over the summer i got a REALLY good deal on an 84 berlinetta with one problem...rust. the body is still in pretty good shape, but the underbody is terrible. I had to rebuild one of the strut towers because of how bad it was. and i was wondering, when i jack it using the front subframe, i can see a little flex in it. is this normal or am i driving a death trap? also would subframe connectors do anything for this?
i got it aligned after i did the fabrication and it seems to have kept it straight, so i dont think the chassis is bending?
and one more thing, how hard is it to replace floorboards?

 

What do you mean by you jack it by the front subframe?

Floorpans would probably be much easier than welding up a strut tower! Hell, you could even cut out the rusted areas, and rivet regular 'ol sheet metal under the carpet! Nobody's going to see it anyway. Make sure to use black silicone weatherstripping sealant between the new metal & the old floor. Aluminum rivets might be better than steel.. make sure to coat the rivets with the sealant before sticking them thru the holes.

You might want to try this stuff for mildly rusted areas underneath the car... I used their Super Starter Kit for the 1984 3.73/posi/disc rear axle I put onto my '86 car. http://www.por-15.com

Eastwood Company is now selling an undercoating remover.. it melts away the undercoating, then you remove it with a putty knife. It might speed things up for you as you go after those floorpans. http://www.eastwoodcompany.com


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-Tom P (Hot rodded 1986 Firebird 2.8l) from http://www.f-body.net/mailbag/3rd/3rd_mailbag.html message boards
---Think your car could be pic of the week? Visit http://www.f-body.net for details!

 

i jack the front of the car up for work on brakes, wheels, etc. using the part of the subframe behind the a-arms that attaches to the floorboard...its underneath where the driver or passenger put their feet. I use a floor jack, and jack only one side up at a time. I can see the frame flex about 1/8 inch or so into the floor. after its up it seems pretty solid, it doesnt begin collapsing or anything.
and thanks for the recommendations on repairing the floorboard

 

Ah, okay, I know the spot you mean. Yeah, I'd assume some sort of flex should be expected there, and if you've only got 1/8 inch flex, that sounds like it's in good shape!


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-Tom P (Hot rodded 1986 Firebird 2.8l) from http://www.f-body.net/mailbag/3rd/3rd_mailbag.html message boards
---Think your car could be pic of the week? Visit http://www.f-body.net for details!

 

cool thanks man...i can drive without fear of it splitting in half. I didnt really know chassis flex was quite a trademark of f-bodies.