Hey all,


I just left a body shop that Gerber recently purchased. Their gain, my loss. They used to be an awesome hotrod/body shop, but not anymore. Anyway, even though they won't work on my car they were full of info and advice. The bottom line is I have a nice car, but...


Ok, so I went to them because the passenger door sometimes won't open and the driver side door is starting to hit the jamb. I went there to see how much for adjustments. What they told me was my frame is starting to thin out in a number of areas and even if they would fix the panels I'd be back in 6-12 months to have it done again. They suggested a modern "set up" and told me a roller (frame, suspension, brakes) is about $25K.


Are they right? Are there less expensive options? Are there any performance/body shops you can recommend in northern Illinois or SE Wisconsin for second opinions?


Thanks,
Mark

 

I've seen a lot of very nice convertibles go for $15k, that being said $25k for a rolling chassis seems like waaay too much.

 

In my experiance and with out seeing your car, I would look at rebuilding your door hinges. If your car has rust it's also possible that the cowl is broken loose from the rocker panels. Open your doors and lift up at the back of them and see what moves. You should be able to see if there is extra movment in the hinges. If when you lift up on your doors the top of the windshield frame moves alot, that would mean that the cowl is broken loose at the bottom. It would be very unlikely that a weak frame would cause problems with door openings unless the body was very weak also. ~BOB

 

The door alignment is pretty bad on my Hooptie Two ('67 vert) and replacing the body bushings has improved the fit a great deal. I still have a lot of work to do before I replace the hinges even though I have them. On the first Hooptie, I replaced the bushings with Polyurethane bushings because I found a really good deal on them and it was solid! Straighten out the body on the frame first then replace the door hinges for the best results.

 

Is the frame rotted, was this verified and confirmed by you? A replacement stock frame would be the most cost effective route if this is the case.

 

I'm gonna guess you took it to the roadster shop which is owned by gerber. Top quality work top shelf price. If you want I can look at your frame and tell you how bad it is. I just fixed a few spots on my frame . I'm a body man so I did all my own work. I documented it on my thread Re vamping the old girl.

 

70Cuddy, That's what I was thinking as he said it.

 

Carshinebob, the hinges are fine. He grabbed the doors and lifted up and down a few times and said, this isn't the problem... and then he dove under the car and started talking about the frame being thin in areas.

 

Hey CopperCutlass! That'd be awesome. I'll send you a private message with my contact info.

 

BTW. I have a convertible frame for sale. http://jxn.craigslist.org/pts/4644969991.html

~BOB

 

You probably have the same issue I had. The front bushing mounts which are welded to the firewall collapsed because of rust if the body droops down the the door gaps are off. this is assuming he made sure all your gaps where square because just because a door will not move up and down does not mean the bushing is not worn out . The thin spots on most frames can be repaired I did to mine . I spent under 500 in parts . You might have more collateral damage like brake lines that will break , fuel lines etc. little things like that. I prepped the car over one week. Pulled the engine , and everything else that needed to be done to properly do it with ease . Me and my friend knocked all the work out in one 3 day weekend . I could have had it back together much faster but I did a lot of other things as well that I wanted/needed to do. This is if you wanted to do the work yourself. If a shop did it., it can vary in price.

 

[QUOTE=coppercutlass;751763]You probably have the same issue I had. The front bushing mounts which are welded to the firewall collapsed because of rust if the body droops down the the door gaps are off. The thin spots on most frames can be repaired I did to mine . I spent under 500 in parts . You might have more collateral damage like brake lines that will break , fuel lines etc. little things like that.


You might be spot on with the collateral damage. I just started to leak fuel from a line near the tank. Taking it to my mechanic tomorrow to get it fixed. I got your contact info... I'll text you later. I work from home a few days a week so maybe I can swing by your place of work during lunch so you can look at it?

 

A fuel leak by the tank is probably just rust and old age and it probably was held together by rust one bump and it crumbles. By collateral damage I'm talking about when its reapired there will be things that will have to be replaced because chances are they will break no matter what.