DHC repairs #18: RH rear floor and bulkhead

This afternoon I again received a set of photographs from the workshop to report on the progress so far of the DHC’s body work repairs. And as the title of this post indicates, in the past week and a half, repairs have been carried out on rear of the right hand cabin floor and the adjacent section of the rear bulk head. A selection of pictures to illustrate the work done. Clearly a fair amount of more work than first anticipated!

DHC repairs #17: RH rear wing

Received another set of photographs from the workshop last Monday. They are from the repairs of the right hand rear outer wing. Turned out to be a slightly tricky repair because I want to retain as much metal from the original body shell as possible. And that includes the car’s original VIN number in the right hand side boot gutter.

It turned out that, despite an old sloppy rust repair and some serious rust to the rear of the outer wing’s wheel arch, the inner wing was in pretty good condition. No work needed there! For the rest pictures below should tell their own story;

DHC repairs #16: A visit to the workshop

The previous weekend I went over to the workshop to be informed on the progress of the DHC’s body repairs. I have to admit I was well pleased with the work done so far. But also with the quality of the work! A few detail pictures of some of the repaired areas.

Picture #1

Picture #2

To start with the front of the right hand sill. As can be seen in the picture at the top of this post the inner sill hardly needed any work. Which was a good thing. If that had needed more extensive repairs, it would have been necessary to remove the body from the rotisserie. This would have been the only way to ensure the weakened body would be supported enough. Luckily the simple brace shown in the photo above was sufficient.

But there was a slight issue. The bottom lip of the strengthening panel at the front of sill (Picture #1) was hardly long enough, resulting in the original spot welds sitting right at the lower edge of the panel. Not good for spreading the loads properly. So the lower lip was rectified a little in that area to give some extra strength.

For the repairs at the front of the sill (Picture #2) it was decided not to weld it in position yet. This way there is a little more movement for the trial fitting and positioning of the RH inner wing of the front wing. But while working in this area it turned out that the body had sagged a little when part of the inner sill was removed (with the outer sill completely removed already). It was only 3 mm, but an extra temporary brace was fitted to rectify the measurements. Some cross measurements afterwards showed that everything was well within the factory tolerances again.

Picture #3

Picture #4

Picture #5

Pictures #3 and #4 show the rear area of the right hand outer sill. This part of the job turned out to be pretty straightforward. But again the inside strengthener needed some rectification to get a proper fit, and enough material to spread the load properly. Though not as much as the one at the front. Picture #5 shows trial fitting of the replacement RH inner rear lower sill.

Final area to inspect were the repairs on top of the right hand rear chassis leg. The original closing panel was so thin in places that it was decided to replace it with a solid one from the donor body. And the rusty lower part if the RH rear inner wing was replaced with a piece of sheet steel and CAD (Cardboard Aided Design). Sounds straight forward, but it wasn’t! Working space was rather limited making it a pretty time consuming job. And grinding down the welding was even more of a challenge. Luckily that doesn’t affect its strength and it will be hidden from view ones the car is finished. To be continued.

DHC repairs #15: RH rear chassis leg

To end a productive week on the repairs of the DHC’s body shell we had a look at right hand rear chassis leg. It turned out that the top of this chassis leg (in the fuel tank area) was rather thin. So more rusty metal had to be removed. To be replaced with solid sheet steel picked from the donor body.

DHC repairs #14: RH rear wing area

Due to the summer holidays (not mine yet!) there is more progress to report on the DHC’s body shell. This time of the repairs done to the right hand side of the rear wing area. Turned out to be a bit of a challenge as the car’s VIN number is stamped in the right hand side boot gutter. And as it is the car’s original VIN number that had to be retained! A few more pictures of the progress;

DHC repairs #13: RH sill area

It has been a bit quiet on this part of my TR7 ownership. But sure enough, there has been progress! I received some pictures of the body shell’s current state yesterday. Proof of the progress on the repairs of the DHC’s donor body shell so far. Replacing the right hand sill and the repairs off the adjacent areas. A selection of some of the pictures:

DHC repairs #12: Start of the body repairs

Last weekend I visited the workshop where the DHC’s body is undergoing some much needed repairs. First job was inspecting the pile of body parts left over from the donor body shell. The result of drilling and grinding every evening for two weeks. A small selection of the most important parts for the body’s repairs;

The left hand rear wing.

The panel covering the front of the right hand rear chassis leg.

The strengthening on the inside of the right hand B-post

The inside of the left hand outer sill and the B-post panel.

Strengthening panel inside the front of the right hand rear chassis leg

The rear chassis legs.

And with the various parts inspected it was time to put the angle grinder into the body. But not before a simple brace was fitted to prevent distortion of the body. To check this, the doors were also fitted to the body. And some control measurements were taken.

After which it was time to put the angle grinder to the right hand sill. As you can see there is a fair amount of tin worm in that sill;

The old sill and its second hand replacement.