I needed to add a lot of filler to the exhaust filler panel, sand, and repeat:

 

I'm getting closer to the ideal passenger bumper position but I discover that with all the changes one of my previously made bumper brackets no longer lines up well enough, so I have to cut and re-weld it to work with the yet again adjusted passenger side rear bumper position:




And isn't this nice? I discover another failure of a previous lamination that will have to be re-done:




I need to make sure I support that edge that wants to fall away while its wet:




I got it properly laminated this time:

 

But still not enough thickness at this corner bumper mount!







I'm finally getting very close to getting this critical corner bumper mounting surface in the right plane. At this point I have very little material to remove to get it right so I draw lines on the area I'm going to sand away a bit more to give me a guide as I go to how much material I'm removing as I sand. Here I want to remove most material at the top of the bumper mounting surface and little or none at the bottom of the mounting surface:




And here I've finally got the passenger bumper mounting surfaces done and the passenger side bumper positioned as close to identical to the driver's side as I can do:




At an earlier point I used tape to the position of the mid quarter panel horizontal style line to assist in the bumper alignment process:

 

I've now got the rear bumpers very level along the tail light panel.
Driver's side:




Passenger side:




Centre:








I'm not going to say it was all worth it, but its pretty sweet now!

 

So, given all the asymmetries in the rear of the car after I forced the partial rear clip to mate with the back of the 79, how close did I get these rear bumpers to identically aligned? I'd say very close.

Driver's side quarter panel measurement from front tip of bumper to the bed of the hoist 22 & 3/8" :




Passenger side quarter panel measurement from front tip of bumper to bed of the hoist maybe just slightly more than 22 & 3/8":




Driver's side from mid quarter panel style line to front tip of bumper 1 & 1/4" :




Passenger side from mid quarter panel style line to front tip of bumper is 1/16" longer than driver's side:




You can see black electrical tape along the quarter panel side of the bumper. I put this there to assist with checking the level of that part of the bumper between the two sides. Yes, I did spend many hours holding a level along the soft edge of the bumper there to try and get the tilt of the bumper the same for both sides. On my car I ended up with both the front bumper tips along the quarter panel tilting slightly downwards, although to my eye they appear to be tilting slightly upwards most of the time.

Trying to hold a level along the quarter panel part of the bumper is an exercise in frustration as there isn't a sharp edge on the bumper you can be sure you have the level aligned with. Plus the chrome is slippery and so the level is moving around as you try to look back and forth between the bubble and the outer edges of the level to see if they are lined up with the soft ridge of the bumper. So, with a level, at best you're going to get a rough idea of how level the bumpers are along the quarter panel by looking at it over and over and over.

Late in the process I discovered that it helped a lot using the level if I put electrical tape along the edge of the quarter panel side of the bumper. This made it easier to see the soft edge of the bumper (no jumble of reflections) and easier to hold the level against the bumper as the electrical tape is not so slippery as the chrome.

Here's the measurements from the bed of the hoist to the rear edge of the bumpers.
Driver's side about 22 & 1/8" :




Passenger side about 1/16" higher than driver's side (22 & 3/16") :




Now, as to how the passenger side bumper along the tail lights can be 1/16" higher than the driver's side and yet both sides are perfectly level with each other is one of the many measurement mysteries that will have you tearing your hair out as you try to get both rear bumpers aligned as well as possible should you take on grafting a chrome bumper rear to a rubber bumper car

 

The only part of the rear bumper alignment that is really noticeably off are the lower tips of the bumpers at the license plate (blue arrows):




The lower tip on the right bumper is about 1/8" farther away from the exhaust filler panel than the left bumper is. Its not so apparent in the pictures I took but is pretty noticeable to me in real life and looks like a lot more than 1/8" difference measured. But, hey, that's the way it goes with this sort of thing. Sure I could add what would probably end up being near 1/4" of filler to the lower part of the exhaust filler panel on the passenger side but that doesn't appeal much to me. I'd rather leave the exhaust filler panel at a reasonable thickness and if someone wants to nitpick the car when its done and point out the mis-match there that's fine with me It'll be an honest car with no hidden flaws.

So, needless to say, the year I spent trying to get the passenger side rear bumper to look like the driver's side was scads of fun. I love autobody!

 

Inspiring. The next person who labels me a patient perfectionist I'm going to show this.

 

I think you have done an excellent job, and deserve congratulations. I love to see people who have a dream of what they want, and don't let anything stop them from making it exactly the way they want. I know it had to be frustrating, but this is one reason we do this stuff.

 

Well done you did a ton of work and never gave up. As for the misalignment I would bet the factory cars are far worse than what you have. As for the levels you nailed it. I can see why you are such an inspiration to so many on this forum. Keep posting your project I would like to see your finished car one day.

 

Thanks so much for your kind words everyone, that helps make it worth it. Its been four years since I started this project and a lot of trial and error in fiberglass. Sometimes I think I'm a little crazy

 

Great job on the pics and the steps you took. That is going to be a great looking car!

 

Amazing work. Can't wait to see it when finished in paint.

 

Good for you Priya. You should be proud of yourself.

 

Thanks vettebuyer, I suppose I do feel a certain sense of pride in that after I messed it all up I kept at it, didn't get discouraged, and eventually sorted it all out. As a person without a lot of drive that's a pretty big accomplishment for me.

 

As a former owner of 3 C3's I can't wait to see it when it's finished!

Keep up the good work -

 

Hey Priya , A truly amazing job , one thing to remember is your car is 5 feet off the ground ! When its back on the ground and painted those measurements will not be anywhere near noticeable .

Already looking forward to the next instalment of creating a real classic , (anyone can just bolt on a different style end . )

 

You have my admiration, you do some amazing work. I'm dying to see the finished product.

 

Thanks so much, Bazza77, 7t9l82, Dirty Dalton, Flyboy1958, doorgunner, Mako 72, and VETFEVER !



I'm glad you all think I did all right (so far)

 

That is looking great! You do awesome work IMO! I too, can't wait to see the finished product. You definitely have a great eye for detail! Enjoying seeing every new post!

OLE442

 

Somebody's been busy... Looking good.