Slvr77

I recently picked up a set of "driver quality" 69 style factory sidepipe covers off craigslist.

Other than a few scrapes and chips in the chrome they seem mostly complete (no mounting hardware came with them). The fiberglass part that holds the 3 chrome covers is not cracked or damaged. Could use a repaint of black on the part that replaces the rocker moldings but that is an easy fix.

Now I dont have pictures (can take some tomorrow) but these things dont fit

Trying to put these on a 1977, I was just test fitting them today after I removed the rocker panels. It's not an issue of the exhaust pipes in the way ... no sidepipes are there yet.

The issue seems to be the shape of the fiberglass piece compared to the rocker molding I took off.

Pictures would help here.... hope you have a good imagination, Im not the best at "painting with words". Looking from the top down the rocker molding has a bend on each end of it that curves out away from the flat section of the body where the door is above it.

In other words the door section is straight, and then each wheel opening comes out a few inches, and the rocker molding matches those bends.

The fiberglass sidepipe cover from the top down view ... is straight, no bends, so it only touches the body in front of the door, right behind the front wheel, and then again behind the door where the rear wheel fender comes out. It looks like there is a 1 inch or so gap directly under the door where the sidepipe cover sits out away from the body. Is that normal? Am I missing some part or piece of filler ? The top edge of the sidepipe cover has a 1/2 inch lip that I gather is supposed to meet up against the body the whole length of the cover. It currently will only do that at the front and back.

Is there cutting involved, or is the cover supposed to "bend" when I bolt it to the car .... as in pull that gap closed ? (sounds like that will crack the fiberglass cover for sure). From what I understand I will have to cut a notch right behind the front wheel to fit the chrome section of the cover that curves in under the car, that part is fine, I do not currently have any chrome parts on this fiberglass cover, I was just trying to check how it fits.



Hopelessly lost here, and will try to post pictures tomorrow AM when I can.

jman1

my 77...

jman1

avalonjohn

off the top of my head, I know that the fiberglass where the rocker attaches to on 69's (the only factory installed year) had to be trimmed by hand (near the rear of the front wheel I think) at the factory to get them on....maybe this is the problem??

jman1

in those pics i posted, i had c2 pipes on it with the 69 style covers.. i dont think i had to cut at all...... but this winter when i switched to 69pipes the fiberglass had to be trimmed.... it was more the pipes needed clearance than the covers...

c69vete

It sounds like in your case there has been some body work done to your car. The area where the trim and/or the sidepipe covers fit should be flat.

Alan 71

Hi S,
The fiberglass insulator should fit snug against the fiberglass lower body. It doesn't match the contour of the lower fender/door/ dogleg exactly, but does fit snugly against them.
Here's a typical installation.
Regards,
Alan

Slvr77

Alan,

Thank you for the excellent close up pictures. I did not have time at all today to take pictures of my own yet.

Looking at that install, I may have been trying to hold them too high. I was trying to keep the top edge of the cover against the bottom lip of the body, I can see now maybe I can leave a small gap there.

I do not have any mounting hardware for these covers, is it correct that they should mount in the same holes as the rocker trim I removed?

I was not watching how the holes lined up as I was just holding the cover by hand.

Alan 71

Hi S77,
The holes in my insulators didn't match the original holes for the rocker trim panels.
Regards,
Alan

Hammerhead Fred

Slvr77

Here are a few pictures as best I could get.

The cover is clamped at the front an back ends, so it is touching the car properly at both ends. I put my work light under the car to try and light up the gap I am seeing.

It seems the front part is the problem, but I do not know why, the car body looks stock to my eyes and I see no signs of body work.

jetjockey

You really should get a copy of the N14 pages out of a '69 AIM. There many nuances and much hardware involved in getting the insulators/covers and mufflers to fit well.

Dan

Alan 71

Hi s77,
Yes, a gap.
I had gaps each side, too, but not that large. The first 18", and last 8", fit flush, but not the center.
Is the insulator touching at the front and rear for at least a few inches?
Near the front there's a 'tab' on the insulator that fits in a little notch in the fender fibergass.... is that in place.
Can you at least try to pull the insulator in toward the rocker even 1/8" by using mchine screws with nuts? You have to be VERY CAREFUL that you dont pull the heads of the screws through the insulator fiberglass.
I'd use a round head screw with a series of flat washers to try and arch the insulator a bit and then switch to the proper screws.
That's all I can think of right now! Maybe more later?
Regards,
Alan

c69vete

Take a picture of the lower front fender with no trim and post it here. Also the rear dog leg where the trim touches, also with out trim. Are both sides the same? (Passenger and driver)

Slvr77

Thanks for continuing to help guys!

Here are a few pictures with the cover off, the drivers side appears the same. maybe the most interesting picture is the rocker molding picture below. I sat it along a straight edge, it shows the bend that was needed to keep it against the body the whole way.

Alan, I did double check and the front notched areas of the sidepipe cover are fitting into the proper areas in the fiberglass body. It seems like the whole front section of the body is sticking out too far (area under the fender), like maybe a 1/2 inch or more, which puts the whole sidepipe cover on an angle creating this gap. However the body itself seems to line up with the door so that does not make sense to me.

I would not mind if it was a 1/4 inch or less, but in some spots its almost 3/4 inch wide.

pictures:

Ironcross

You have 69 parts and are attempting to install on slightly modified fenders and rockers changed over the years as if it is a direct fit....Here's where ingenuity comes into play as others have apparently successfully installed the covers to an appearance satisfaction on Vettes other than a 69....

I have even seen them on Camaros

CA-Legal-Vette