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Uneven fenders

2K views 28 replies 8 participants last post by  mromaus 
#1 ·
Hi guys,

I started doing some body work on this car.

I was looking for some insight into what is possibly going on with the driver's side fender.

Is it aftermarket? Is there a method of aligning it correctly?

What are the possible ways to fix it?

I have not taken the fender off yet, it doesn't look to difficult to do. I would like to know what I should be looking for.

Advice and links are welcome!

Thanks in advance!
 

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#2 ·
You must be talking about the gap around the headlight housing to the fender. I would be looking at where the fender bolts to the radiator support. Even the fender is a bit higher than the hood line.
 
#4 ·
:cool: Before you assume that the fender is at fault, you'll need to do an inspection and measurements of the affected area. Look for signs of prior frame damage, damage to fender mounting points, rust damage, etc. Is the fender really higher, or does it just look that way -- check out how the headlight assembly is bolted on, etc.

Once you've determined which parts are really misaligned and/or damaged you can plan a repair.
 
#6 ·
I agree. Adjust the hood bumper that's mounted to the radiator support.

I doubt you have a repop fender, I don't think they make them for your car.

There's no reason to remove the fender at this point. In order to be of more assistance, we would need to see more angles of your front end sheetmetal.
 
#7 ·
Sounds good!

I will take more detailed pics tomorrow.

I have been in and out of the car, while I would not doubt that this may be the result of a fender bender I do not see any type of tool marks or indication that any of the part the car has been straightened.

I will try to post some pics with a tape measure as well.

I think what may also be helpful is from what to what points should I be measuring to see if any of the internal mounts are tweaked?

Thanks again!
 
#8 ·
I took a bunch of photos.

Also, I am beginning to come to the conclusion that it may not be the driver side is high but the passenger side is low.

The google doc I will link here will allow you to post comments (I tried to put the pics in an organized table).

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ATvETsoC2Hjz9y1HZreTKBH3JsLs4BTDNmMEQUu6En0/edit?usp=sharing

I have a couple of thoughts, but that doesn't mean I know how to realign the parts.


I have three theories:

The battery try is rotted out pretty badly and is no longer supporting the passenger side fender.

or

The guys I purchased this from repainted the car. Maybe they took the front apart in order to make it easier to paint and did not align things correctly.

or

As mentioned above it may not be the fenders at all and the bumper, headlights, grill, and hood are all messed up.

Thanks!
 
#9 ·
For one thing these cars were far from perfect gap wise from the factory. The battery tray shouldn't be holding up the passenger side fender the radiator support does that. Looking at your newer pictures I would try raising the hood rubber bumper on the drivers side a smidge just to bring the hood line up about half the distance to line up with the fender line closer. Now check where the front fender bolts to the top of the radiator support to make sure there are no shims in between both parts. If there are no shims the angle part of the fender that bolts to the top of the radiator support may not be formed sharp enough in the 90* bend or it could be welded off a bit holding the fender up.
 
#10 ·
I took a look and I don't have "L" brackets to the radiator support.

It works the opposite way on this Skylark where the radiator support has a 90 degree bracket.

I will mess with it some this weekend and see what I come up with.

For the record I have been trying to get on v8buick forum but to no luck. While I know this is for Chevy's I am hoping to get enough insight here to align these fenders a little better.

Looking at pics it seems to be getting done somehow.

Thanks,
 
#11 · (Edited)
Marco, the passenger side fender shouldn't touch the bumper. It may have been tweaked in a fender bender at some point. Also take a look at where the radiator support is bolted to the frame horn on both sides. The bushing on the passenger side tends to degrade worse because of battery corrosion. How do your door to fender gaps look on both sides?
 
#12 ·
I will check those things out for sure! Thanks again!

I will get under the car this weekend and take a look.

Also, I was watching a video on aligning Chevelle fenders, the person used a paint stick as a distance indicator for the lines.

Does that make sense?

I can say with certainty that the lines are not the same for both doors.

I don't want to touch anything until I have a good understanding here. I am afraid that I will make the situation worse.
 
#13 ·
So I took a look under the car and on one side the radiator support fairing was visable then on the passenger side not so much. Leaving me to believe it might not exist anymore.

Here is my question.

Should I just buy a hole polyurethane body bushing kit?

The rubber softseal ones I purchased cost me $30.

I see entire kits in polyurethane for 80...

Thoughts, advice?

I have never done this kind of work before.

Thanks!
 
#14 ·
There is a patch kit available to repair rot under the battery. Sold by OPGI, Year one etc, made by mrbuick.com. Has to be welded in, smoothed, finished, painted etc

There are shims at the front of the fender to adjust the front fender heigth.

Bumper also has adjustments in the brackets and bolts.

Sent from my SM-T817V using Tapatalk
 
#17 ·
There is a patch kit available to repair rot under the battery. Sold by OPGI, Year one etc, made by mrbuick.com. Has to be welded in, smoothed, finished, painted etc

There are shims at the front of the fender to adjust the front fender height.

Bumper also has adjustments in the brackets and bolts.

Sent from my SM-T817V using Tapatalk
I see some shims there at the front of the passenger side.

I will check out that battery tray repair kit. Even though I was considering just buying some sheet metal and welding it in place, I just need to get the car up high enough.



Who makes a good bushing kit? I'm sure I wont enjoy this project, so I don't want to do it often.
 
#19 ·
Thanks!

I was wondering what the difference was between cheap sets costing $80 and those costing $180, it seems to be the molded washer, along some come with complete new hardware.

All I understand right now between polyurethane and rubber bushings is that the polyurethane bushings last longer.

I have that in some joints the polyurethane bushings can be noisy, though I am also hearing that it's really not a problem.

What else is there to choose rubber body bushings over polyurethane bushings?

Also, I am starting to do my research here, so that this goes a bit smoother. I see a tool for the cage nuts.

Thanks again!

I like the PB blasting technique that makes good sense.

Does a complete kit come with the radiator support bushings I actually need?
 
#20 ·
As far as bushing material goes I wanted to stay with rubber. I bought a set from Ground-Up and was not satisfied with them at all. I returned them and ended up buying a set from Inline Tube. They are the closest to the stock ones that you can buy. As far as lasting most of these cars have had their original bushings and fuel and brake lines in them for about 40 to 45 years. Another thing is a lot of these cars won't be driven in all kinds of weather as they were when they were first bought. I figured that my bushings and lines will outlast me.
 
#21 ·
So, I finally got to addressing this issue and this is what I find.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1opA4b1-4zZ5SbS3nTF5LNPLE6ZQ_LdTI/view?usp=sharing

Where the battery tray was does not exist anymore. I thought I would be able to weld in a plate and move on but there isn't much left of that side of the radiator support.

Here is what I am thinking:
https://www.summitracing.com/parts/shi-780-49/year/1972/make/buick/model/skylark

Anyone have experience with this company?

Also, advice as I move forward with this would be greatly appreciated.

My thought for the wheel well is to cut back some and extend it back by welding in a plate.

Thanks!
 
#23 ·
The other side is fine. Based on what's out there it looks like I am best replacing the entire radiator support.

Is that the best bet?

This seems to be a result of a leaky coolant reservoir and battery over the last 50 years.

The inner fender I was thinking of welding some sheet metal and rebuild it some.

Thoughts on that?
 
#24 ·
Unless you're a very skilled metal fabricator, I would try to find good used replacements for the inner fender & rad support. Pretty tough to find a good used battery tray, so buy one of those new.
 
#25 ·
Thanks for the advice!

I guess I should see what an inner fender costs before I make that decision.

Summit sells the radiator core made by Sherman parts. I have no idea if they are any good. Others I see are made by Autometal. I have no experience with any of these guys.

Is it safe to say that who ever I go through the parts will be about 95% correct?


Thanks again.
 
#26 ·
Here are some more photos.

In case anyone see anything else I will need. I did the best I could to get this from all angles.

I already purchased the bushing as recommended by 70GS455.

Thanks again guys!

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1pEGVaoH7cONWkEH0emYn7aAOdXGn2yb3/view?usp=sharing

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1pBxENdnnVR83vdGh4mownpUE5aZHohxc/view?usp=sharing

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1p3h8s5C52IUpXsH3H5g2wgWQq240UTN1/view?usp=sharing

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1oyUW5qg9_ygfkEtYeP_CjNxnkgUENg-Y/view?usp=sharing


I also think this is a good opportunity to put the battery in the trunk :)
 
#27 ·
Your inner fender is toast, you're miles ahead if you go ahead and replace it. I've bought some Sherman metal before, it was ok. Also a good idea to throw away that battery cable with the repair connector on it.
 
#28 ·
It’s not just alignment. The front edge of the hood and fender are different sizes thickness wise. It’s been hit!. It is fixable with a good body man. Without more pics the total repair can’t be diagnosed. It’s not a repro fender it’s just not a great repair. Again without big money it is fixable if the frame isn’t out.
 
#29 · (Edited)
I will take a look at that. I have been under the suspicion that the passenger fender may not be original in some way. I see no evidence of repair. The frame is solid, so it's just the sheet metal.

I'm a pretty good body guy myself. That and electric are my only strengths here, the rest I am learning which is why I ask so many questions :) . If it's off I might be able to address it.

I ask about the Sherman metal because its convenient for me to get, I am lucky enough to have accidentally moved 20 minutes away from Summit Racing. I appreciate the feedback on that.

My plan is to just move the battery to the back of the car and tossing all of that. I have to address rust in the trunk too, but I have a plan there.

I need to post in the electrical section to get a list of parts I actually need for that job. I am not convinced that those battery relocation kits are adequate. Besides, it seems to be cheaper to get the cables and connectors separately guaranteeing better quality.

I hate to say it but you are probably right about the inner fender, I just which I could save that $120. I looked at a patch for it and it cost almost as much as the whole fender.

It's been a rough week for this car. I was welding some holes behind the rear window which caused me create a leak in the window. I have been trying to find wheels for this thing with no luck, and now this.

One day this car will be awesome... it's just going to take a while. Until then my wife is going to need a second job so I can pay for this thing.:yes:
 
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