SSflyer Posted December 3, 2004 Share Posted December 3, 2004 I've installed MSA fiberglass flares and have a question about finishing off the rear wheelwells. I removed the outer half of the wheelwells to glue the flares in and am now fitting new sheetmetal from the center seam out to the flare. (The plan is to use Automix to glue this 'finisher' to the inside of the flare and then fiberglass over the joint.) The problem is the brace that goes down from the back of the strut tower and ties into the wheelwell. It sticks down 2-3 inches below the line of the new wheelwell. With a lowered car I'm afraid the brace point might rub the tire. I don't really want to rework the brace itself (LOTS of extra work!), but don't see any other option. Any ideas?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan Juday Posted December 3, 2004 Share Posted December 3, 2004 You need to rework that brace or your tires will rub. More important though is that you need to reconnect the wheelhouse back to the outer fender with something more substantial than glue and fiberglass. The wheelhouse to fender connection is a structural member of the unibody. Either weld the two back together or use mechanical fasteners. Other wise you risk flexing and bending and all that glue and fiberglass is just going to fall out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blueovalz Posted December 3, 2004 Share Posted December 3, 2004 Right on Dan! My personal experience was that when I attached my fiberglass flares, I addressed the issue of the wheel well by welding sheet metal straight out from the well seam (that runs down the center ling of the wheel well) in a line parallel to the axle all the way around the well. This then made the top limits of tire travel at the OEM well location (the height of the seam so to speak), so basically nothing was changed except the metal lip (or instead, what is left of the OEM quarter panel), which is now the same height as the seam is. With that said, the lowering of the car, in addition to 26" tall tires, has not caused the tires to rub the seam area of the OEM well. Now with the strut support structure resting over this location, it would seem that it too would be out of reach of the tire as well. But just seeing sharp, exposed areas of metal over the top of the tire would spook me too. Is there any way you can tie the back half of the well out to the OEM quarter panel with welded sheet metal to cover this strut structure, AND to replace some of the OEM unibody integrity? I'm afraid the glass is not going to stand up to the stresses created by the separation of these (originally joined pieces of the exterior quarter panel and the inner wheel well) parts as they were indeed a part of the unibody. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SSflyer Posted December 4, 2004 Author Share Posted December 4, 2004 Wow! The two guys who I hoped would respond both did! I remember from an earlier post what you said about tying both parts back together, so that's still the plan. The fiberglassed panel is intended for cosmetics only, sort of like the fender liners in the front wheelwells, but no matter how I've fit things together, that brace is still in the way. I don't mind spending the time to rework it, but I want to be sure I'm not missing a better answer. Thanks for the advice guys! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan Juday Posted December 4, 2004 Share Posted December 4, 2004 Ah, sorry, I misunderstood you. Yes fender liners are a good idea. Fiberglass may not hold up to well to small rocks and pebbles thown up from the tires though. I made my liners out of thin (.030") aluminum. I pop rivited it to the inner wheelhouse and ran pinch weld moulding around the edge that touchs the outer fiberglass fender. Then I caulked it with duct sealer and sprayed the new fender wells with body Schutz. All the parts were pretty cheap. I used the cardboard from cerial boxes to make the patterns for the liners. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
speeder Posted December 4, 2004 Share Posted December 4, 2004 Sorry to hijack, but... Dan, What are the width and offset/backspace of your wheels? I need more flare and am seriously contemplating the 280YZs - but am afraid they will be too wide. I want to run 10.5X17s. (Back on topic) This is great information if I do go with the 280YZ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan Juday Posted December 5, 2004 Share Posted December 5, 2004 Dan' date=' What are the width and offset/backspace of your wheels? [/quote'] Front (with SubtleZ flares) 15x8x4.5"bs, 265/50/15 Rear (with modified 280YZ flares) 15x10x4.5"bs, 305/50/15 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SSflyer Posted December 12, 2004 Author Share Posted December 12, 2004 Update.......... Much ado about nothing! A simple v-notch in the brace, a little patch welding, and the problem went away. Fifteen minutes tops. The inner and outer fenders are now braced together, and the new fender liners are next. Pretty time consuming to tie the inner and outer fenders together, but those little dudes are sold as a rock. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.