I'm thinking of separating the body from the frame on my '65 Cutlass Holiday coupe. I would do this after I pull the engine and tranny for their rebuild. Does anyone have a list of things to disconnect/remove prior to lifting the body?
I saw someone (maybe on this site) do this with jacks and wood boards. Has anyone ever seen this done?

I basically want to separate the body and frame, pull the frame out so I can clean off all the grime and then replace the bushings.

Am I setting myself up for a nightmare? I'm open to suggestions or links on how to get this done. I'm trying not to pay the body shop for things that can be done with patience and time by me (and friends).

Thanks.

 

after the front end sheet metal is removed all you have to do is unhook the wire harness from the firewall and the steering column loose from the steering gear box and a couple ground straps around the gas tank and remove the gas tank. take out all the body mount bushings and have 6 guys lift it up while someone else sets up the stand. we used 4 55 gallon drums with a 4X4 wood post from the right side to the left side at both ends of the body. if you did not remove the interior then you will want to use jacks. we did it with 4 guys. after the engine, transmition, front end metal and tank is off there is nothing to it.

 

you do not have to remove the engine and transmission to do this. if you don't you will have to make sure the transmission linkage is unhooked and other little items. the front end will have to be removed first.

 

almost forgot. you will have to take the brake lines off the master cylinder.

 

It isn't too bad. We ran a 2X6 across the front of the fire wall and used the fender bolt holes on the firewall to support the board and the cherry picker lifted the front of the body off and a chain hoist from the cieling around the trunk latch support lifted the rear.

 

I think you'll have to disconned the emergency brake cable too, but it's not too difficult to pull the body off. One other thing, I like to take lots and lots of digital photos so if at some future time I'm trying to figure out just how that bracket went on I have a reference to check. John

 

I did it in my drive way with 2 farm jacks, 2 4X4's and a bunch of cinder blocks. My garage would not support lifting the weight of the body. Need three guys, two to operate the jacks and one to move cinder blocks and be a safety observer.

 

2blu442 is correct about the digital pictures. it helps alot

 

Thanks guys. I had it in my head that it shouldn't be too hard, especially since the interior is out and the engine and trans will be out too. You guys gave me the confirmation I needed to keep this project moving forward. Now I just have to convince the wife that it's OK for her to park outside for a little while. The knowledge and "can do" on this site is outstanding.

 

Oh...and there's plenty of pictures of this dismantling. If not, I'd be screwed when it comes time to reassemble. I can't trust my memory. hahahaha.

 

It would be a good idea to take measurements of body on frame at front and rear so as to align it when you set the body back onto the frame. when i did mine i measured out from the frame to the body and made a diagram on paper showing the location and measurements on both sides ,front and back.

rocwal
Dan B

 

If you figure out how to get your wife to park outside, let me know how you did it. Part of the deal when we got married was that the garage was MINE. That flew out the door immediately after getting a house that had one, WTF! any way...

 

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TK-65, Thanks. I love this forum. Everyone has definitely been willing to share and help keep these beauties alive and kickin. Now if I could just get into the garage and get back to work, all would be good with life.

 

looks like you drew short straw Dave and had to be the one who crawled under the car while your son watched . Did you you lift at first from side?

 

FireFrost:
Dumb question: Do you have to remove any/or all the glass when taking the body off the frame? Can the back glass stay in? or would breakage occur? I would guess you would take off the doors and crank the quarter window down into the body section...I have a 72 S I will be working on until I die and would LOVE to take the frame off. Thanks
SJW

 

No its not dumb I have seen it both ways but if you are taking the body off and plan on stripping and painting I would , then you wont brake it and will be lighter plus you will want to strip and prep the glass channels . some on here have left the glass in their vista wagons and didn't brake them so can be done either way

 

How much more body support does the 69 442 convertible need for keeping the body from flexing and damage? How would I do it in my home garage??

 

Back in 1982, I decided to remove my '67 Cutlass body from the frame to fix a twisted frame. I got the body up about 30-45 inches (can't remember) off the ground and supported it with two laminated eight foot 2x4's held up with homemade braces. I placed these braces (unfortunately) across the rear wheel wells and at the bottom of the firewall at the tranny tunnel. Since I've not stored anything in it or done any work on it since 1984, I checked for flex in 2000. I noticed no droop or bend. Maybe I've been lucky, or just biding my time until it wishbones. I'm not sure but the car appears to be built well enough to support without damage. As far as how, these pictures above are a good method, YMMV.

 

Did you leave the doors on, front glass and conv top on? I have the front fenders off and the interior out for floor board work. I'd sure like to do a thorough go thru on the frame, suspension and underbody. Thanks for your reply.

 

I left the doors on (added stability to the overall body),windows still in. The interior had just been redone and installed, so i left it in.

 

I'm no expert, I just winged it and hoped. The car is STILL on the stands (I moved to SoCal from NorCal) and am desperately trying to find a way to get up there to work on it. Money is a BIG issue for me and many others. Go here https://classicoldsmobile.com/forums...8-01-10-a.html

It's a great thread and addresses a convertible resto ground up. It was done by one of the moderators and I'm using it as my future guide for my project.

 

You've given me hope for a frame off for my conv. Thanks again.

 

Cool. Good luck, hope you have a successful project. For the record, I'd leave the doors on for stability, but others may have a different position. I do know of another forum member that took the body off using jacks, 4x4's and cinder blocks. He had pictures on his thread where he did something similar. I'm envious of him, he also has a homemade rotisserie he picked up. I believe his user profile name is Ranzan and I think this is the thread:

https://classicoldsmobile.com/forums...r-3-years.html

 

Here's how I did mine:

https://classicoldsmobile.com/forums...tml#post206083

 

I know this is a bit older post but since I am new to this and just got my first olds (1965 442) last week I found it very helpful.

Thanks for posting.

Todd

 

You are the first poster in a long time to spell "separating" correctly. Thanks for easing the load on my eyes. I did my car the opposite of most people, and it worked well doing everything by myself. I removed the front clip, engine and transmission, and installed wheels without tires on the rear. Then I jacked up one end and then the other, supporting the rear of the body under the pinch welds on the sides with oil drums, etc. The front I supported with a big saw horse that bolts to the firewall at the body mount reinforcements with L brackets, and goes outboard enough that I could roll the frame out while the body was in the air. This way I could use a standard floor jack to lift the car safely. The only "disadvantage" is that the frame was then supported well but not on a rotisserie. I put the frame on a rotisserie made from two engine stands, but didn't do that for the body, as the underside didn't need all that much massaging.