Grafting and Resurection

[beetlenut1]

Got rear-ended by a drunk driver on the way home from work one day. Had to move shortly thereafter. Car sat at the new place for about 10 years untouched in the garage while two kids popped out and the family grew. The rear passenger corner of the car was destroyed in the accident, so I had to graft on a replacement cut from a junker. First I had to refurbish the replacement piece as it was rusted up too. Just that took about 30 hours. To be expected in New England.

[beetlenut1]

Just about to begin the grafting-in process in these photos, yay PhotoBucket. I have to replace the passenger floor and rocker while I have it all torn apart. Got my welder set-up and finished cutting the accident damage out of the car. Now the iterative process of trimming and fitting the donner piece begins.

[beetlenut1]

Finishing trimming up the graft-in area, and temporarily attaching the replacement piece using panel fasteners or clecos. Lots of trimming and test fitting. I've lost count how many times I've trimmed, reattached, marked, trimmed, etc....... Ugh!

[beetlenut1]

Well I'm glad this job is almost done! I've still got other welding to do, so I'll wait until I'm done to skim coat the body and finish sand the car. I welded in the drivers rear bumper/wheel well repair panel last weekend, and finished the passenger rockers before I moved the car. I still have the passenger rear cross member and rear quarter floor pan to do. The clip took most of my summer to do, as well as move to a new house including moving my workshop and bug.

[beetlenut1]

So I had to either get this job done so I could move the car, or send it to the crusher! Happy to report that I got it done in time to make the move. Pics below shows it leaving the old garage for the first time in 11 years. Better than when it arrived anyway!
Ok now, what's next?

[david58]

Thanks for posting up this beetlenut1, and a Big Welcome to the STF. That is some major body work there. You are definitely a surgeon nice stitch job I don't think it will leave a scar. Glad to see a beetle saved from the vultures.

[beetlenut1]

Thanks. Glad to be looking back on it. Next big project is to run two new fuel line through the tunnel for FI prep.

[doc]

Nice work!! Tough job. Welcome to STF.

doc

[beetlenut1]

Nice work!! Tough job. Welcome to STF.

doc

Thanks. I don't envy you with the floor pans and heater channel replacement job you're working on. Thankfully, I'm almost done with the floors and heater channels. Thinking about installing a new wiring harness.

[doc]

Wiring harness will be a snap compared to the bodywork. Appreciate the great pics.

I have just restarted working on my car the last few days. I have to recruit a couple of suckers, er I mean buddies, to help me set the body back on the frame in order to set the front cross member and firewall, then weld in the floors. Then on to the cut and paste of the heater channels. Yikes!!

doc

[david58]

I have added this thread and Sedan Window Regulator How-To by mnussbaum to the sticky in the newbie forum A Collection of How To Do Threads We are getting a good list of How to threads, anybody run across one that's not on the list PM me so I can add it.

[beetlenut1]

I have added this thread and Sedan Window Regulator How-To by mnussbaum to the sticky in the newbie forum A Collection of How To Do Threads We are getting a good list of How to threads, anybody run across one that's not on the list PM me so I can add it.

Cool beans! I just read the "steel fuel line through the tunnel" article in that How to thread. Some good pics, and links to pics, of what I'm going to be messing with when I do that job next!

[david58]

There is a gob of info in the New Sticky in the Newbie Forum stick your head in there, I guarantee you that you'll get lost.

[BAJA-IT]

Looks like you are having fun . I am in the process of doing the R Frt Qtr and R Rr Qtr panels on my sons car, along with the heater channel on that side. (car was hit on the right side long before we got it) We are trying to do the repair right this time, no 1/2 inch of bondo on the qrts. Haven't started cutting yet, need to get the body off the pan and turn it upside down to do the rocker/heater channel first, then cut out the qrts and replace them with the donor parts we cut out of an abandoned field find.

[beetlenut1]

Best tip I could give is to make templates, with heavy paper or thin cardboard, of the donor piece using obvious reference marks like bolt holes or door edges. Transfer the template to the car, and cut about a 1/16 of an inch larger than the template marking. Then trim and fit the donor piece over and over again until perfect. I welded tabs to the donor piece at all the major attachment spots, and used those with panel fasteners to hold the donor piece to the car for welding.