Just wondering if this is a true dent or not: Under the middle of the door on the frame rail there seems to be a dent in my 70 Chevelle. However, there is an exact "dent" on the other side, under the middle of the door, same local. I am assuming that this is supposed to be there since it is symmetrical. Any comments? I dont know of another 70 in this area to compare with. Now if has been wrecked, what kind of damage or situation would cause these? TIA

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D Smith 1970 Chevelle 350

[This message has been edited by DSMITH (edited 05-18-2000).]

My frame doesn't have any dents in the side rails. Are the dents inward or outward. The car could have been sandwiched and the rails buckled. That would occur in the same locations provided the impact was dead-on.

Jody
71 SS454
ACES

I can think of many ways I could get those dents in the same spot! How about 80 MPH and airborne when you land on the railroad tracks? ( I only took out the oil pan.... and I think that was in 1969.)

How about being drunk in 1971 and driving off the curb instead of the driveway. (We were a lot more dumb about drinking and driving back then.) The back wheels came off the ground so we were stuck there.

Then there was the time I drove around those road construction signs on a Sunday morning to drive on the new road at about 60 MPH on the very twisting hill road. The road ended with no warning at a drop of about 18 inches. I think there was about 75 feet of untouched ground to the point of impact. Had my foot on the brake and hit so hard it bent! I never bothered to look at the frame.

Bet you wish these old cars could tell their own stories!

<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by DSMITH:
Just wondering if this is a true dent or not: Under the middle of the door on the frame rail there seems to be a dent in my 70 Chevelle. However, there is an exact "dent" on the other side, under the middle of the door, same local. I am assuming that this is supposed to be there since it is symmetrical. Any comments? I dont know of another 70 in this area to compare with. Now if has been wrecked, what kind of damage or situation would cause these? TIA

<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

I am doing a frame off restoration on my 71 ls5 and it has the same "dents".

The "dents" are inward, that is away from the ground. As I mentioned before, on each frame rail, they are on the exact same spot and same dimensions. Seems ls5 has same "dent" or should we call it shape. Thanks for all the responses! I would like to hear from more of you all. I saw another 70 today and looked under it. No "dents". This is a strange one!!! ??????

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D Smith 1970 Chevelle 350

This might be farfetched,but isnīt possible that the frames built in the various assembly lines,might look differnent,though not by much,?

I just went outside (in the rain no less darn it!) and looked at 3 frames, one a 70 ss LS5. If you are talking about the "dents" that have the holes for the trans crossmember in them, all 3 frames had the indentations. Two of the frames were malibus. I could find no other dents in the side rails.

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70 chevelle ss396 conv
66 chevelle ss396 hdp/conv
55 chevy prostreet
69/71 camaros
91 formula
TC member #493

drptp,
The crossmember mount area on the frame is a bit closer to the front, maybe under the outside mirror area. The area I am talking about is almost under the door handles, well about 20" to the front of the door handles. This is a wierd one! It would be really interesting to find out if these frames were built differently at different manufacturing sites, as in the comment from halldor.

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D Smith 1970 Chevelle 350

how big a dent ,my '71 buick skylark (i know a buick but its paid for and takes me back and forth to work)has two little dents on the inside of the frame rail just under the door handles on both sides not great big dents but more like small depressions .

Chaz,
Small impressions is more like what I am seeing. Maybe 1/3" - 1/2" inward. Very uniform and equivalent on both sides.

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D Smith 1970 Chevelle 350

that's probably the same thing that i'm seeing on the bottom of mine, but to where it was built i havent decoded my tag yet, sorry but it seems like different plants may have had small changes(like 55 chevy frames built in the west vs the east were different) it sounds like it might be interesting to find out anyway.

Hey,I have something similar to this on my 68 frame.But its only on the left side.Its just behind where the frame makes the turn from the left a arm support going down the siderail,its kina hard to explain without a pic.I'll get one later today.Does anyone have any measurements of a known good 68 frame.Like from across the body support bushings or something.I have a factory manual but it doesn't tell me much.

Thanks