S2 Body Shell

[Alpine_Ian]

The body shell on my S2 is in good shape with the exception of the steel frame work on both the right and left sides. Both lower portions are rusted away and will need repair.

My body man has not seen this yet, and since I'm not an expert with fibreglass, I thought I would turn to the forum. Has anyone fixed this sort of problem before, or should I consider a new body shell?

Are there any US suppliers for body shells? What are the typical costs, etc...

Any advice here is appriciated.

[ngiovas]

I'm assuming you are talking about the steel rods that form a triangular frame under each of the sills. Mine has the same problem. In one of the books I have it describes replacing/repairing these bars. I don't think there is any reason they can't be replaced. It would require cutting away the layers of fiberglass that covered the bottom rod and welding in new support rods. The only thing you have to be careful of is not catching the body on fire while welding in that area.

Nick
1964 S1

[bvt]

The "rods" are a steel frame work running front to rear and also strengthen arround the doors... It would be hard to cut out small sections and weld in replacements as you suggest.. but I guess a new rear half could be fabricated the old half cut out and the replacement glassed in with the join somewhere in the sill section...

If you get what I mean.....
(Just an opinion)

[Alpine_Ian]

<!--QuoteBegin-ngiovas+Mar 6 2004, 05:36 PM--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td>QUOTE (ngiovas @ Mar 6 2004, 05:36 PM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'><!--QuoteEBegin--> "I'm assuming you are talking about the steel rods that form a triangular frame..." [/quote]
Yes, this is what I'm talking about.

[brassringfarm]

Ian - I decided to buy a new body from Tony Thompson for a number of reasons - most importantly the 10,000 spider cracks and the previous owner had sawn out the wheel arches with a sabre saw to put wide slicks on the car! (Aargh). The delivered and insured cost to me was about $5000 18 months ago - delivered to a friend's business - because they had a fork lift. Took about 6 months all told. The new body was thicker around the pedal area (about double original thickness) and it was very well made. I had my choice of green, grey or white fiberglass. I was, and continue to be, quite pleased with the body. Fit like a glove.
Upon cutting up my old body I found rust in the same area as you mentioned. It turned out I basically had no bonds between steel and fiberglass and the rusting had cracked the bottom of the sill near the jacking points. If I had tried to jack the car up there, I most likely would have broken thru the body. The cost of the body necessitated that I do the painting myself - which turned out quite well also. Tony Thompson Racing's website is www.Tonythompsonracing.co.uk, if I recall. Talk to Stuart in sales and mention my name (No, I don't get royalties!)
Good luck - email me if you have

[asc]

Ian I have carried out repair of a side frame, and it was anything but easy.. Basically I cut through the bottom rail a few inches up from the floor, front & rear and about half way up the smaller diameter diagonal rods that go to the underside of the door apertuire, then cut away all the GRP holding it in position. The replacement section which I made out of mild steel, over lapped all the original upper remaining structure and was carefully and slowly welded in with an arc welder, with plenty wet rags around. When the replacement bottom rail was made I managed to get the correct shape / fit on the bottom rail and then temporarily refitted it to the car to determine where to weld on the diagonals. Then re fibre glass it in. It worked fine but its not easy. I wouldnt want to do another! Tony

[Alpine_Ian]

Thanks for the input guys...


$5000.00 for a body delivered sounds reasonable. THat route may save time and money in the long run... I'm going to look into this a little closer. THANKS!

[garyeanderson]

I have performed this repair numerous times. The rust is pretty standard on S1's through S3's that were sold and driven in the northeast and midwest. The material was coated later in production and survived better. The repair involves cutting out the rotted area. The bottom is (or was) 3/8" wire and the wire that the lattice is formed from is 3/16". It is not a pleasant job to do, it can be done from the inside or the body shell can be flipped and repaired from the bottom side. Lots of grinding of fiberglass and rust. New lengths are cut and bent with a oxy/ acceteline on a pattern and welded into place with a fire extinguisher at the ready. It consumes a good 40 hours of real work.

Gary

[Unibrain]

The exchange rate has changed a lot in the last 18 months. The price will be more than you expect.

If you do end up buying from TTR, be sure to get as much as you can in the box. A new chassis would fit nicely under the body! From personal experience, do not buy a sweatshirt and have them put it in the box. Getting things through customs was easy except for the sweatshirt. Seems the US tariffs on clothing are rather specific about labeling the country of origin. Since the shirts didn't have the appropriate label, customs held the shipment for about a week while paper and faxes flew across the Atlantic. I ended up getting a customs broker just to deal with this problem. The $20 sweathshirt ended up costing a couple hundred dollars in broker and storage fees.

You might also want to call Randell Fehr in Seattle. While he is too far away he might know someone in the area that also specializes in Lotus cars that can do the repair for you. If you do buy a new body, do not damage the old one. Various pieces can be used for repairs on other cars.