Bootlid not fitting

[Htiek]

Well I thought the re-assembly of my Vitesse would be the enjoyable part of the resto....

 

As the topic title says, I completed assembly of the bootlid last night, lifted it into position only to find that it is wider than the gap between the two 'horseshoe' chrome trims on the rear wings by about 3-4mm.

Clearly something has altered during the weldathon on the rear tub.

I've been running through all sorts of possibilities and theories during a restless night but wonder if anybody on here has any suggestions?

Does removing any packers from the rear outrigger body mounts have any affect on the angle of the rear wings?

Jack and a fencepost across the boot opening?

Angle grinder. welder and re-spray?!

 

I'll be keeping out of the garage for a day or two until I've had a think about how to proceed... just in case the big hammer comes out!

Cheers,

Keith

[Guest]

Hello Keith.

 

I had a similar problem with my Vitesse boot lid. In the end I found that the lid cross brace needed to be adjusted quite a number of times before I got the correct shape. There is a surprising amount of "flex" in the lid and 4mm can easily be absorbed by getting the shape correct.

 

An additional problem is that the nuts that screw on to the studs of the chrome boot lid capping's do not take too kindly to being over-tightened which is required to keep the cross braces positioned correctly !! In the end I used JB Metal Bond (think that's what it's called) to lock the chrome capping studs from moving on tightening the nuts. It is also one of those jobs where an extra pair of hands is very useful !!

 

I have to confess that this was NOT a case of fitting after a welding session, but I'm suggesting the above before you may need to take more vigorous /drastic action - which hopefully you will not !! 

 

Good luck.

 

Richard.

[Guest]

Keith.

 

I meant to add, if you can supply a few photos that will help.

 

Thanks.

 

Richard.

[Htiek]

Hi Richard,
Many thanks for your replies. I had not thought about the cross bars altering the shape of the boot lid, I had assembled it off the car and just bolted the cross brace in 'where it landed' as it were. I will certainly have a look at that and get some photos at the same time.

I was on gardening duties this weekend so stayed away from the car. A wee break away from it maybe wasn't a bad thing though

Cheers,

Keith

[Darren Groves]

This isn't uncommon, if adjusting the cross bars doesn't fix it just jack the rear fin sections apart. If you're careful you shouldn't do any damage.

[Htiek]

Hi Darren,

That sounds like a possibility too. I do have a scissors jack and a fencepost ready for action,  I was using it to help position the tub when re-fitting it to the chassis.

I have attached a few pictures below of how things are now...

 

 

Cheers,

Keith

[heraldcoupe]

How well do your doors fit? Do they kick out at the lower back edge? 

This would indicate bodytub spread as the shell opens up across the B-posts, closure across the boot aperture is a further symptom of the same problem,

 

Cheers,

Bill.

[Htiek]

I've been avoiding the garage for a few weeks but have finally kicked myself into action again and had another go at the bootlid. Here is an update to this post.

 

Bill, there may well be some tub spread involved. I temporarily hung the passenger door and it does look to protrude a bit at the bottom.

 

I gave the boot aperture a scare with some bits of fencepost, scissors jack and a ratchet strap and the boot lid now passes between the rear wings. The panel gaps are not perfect but I feel if I strive for perfection this project will never move on

 

Many thanks to all who posted, it is really much appreciated.

 

Cheers,

Keith

 

 

 

 

[Pete Lewis]

good news  thanks

 

Pete