Taking the body off

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Jul 31, 2005 | 10:56 PM

pauvil

Thread Starter

Racer

Joined: Jul 2005

Posts: 317

Likes: 0

From: PA

Taking the body off

how hard is this?? how many body mount bolts ect..??

Jul 31, 2005 | 11:01 PM

stingry

Drifting

Joined: Mar 2003

Posts: 1,608

Likes: 3

From: Canberra AUSTRALIA

St. Jude Donor '05-'06

Not that hard but it requires planning, a dolly, a two car garage and help. You first need to buy an AIM. This is the factory Assembly Instruction Manual and details the whole construction of the car.

Short list:

Remove battery
remove 8 body mount bolts
Remove electrical connections (ground straps and engine power)
Disconnect master cylinder
Remove bumpers and bumper braces
Disconect radiator and cooling hoses

Others will chime in.

Good luck.

Jul 31, 2005 | 11:15 PM

MikeC

Melting Slicks

Joined: Dec 2000

Posts: 2,635

Likes: 0

From: Union Ontario

I second buyingthe AIM... it'll make things a lot easier. I did mine in a one car garage. either the body or the chassis was outside in the driveway (covered by a tarp) it would have been way easier with a double garage.

Make sure you support the front clip. I've seen some pictures on here of what happens when you don't and its scary looking.

Jul 31, 2005 | 11:19 PM

pauvil

Thread Starter

Racer

Joined: Jul 2005

Posts: 317

Likes: 0

From: PA

where do I get this AIM?? and how much?? this will show me what I need to do??

Jul 31, 2005 | 11:41 PM

b71vette

Burning Brakes

Joined: Jan 2004

Posts: 1,043

Likes: 4

From: Va

don't forget to disconnect the hand brake

cable. Don't ask me why !

Remove as much as reasonably possible to lighten the load , seats for one, Don't ask me why about that either!

Also saturate the body mount bolts/nuts with PB blaster a day or so before trying to remove them.That I thought to do.

Good Luck

Aug 1, 2005 | 01:31 AM

71SoCal

Racer

Joined: Apr 2005

Posts: 339

Likes: 1

From: San Diego CA

Don't forget the throttle,clutch, and interlock cables as well as taking the top of the shifter off.

I don't think you need to remove the master cylinder, just the two lines that run to the brakes.

Do the seatbelts attach to the frame???

I'll bet there's a complete listing of everything you need to do that someone will post.

Good luck...

Aug 1, 2005 | 07:22 AM

GDaina

Race Director

Joined: Feb 1999

Posts: 16,978

Likes: 7

From: In Dreams There Is Truth Ohio

if you have friends...6 guys can lift the body faster and safer than a cherry picker

Aug 1, 2005 | 08:41 AM

Chumpzilla

Pro

Joined: Dec 2003

Posts: 642

Likes: 0

From: Dallas Texas

The AIM will show you the construction of the car and where every nut/bolt is... It will not detail out for you how to remove the body.

It's not that hard and once you tackle the job, isn't nearly as intimidating as it sounds. We used a forklift to remove the body on mine, but that was probably more trouble than just using 6-8 people to lift it by hand.

My suggestion is to totally gut the body... Remove EVERYTHING. No interior, no nothing. Makes it much easier.

And don't forget to disconnect the ground strap(s).