lvelocci

hello I pulled the top of the rad shroud off and the grill items - wanted to pull the front fenders to allow me to get better access to the engine area and clean a pile of caked on mud / underspray and oil grime around the front end.

Any help / postings / diagrams greatly appreciated.

Cheers,

Louie

70 cutlass s

What car?

lvelocci

Sorry the car is a 72 cutlass 2 door hard top.

joe_padavano

Hood has to come off first. I'd try the two bolts at the bottom of the fender behind the wheel opening, since unless this is a desert car at least one of the clip nuts will snap and spin. You'll almost certainly need to cut or grind the head of the bolt(s) off and replace the fasteners and clip nuts. The next problem area will be at the front of the inner fender, where it bolts to the core support. The fasteners under the battery tray are particularly troublesome and usually also require cutting. You don't want to use heat, since that will damage the plastic inner fender. The rest is pretty straighforward. Be sure to note the location of shims so you can put them back the same way.

lvelocci

Thanks Joe - does it make sense to take the plastic wheel well out first also?

I took the passenger side out - only one bolt snapped - it was otherwise not a big deal and I was able to really clean up the area. It was also the way I saw some surface rust on the inside of the fender which is why i want it off.

Ciao

L

joe_padavano

I've found it easier to remove the inner fender with the outer fender myself.