Just a question regarding the fit and alignment of the fiberglass body panels on the C3. I just recently rolled my project out of the tent to have a go at getting it started after sitting for so very long. I took a bit and washed the car as well and began to notice just how far "off" the panels were both in relation to the wheels/tires and side to side. Door opened and closed just fine, but the right and left side fenders were very different in how close the tires were to the edges of the wheel wells and the position of the tires within them. One side would have excess space towards the front and the other would sit perfectly. One side would be high and the other low. The front was worse than the rear. Was this common of the C3 or has my car had some extensive damage and repair work done to it? The chassis checks out just fine, no bends or crimps or damage what-so-ever, so it's all in the fiberglass from what I can tell.

Again, is the fit and finish of these bodies less than perfect, or am I in the middle of a mess here?

Thanks—

 

I'd start by looking at the body mounts. Deteriorated rubbers or the worse , rusted mounts.

 

Take measurements on the side of the car that seems to have the better looking fender-to-tire spacing.
Measure from the gap between the door at the front/bottom to the rear bottom of the fender arch. Also measure to the bottom of the front of the wheel well arch.
Write down the measurements.

Then......measure the other side of the car the same way.

Let us know what you find.

 

And measure center to center front to back wheels both sides.

 

Why not post some pics of what you've found?

 

Now that I know that GM wasn't sloppy with the fit and finish, I did some measurements which were all over the board so to speak. The rear of the front fender lip on both sides was spot on, as were the measurements from the vent opening to the rearward edge of the fender lip. The measurements from the front of the fender lip to the front of the fender were off although, the measurement from the top of the fenders from the hood opening to the front of the fenders was, again, spot on. I found some partially cracked seams on the passenger's side fender which indicated that it was replaced at one point. The quality of the molding suggests that it might have been a factory piece from another car. The two fenders don't really match each other as there is about an inch difference in their length from the side at the swage line. The wheel cap to wheel cap measurement on either side was the same, there rear sits pretty much the same concerning the tire to wheel well opening measurement but there's a difference side to side regarding the space above the tires and the height of the top of the wheel well opening and the ground. The front is MUCH worse than the rear. I have a pair of '69 front fenders for it that go along with the '68 front piece by the headlights, all for the chromed bumper conversion. Looks like I'll put those fenders in place over the originals and mark them up for a match side to side regarding the wheel well to tire relationship and go from there. I wasn't entirely expecting this sort of "mystery" but the car really was a quick "buff and fluff" so it's not a complete surprise after what I found in the interior. Pretty much a "constructed" vehicle rather than a straight out of Detroit offering. Thanks all for the help.