How I Replaced The Rusted Floor Pans In A 1962 Chevy Ii Nova

I bought my 1962 Chevy II Nova in 1988 from a friend I was serving with in the National Guard.  The car was rather sound.  There were really no problems and I was able to drive it home, in fact, I did no work to the car for a number of years.  I would drive it to work a couple of times a week and again take it out weekends.   I was really happy with the car.  Three years ago, I decided to repaint it.  I know I could have taken it to a body shop, but I wanted to do it myself.  I wanted this to be a project my son and I could work on together.  I began stripping the car down and this is the beginning of my story.

I figure I will be learning a lot during the process of restoring my Nova back to its original beauty, so I thought I would document the processes I will go through and post them online with plenty of pictures with the intent of maybe helping someone else with their project.   So lets’ get started!

I have removed everything that I can remove from the body of the car.  I did mount an ignition switch on the firewall so I could start the car and move it around but when the actual painting process begins I will be removing the motor and transmission.  I started with the floor pans.  There was a descent amount of rust in the front and just a little in the rear.  The transmission hump and driveshaft tunnel were fine. 

I wanted to buy the entire floor pan and replace it all but it was more expensive than I wanted and I wasn’t sure if I could handle a job quite that big.  I wasn’t sure if I had the capability to cut out the entire floor and replace it without possibly twisting or contorting the car (it is a convertible).  I decided to buy the left and right floor pan.  This covered from the front all the way to the back.  After receiving the floor pans, I spent a lot of time thinking and rethinking and strategizing about the best way to go about cutting out the old and welding in the new.  Since the entire floor pan was not rusted out, I decided to cut out just the rusted part and cut out what I needed from the new replacement floor pans and weld that into place.  I am very happy with this decision.  By cutting out just the rusted pieces and replacing with new metal, I was able to avoid any twisting or contorting of the car and probably saved me a lot of time. 

I was able to cut out the rusted areas in a couple of hours.  I used pneumatic shears that worked very well.  Before buying the shears, I tried several other methods such as a pneumatic saw, tin snips and aviation cutters.  Trust me when I say that a cheap pair of pneumatic shears will be a lifesaver.  I did use the aviation cutters for fine cutting and making small adjustment cuts. 

Next I separated the front and back of my new floor pans by cutting them in half.  I cut out the front part of the floor pan about 2 inches bigger than what I needed.  I then placed this into the front for a test fit.  When I had the replacement pan in place, I made it conform to the existing floor pan with a rubber mallet.  I then used a can of white spray paint and sprayed around the perimeter of the new pan.  By painting around the perimeter, I was able to see where the new pan fit after removing it from the car.  I repeated this procedure for the other front side and then both rear areas.  This took me about a day to complete.

The next part required welding, please be sure to observe all safety practices when welding to avoid any life altering injuries!

I was now ready to weld the replacement sheet metal into place.  This is where my brother was a BIG help!  He has a MIG welder.   We inserted the new pans and while I held them in place, my brother spot welded each one.  After each pan was tacked into place, we stepped back and studied their positions and made sure everything was exactly the way I wanted.  My brother then completed the welding process until all four replacement pieces was securely welded into place.  I don’t know a lot about welding, but I believe my brother had to spend additional time and take extra precautions since the sheet metal is rather thin.  After the replacement floor pan pieces were securely in place, I proceeded to cover the seams with Bondo filler and then I painted the entire floor pan with a rust preventive primer.   My brother and I were able to complete the welding on Saturday morning and I took the rest of the afternoon to finish the Bondo.  I put several coats of paint on the floor pan over the next several days.   

From the pictures on my website, you can tell that it might not be a perfectly smooth floor pan with no flaws, but I can assure you that it is a solid installation that will last many years, even longer if garaged, and will look even better once it is covered with a sound dampening material and new carpet.  This worked well for my 1962 Chevy II Nova and I am sure it will work for you and your special project. 

How to Afford your New Car

Does this sound familiar? You’ve been thinking about getting a new car for ages but you’ve never quite got round to taking the plunge. There are always other things that need to be paid for – every day bills, that summer holiday you’ve booked, and even some new clothes to keep up appearances in your job.

If you’re in this situation right now then it might be time to sit down and create a plan of action to help you turn that new car into a reality. Block off a few hours where you won’t be disturbed, grab a pen and a notepad and use the following steps to get you closer to your goal.

The first area to look at is your household bills. You can often save a lot of money here. Make a note of what you currently pay and go online to do a price check to see how much you could reduce your payments by if you swapped companies. Keep this saving in mind as it can be put towards paying for your new car.

The same applies to any credit card bills you have. If you don’t pay the balance in full every month you could be paying a fortune in interest. Move the balance to an interest free card and you’ll free up another sum of money to fund the purchase of your next car.

You can also approach the issue of finding the money for a new car from another angle. There are plenty of excellent value car finance deals on the market which will enable you to get your next car much sooner than you think. If you combine a good car finance option with the money saving tips mentioned above you will probably find your monthly payments can be met with the money you’ve saved.

You can also save money quite easily by shopping around for your car insurance. If you can get an idea in advance of the type of car you want to buy, you’ll be able to get rough quotes to go on when you’re figuring out what your outgoings are likely to be on your new vehicle each month.

In this sense the repayments on your car finance agreement won’t be the only thing to consider. You could find that by changing the type of car you buy and reducing your insurance payments (and perhaps even paying less in road tax) you could afford a newer car than you’d otherwise be able to.

In short, whatever financial situation you are in it’s more than possible to buy a new car if you take the time to work things out in your favour. All you need is perseverance, the right information and the best finance quotes you can find.

The Beauty About Sports Cars

Cars, in general, possess both form and function.  The designers did not compromise aesthetics with performance.

However, there is something about sports cars that make them stand out when it comes to beauty. And we are not talking about external features only.

There is more to physical features like, sleekness of the car, that determine its beauty.

Here are some of the characteristics that endear sports cars to car enthusiasts.

– Sports cars have attitude at first glance.

Sports cars speak the attitude that they possess. They are not like mere cars whose presence can be ignored. They captivate the eyes of those who see them. They imply that thrill and enjoyment van be expected when their hands are those that control the wheel.

Sports cars stand above other cars, that are seen very day, primarily because   the designs imply what they are capable of doing. A sleek look really matches a car with sleek activities.

– Sports cars possess greater power.

Their power comes from their more powerful engines and has other specifications than other the cars have. A sports car can do more than ordinary tasks because of the features that only they possess.

– Sports cars are made for driving pleasure.

Ordinary cars make driving monotonous and boring, while on the other hand, sports cars primarily aim to give the drivers a “high” feeling of speed and control. Only sports cars can provide that need for drivers who seek adventure.

Sports cars bring the thrill back to driving. They express what other cars can not.  Sports cars are not designed just for practicality, but for pleasure too.

– Sports cars are made for drivers who enjoy their ‘wild side’.

Drivers do have the need to express this ‘wild side’. Sports cars make any road a venue to satisfy those needs.  Only sports cars can match the “wildness” that drivers innately have. For that reason, sports cars perfectly compliment the child in every driver.

– Sports cars have evolved and improved through the years.

Drivers appreciate the improvements that have been made to sports cars. You could say that sports car technology has infinite possibilities. The stereotypes of sports cars have long been debunked. Those limits have been crossed. The only thing that car enthusiasts can do is to watch as these improvements unfold before their very eyes.

– Sports cars make their owners feel good about themselves.

Sports cars are lifeless. They cannot feel proud because they are beautiful, but their owners take pride in having them.

With all these things said about the intrinsic and extrinsic beauty that sports cars possess, only a person who does not appreciate their beauty and/or speed will not opt to get one.

 http://www.thecarwebsite.info

Several Methods To Avoid Car Accidents

No one likes being in a car accident.  While there is nothing that you can do to ensure that you will never be in an accident, there are many things that can be done that will help you avoid being in them as often.

The first thing that you need to stop speeding so much.  While many speed because most other cars do it or because it seems to get you somewhere a little faster, speed is also a huge cause of accidents.  Slow down a bit to give you more time to react.

Watch out for the aggressive drivers on the road.  If someone is making you uncomfortable, avoid them.  Don’t let their aggressive nature dictate the way you drive. Always know where your blind spots are.  Double check these when making lane changes as it’s common to get in a wreck when you don’t know a car is actually there.

Use the slow lane when traveling down the road.  This will help you stay away from those driving carelessly as much as possible. Never drive distracted.  One of the most common types of distracted driving is using a cell phone.  If you don’t use these, you won’t get in wrecks because of them.

Keep a safe distance between you and the car in front of you.  If you have time to stop, it’s likely that you will be able to avoid a wreck that you might otherwise not had enough time to stop before hitting the car. Don’t drive when you are tired.  Falling asleep at the wheel will put you into a dangerous position.

Make sure that you keep your car in good shape.  If your brakes aren’t working properly, for example, this can cause you to get into an accident.  Other car problems can cause you to stall which could cause a wreck.

Car accidents are something that everyone wants to avoid.  Learn some ways that you can avoid these.