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Just able to check the drivers side mount currently. Will check passenger side asap. Curious from those who've seen the spectrum how bad is this?
Thanks
Just able to check the drivers side mount currently. Will check passenger side asap. Curious from those who've seen the spectrum how bad is this?
Thanks
My two cents.....The pitted washer on the mounting bolt has obviously been cleaned up and painted over....similar to what I found on mine. This area looks fairly solid. What is concerning are the rust flakes laying on top of the paint. I was told by others on the forum the issues are farther up towards the windshield post. I did a closer inspection and found a considerable amount of rust in the cowl and windshield post (both sides). Another suggestion from forum members was to Vacum out all the loose stuff and slamm the door a few times to see how much, if anything falls down. Remember Hope for the best....Prepare for the worst.....
My '68 looked similar. I replaced the body bolt and washer after scraping all the rust/vacuuming/rustproofing the pocket and underside of the pocket (also had to replace frame cage nut.
I went a step further than DG on mine. I used Eastwood internal frame coating inside the entire windshield frame and front birdcage. Had to drill an access hole on each side of the frame near the top to feed the line for the Eastwood, but gave me extra peace of mind.
Those fresh flakes mean you have rust up above. Does the carpet get wet when it rains? You should check to see how bad it is to give yourself peace of mind. Pull the windshield inside trim piece and inspect the window frame. Same with the upper header. Also you can snake a fiber optic camera up under the dash to the corner under the vin. See if the windshield is original and if you can slide a feeler gauge between it and the thick 40 year old rope seal. I did had a few more flakes than yours, and yes my windshield frame did have several holes. Once you have holes, rain or wash water will get in.
Last edited by leigh1322; Oct 16, 2018 at 10:19 PM.
No doubt that the rust flakes are from the windshield frame. How big of concern they are depends upon how long it has taken them to accumulate there. If you've owned the car for 10+ years and this is the first time you've taken the kick panel off and looked, I wouldn't be overly concerned. If you just bought the car a month ago and don't know when or if the flakes were last vacuumed out, you may want to remove the A pillar and windshield header trim and take a closer look for possible rust issues.
You need a bird cage, I have just done one, you 'may get away with cutting at upper door hinge and mig weld, at the 4 bolts location, I have done this without removing front end. but if u have
not bought car yet I would walk away, not an easy job, I would also wonder what is below the lower bolt get a real good flash light and look at the lower bird cage. here in Canada
with the salt on roads in winter almost all the vettes here are rotted out ,
What a wild variety of answers from "drive it for another 40 years" to "you need a birdcage" with about every possibility in between. The strange thing is that all of the replies can be correct!
What's obvious is that water has come down through that framing member and pooled at the bottom long enough to severely corrode the washer and head of the body mount bolt. It also appears that someone did a recent half-*** cleaning followed by some spray paint.
Those rust flakes certainly came from above and most likely originate from the windshield framing. The actual cause of the problem may or may not have been addressed. You really need to remove the inner windshield trim at a minimum. If you see rust, even "surface" rust, there you need to remove exterior windshield trim.
Yes checking is prudent since the frame rust issue is so common on these cars. If you check glass date codes and believe you still have the original glass & attachment strip, I would carefully check that the rubber strip it is still attached to the frame with a feeler gauge of some sort from inside the car. Nothing needs to come off. Mine was only still attached at a 12 inch strip at the bottom, It was basically just laying there in the frame. Obviously how my water got in.
