My '65 convertible has rust damage in the usual place just forward of the door posts. There is a soft spot on the bottom on each side. I discovered when jacking the car. There are also a small perforation on the inside of the frame, just large enough to stick my index finger in. Right now, there are no alignment problems or sagging, except when jacking.

Can this be repaired without lifting the body off of the frame? A local body and frame shop said they could do it. The body guy I normally use says no. He said that if they put the car on a lift to work on it, the frame will sag and welding will lock the sag in place, causing door alignment problems.

Anyone have experience with this?

THe thing to do in this situation would be to get yourself some crash sheets of frame diagarms first. Once you have those, set the frame accordingly on jackstands so all the heights are on, then take the cross measurements to make sure it's not sagging or twisted. Once you've established all that, repair the frame :thumbsup: Chances are as long as the car was never in an accident, those soft spots are not enough to allow the frame to flex or sag while it's resting on the suspension.

Hi- I would go to the trouble to take the body off the frame and have a look at the frame close up- my 67 frame was far worse than it initially appeared once I could really inspect it.If its repairable its a lot easier to do properly with the body removed.Gord

Thanks for the responses. The doors align well with nice even spaces. The front end alignment is fine.

Yeah, I know lifting the body off of the frame would be the best way to repair the frame. The frame seems solid enough to repair instead of hunting up a new one. The problem is that if I did a frame off, the car would likely never leave my garage again under its own power.

Where can I get the crash sheets frame diagrams? I'm working on a 66 convertible with quite a bit of frame rot. I bought a rust free frame to use, but would like to repair and sell the other frame.
Thanks.

If they do like a local shop here. They will put it on the frame machine and make sure all is correct before the weld in the patches.:)