After doing a thorough job of getting everything behind the quarter panel prepped, the only thing to do was fit the panel in place, clamp it down with vise grips and weld it. All through the process of installing the outer wheel housing, the repair to the trunk floor extension, and even the little reinforcing plate in the door jamb, I had to repeatedly put the quarter panel in place to check for fit. It is a large panel, so I used self tapping screws to temporarily hold it in place. They are good for this because you just drive them in with an electric drill and they bore themselves into the metal right where you put them. The tiny hole they leave is easily welded up.
Before the final fit, the edges of the quarter panel have the primer ground off so I can use the MIG welder. Then I drill holes large enough to weld through. Now it is ready to be installed.
The edge is welded to the inner panel.
If you look closely, you can see a hole I had to drill in the door jamb. This is to provide access to the bolt that holds the end of the track the window rides in.
More on the window later.
Here is a view of the panel welded into place. It is welded to the top of the rocker panel through a hole in the inner quarter panel.
Here is a good view of where the quarter panel is welded to the trunk floor extension.
These welds will be ground down and covered with sealer.
The quarter panel did not come complete. For some reason the upper part of the area where the door closes was just left off. Here you can see the old part in behind the new part.
I had to fabricate the part from the outer skin of the old quarter panel.
Here it is after welding in the metal that I bent to shape. There is still a notch to be cut out for where the window rolls up into.
Here it is in primer with the notch cut out. The three square holes are where the door latch bolts onto.
Fully installed! I primed any areas that had gotten scratched during installation. There was also a small spot just behind the wheel well where I had to whack it with a hammer to adjust the fit. This cause a small ripple, which had to be repaired.
At least one, probably two, coats of primer will be applied and sanded smooth before painting. But for now, this section is DONE!
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