Sparks280zt Posted April 2, 2005 Share Posted April 2, 2005 Hey guys, I recently ordered some new metal fenders for my 76 and my god was it a biatch to put these on. I ordered them through a local body shop and im pretty sure these are the same Taiwanese crap that VB sells. It took me and the man doing my paint and body work 7 hours to put the panels from the firewall up back on. And even after all that work these fenders leave almost a half inch gap between the door and the fender the headlight buckets i have are also new and they are from VB. I probally cussed 10 times just getting the bolts to thread on those. But after some trim work the fenders went on pretty well and it came together nice. I just dont like the near half inch gap and the transition of the fender to the headlight bucket is not 100% even. My Z was wrecked so I guess this plus these "new" parts is giving me the headache. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
randy 77zt Posted April 2, 2005 Share Posted April 2, 2005 used to build salvage total cars and somtimes that repop taiwan crap wasnt worth the time it took to make it fit correctly.i always made sure to compare to oem prices -if it was close i went new oem.there are still lots of z's in california. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sparks280zt Posted April 2, 2005 Author Share Posted April 2, 2005 alas, if I was only in California where Z's live forever Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
datsunlover Posted April 2, 2005 Share Posted April 2, 2005 I've been there, cursed them... I find most aftermarket panels are pretty awefull.. Fit isn't good, holes are not 'quite right' (locations are off) and most threaded holes have to be chased prior to actually putting a bolt/screw in. Ussualy the primer they spray on them gets gumed in threads and can be a biach. I spent at least 6 hours trying to get front aftermarket doors to fit right on my bosses 89 suburban.. they still don't line up right to this day. Not to mention ALL the holes for power window motors, latch mechanisms, ect, had to be elongated/re-drilled.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sparks280zt Posted April 2, 2005 Author Share Posted April 2, 2005 i guess i can always find some good used fenders and get those painted/put on later. Right now I cant find anything descent and this car really needs to be on the road.......anyone got any good used fenders they wanna sell??? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dat240zg Posted April 6, 2005 Share Posted April 6, 2005 Actually, I have a set that I've been hanging on to that are in very nice shape. No dings, with a good amount of body work already done. They have had the running lights filled (the reason I'm not going to use them) and are in really nice shape. Give me a shout. Bryan Dat240zg Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sparks280zt Posted April 6, 2005 Author Share Posted April 6, 2005 Sounds like what im lookin for, i planned on filling my runnings lights and my rear ones are already filled. Send me some pics and we will talk. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dat240zg Posted April 7, 2005 Share Posted April 7, 2005 Will do. Give me the weekend. Bryan Dat240zg Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Georgia Flash Posted April 7, 2005 Share Posted April 7, 2005 Ah yes the dreaded aftermarket fender strikes again. When I first started coming to this site I was warned about buying Victoria British fenders and I did not listen to my elders. I bought a driver’s side fender for my then project 75 Z because the original was smashed. I was happy when it arrived all new with no dings and promptly tried bolting on the old Z. Much to my surprise the damn thing did not fit! Just like everyone pretty much had told me that it wouldn’t. That was some time ago and I have a new project 76 Z now, the blue one, and the VB fender is sitting in my storage shed collecting dust. This is partly because there is nothing wrong with my driver’s side fender on the blue Z. Ah long lessons learned. If I had all the money I wasted early in the project stages I would have my Z running by now under the power of the Chevy 350 instead of the inline motor. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sparks280zt Posted April 7, 2005 Author Share Posted April 7, 2005 i thought you got an aftermarket fender to work on your car flash??? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Georgia Flash Posted April 8, 2005 Share Posted April 8, 2005 Nope not hardly it kinda sorta went on but the bottem where it bolts to the under side of the uni body seemed to be too short. I never really could get it to fit properly even after massaging it and beating it and cussing at it. I finally gave up and figured that I would just use some sheet metal screws to hold the bottem in place since it wouldn't stretch to fit over the original bolt holes. I never got around to trying the sheet metal screws. Oh well afterall it's just money...right? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sparks280zt Posted April 8, 2005 Author Share Posted April 8, 2005 lol, did you cut the inner fender support? that was to large for me, after workin with it it worked better Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Georgia Flash Posted April 8, 2005 Share Posted April 8, 2005 I rearranged and cut and beat a lot of things trying to get it to fit with no luck. I was very unhappy with the fitment. I figured that when I got the car painted by a "professional" someday that they could get it to work. However, judging by some posts about this it seems that even the pros have problems fitting the aftermarket pieces. 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.