TibRacer01

Well, I hit a deer and I am thinking about doing the repair myself. The only thing that I am concerned about is the radiator support beam (upper).

I took 2 years of autobody in high school so I feel confident in general repairs but I cannot weld.

I read in another post that the radiator support is welded on. Does anyone have any information on this. I checked webtech but cannot find anything. I have a friend that said he could do it if it was spot welded on but not if it was a large weld.

Any information would be appreciated.

Jaws021

it is spot welded...

laugh.gif

i just replaced mine not too long ago

TibRacer01

Thanks, I am assuming that I would just get another one, cut the old one off with a chizle and then spot the new one back on.

Is it a hard thing to replace? I am comfortable with the hood, body kit, fender, and body work, but this is the only thing that I am questioning. Again, I will have some help, I just don't want to get in over my head.

Jaws021

that wont work

your going to need a grinder

That metal is held on tight..

Your going to have to grind all that crap off...

good luck..

Tibbychick

yeah it's definetly welded on there. My bodyshop was gonna try to salvage mine the last time I got hit, but they ended up just using a new one. I guess it was easier for them.

wec2002

As Jaws said, you will need a grinder. There are around 30 spot welds holding it in place. My suggestion is to get a spot weld cutter (they chuck into a drill) and drill out as many as you can but try not to drill through both layers of medal. There will be at least two welds at the bottom of the core support (where it attaches to the lower frame horns) that will be very hard to break since they go through three layers. Cut the spot welds, remove the old core support, and grind down the remaining weld for a smooth surface. Either punch or drill some holes in the new support to mate up with the areas where the original one was spot welded about 3/16" should be fine. Test fit and mark where the holes are so you can remove the paint. Clamp the new one in place and weld away. I'm not trying to make it sound too simple but it can be done. I've replcaed two myself and they will fight you the whole way. The old core support will hang on tight. You may also want to have the front end checked to make sure the upper and lower frame rails didn't get knocked out of alignment. If you do decide to give it a go, give me a shout and I can send you the front end measurements so you can make sure it's true and everything will line up during reassemble.

TibRacer01

Thanks man, I really appreciate it.

That sucks man, it doesn't sound that hard, but it is a little more then I am up to in the dead of winter, plus this is my daily driver. I am going to look at it closely to see if we can repair it. The estimator said that it could be repaired, but I don't have all the equipment that a body shop does.

The frame should be alright. What happened is I clipped the deers legs and it fell onto my hood and fendor. The top of the radiator support is bent down.

This seems like a stupid question to me, but my friend insists that it will work, would I be able to fiberglass this smooth after I pound it out? I have done work like this before, I am just concerned about the heat.

wec2002

As long as the medal isn't broken you should be ok, however I would recommend using a medal to medal filler instead of fiberglass. Eastwood has some good filler but a little expensive. The nice thing about m2m filler is that it will withstand temps up to 500 degrees with no problems plus it work just like normal filler and a lot less mess then fiberglass. Good luck.

TibRacer01

Cool, thanks for the help guys.

I am ready to repair this thing myself again....here are my plans.

SC-2 or Ixion body kit
Carbon Fiber Hood
Clear Corners
17" Rims
?Custom Paint? - May be to much of a PITA for me to deal with right now.

TibRacer01

Update:

All of my parts are not in yet, but I was bored today, so I decided to replace my fender and put in my clear corners. Before I started, it looked like there was just a dent in the top of the radiator support, but I put my fender on, then I had a hard time getting my left clear corner in. The right went in just fine, but the left was a PITA. I auctually broke the little clip on the light.

I then put the bumper back on and the left side does not line up with the head lights at all. There is like an inch gap! It is like the front end is pushed in a little on that side. The headlight assembly seems to close to the battery as well.

I am really ticked off at myself now, because I didn't think about this before I started and blew the $3,200 from the insurance company on aftermarket parts.

My question is, are the headlights connected to the radiator support? If they are, I think I can get away with buying another one and having a shop putting it on for me. Tomorrow, I think I am going to take it to a shop and see what they think and see how much they will charge me to replace that part and paint my fender and body kit.