why they said they cant do it

 

That seriously sucks.

 

Talk about an extreme bummer I was thuroughly enjoying this write-up just incase I ever had a fender bender. but thats OK since between frychikin and you there was great information. Thanx anyway

 

interesting, ill keep watching

 

yup i was freaking mad... i apologize to all of you.... on the bright side im gonna start fixing the nose on my car so i will make a detail write up of how to fix the stress cracks on it and i know thats a very common problem thats why ill make a thread bout it

 

WOO HOO !! Just the other stuff I need

 

What a bummer. I'm sorry to hear about your run in w/California DMV. California sure loves to rake people over the cliff!!

 

yup and i don't know if you know but now they lower the emissions standards for cars ours age they sure want to take cars out of the street because of the "environment"... my a**.... yea the environment of money thats is...