Griff hit from behind - Fibre glass work?
Discussion
Completely gutted as my vacation starts next week and as it seems I will spend it in the garage instead of on the road.
Has anyone got experience with fibre glass work. Is it something I can do myself or should it handed to a professional? I'm pretty handy with a spanner but not so sure about fibre glass.
Also looking for a new rear light, if you have a spare please send a PM!
A few pictures of the damage.
Has anyone got experience with fibre glass work. Is it something I can do myself or should it handed to a professional? I'm pretty handy with a spanner but not so sure about fibre glass.
Also looking for a new rear light, if you have a spare please send a PM!
A few pictures of the damage.
If you're not familiar with working on fibreglass, repairing and painting it is best left to the experts.
I assume as you have been rear ended that this will be covered by the other parties insurance. From the pictures, obviously I can't see the chassis but assuming it is OK it doesn't look too serious - it should be a straightforward repair
I assume as you have been rear ended that this will be covered by the other parties insurance. From the pictures, obviously I can't see the chassis but assuming it is OK it doesn't look too serious - it should be a straightforward repair
Colin RedGriff said:
If you're not familiar with working on fibreglass, repairing and painting it is best left to the experts.
Well, I believe in learning at the job! Painting on the other hand is something I will leave to the experts. The chassis is most likely intact. It was a low speed impact.
Any pointers from someone who've done this kind of jobs before?
With the possibility to sound like a complete nut, I was thinking something like this:
Remove carpet from inside the trunk.
Sand down paint from outside.
Remove broken fibre glass.
Apply glue and fibreglass from outside and inside.
Let dry and then start to shape body with sandpaper.
Refit carpet and leave for painting.
This is a good guide if you do want to do it yourself
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Restore-Fibreglass-Bodywor...
You need to apply fibreglass both inside and out to the damaged area. You'll also need to remove the paint to find the extent of the cracks.
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Restore-Fibreglass-Bodywor...
You need to apply fibreglass both inside and out to the damaged area. You'll also need to remove the paint to find the extent of the cracks.
That's similar damage to I had after being shunted.
Sport motive cut the whole rear quarter off as far across as the number plate and glassed in a new rear quarter
Specialist work IMHO
But, don't be in a rush to fix it. Fibreglass cracks are often unseen and will surface long after repairs have been finished if not picked up.
So do yourself a favour, fix the rear light and gaffer tape the damage and drive it for the summer, then get it repaired in the autumn.
Sport motive cut the whole rear quarter off as far across as the number plate and glassed in a new rear quarter
Specialist work IMHO
But, don't be in a rush to fix it. Fibreglass cracks are often unseen and will surface long after repairs have been finished if not picked up.
So do yourself a favour, fix the rear light and gaffer tape the damage and drive it for the summer, then get it repaired in the autumn.
S&D repaired/recreated the rear section on mine, took a mould off it and then cut the whole rear quarter off my car and replaced the panel, as mentioned fibreglass fractures and crazes for quite a while after an incident such as that and replacing the whole area is the only safe way to do a quality job.
They may be prepared to sell you a panel but personally I'd have it done professionally it's not as easy as it looks to do a good job.
They may be prepared to sell you a panel but personally I'd have it done professionally it's not as easy as it looks to do a good job.
Barreti said:
But, don't be in a rush to fix it. Fibreglass cracks are often unseen and will surface long after repairs have been finished if not picked up.
So do yourself a favour, fix the rear light and gaffer tape the damage and drive it for the summer, then get it repaired in the autumn.
Been reading up a bit on this and you seem to be right.. Bah! Gotta get myself a roll of curetan green tape to hide the cracks!So do yourself a favour, fix the rear light and gaffer tape the damage and drive it for the summer, then get it repaired in the autumn.
LordGrover said:
Looking at the number plate and your profile you're in Sweden? I suspect TVR specialists are thin on the ground.
Whatever you decide to do, best of luck.
That is a bit of an understatement.. TVR-garages here are non-existant!Whatever you decide to do, best of luck.
The GSI lights seems to be a PITA to find, so I've thought a bit about converting to the quad-light setup.. But I'm not sure I like it.
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/TVR-GRIFFITH-PASSENGERS-...
This might help but would need the smoke effect applied.
Sorry if you already know this, but when searching for new lamps, a R/H GSI lamp is a L/H TVR lamp.
This might help but would need the smoke effect applied.
Sorry if you already know this, but when searching for new lamps, a R/H GSI lamp is a L/H TVR lamp.
LordGrover said:
Tatty one here for a tenner: ebay.
Good enough to get you back on the road at least.
I have just bought a pair of brand new original Vauxhall rear light assemblies which include the bulb holder plate for £39.90 the lot delivered, from a stockist clearing out old Vauxhall parts! Unfortunately they were the last pair so no good me passing on the details. Just to show they are available new and original very reasonably; believe they are nearly £100 from TVR stockists!! And £39+ for a second hand single unit is extortionate. It pays to look around outside the TVR parts network if you know what the parts originally came from.Good enough to get you back on the road at least.
Habbmeizter said:
Well, I believe in learning at the job! Painting on the other hand is something I will leave to the experts.
The chassis is most likely intact. It was a low speed impact.
Any pointers from someone who've done this kind of jobs before?
With the possibility to sound like a complete nut, I was thinking something like this:
Remove carpet from inside the trunk.
Sand down paint from outside.
Remove broken fibre glass.
Apply glue and fibreglass from outside and inside.
Let dry and then start to shape body with sandpaper.
Refit carpet and leave for painting.
I'm with you, give it a go, fibreglass is not hard to work with and there must be plenty written about it, if not on cars then with boats. There must be a lot of experience amongst our Lotus fraternity. I did a nut and bolt re-build on a Lotus Elan Sprint many years ago and spent a lot of time grinding out the cracking on the gel-coat and rebonding the gel coat.The chassis is most likely intact. It was a low speed impact.
Any pointers from someone who've done this kind of jobs before?
With the possibility to sound like a complete nut, I was thinking something like this:
Remove carpet from inside the trunk.
Sand down paint from outside.
Remove broken fibre glass.
Apply glue and fibreglass from outside and inside.
Let dry and then start to shape body with sandpaper.
Refit carpet and leave for painting.
If this is an insurance job then I would do what is suggested elsewhere and tape it up, find yourself another light cluster (an ordinary Cavalier one will do temporarily and there are plenty on flea-bay, you could always spray tint it for now) and then leave it to the insurance company.
If it is not an insurance job then the first thing I would do is investigate the cracking by grinding the cracks out and see what you are left with. If you decide to stay with the existing wing then you may need you may need to carefully align the panels and temporarily fix by pop rivetting or bolting metal straps over the cracks. I would then grind back the paint a good 50-75mm on either side of the crack both inside and outside and then layer on fiberglass matt and resin inside and out making sure you keep the layers below the wing surface level. Basically you do not want to be layering glass fibre over the paint layer.
Once you have the strength back you can remove the metal straps and overlay matt on the rivet/screw holes. You may need to grind back and then you can apply filler and rub down the normal way. It shouldn't be too time sonsuming because the resin goes off in half an hour or so depending on how much catalyst you use.
If you decide to replace the whole panel then it will be the same process, carefully aligning the new panel and pop rivetting straps to temporaily hold it in place.
If you make a complete cock of this then you can always hand it over to the experts but why should you if you are careful?
The strength of the Griff is in the chassis so having a go on the body should not affect the integrity of the car.
If you have no automobile glass fibre experts in Sweden then try a boat shop that specialise in glass fibre boats, they should be able to help with glass fibre supplies as well as advice.
Give it a go, you might even enjoy the new experience....!
I would agree broadly with most of the above . Cracks do not continue after an impact unless there is still some stress or flexing. If the area of repair is smaller than the area of bonding on of a new panel then there is no point in replacing unless it is a complicated panel. If you want to repair this yourself I would remove the carpet and grind back the whole damaged area inside the boot (Not a nice job) then glass with a couple of layers of 450gm fibreglass mat and wait for it to go off . A day would normally be ideal. then grind down all the damaged area on the outside , some of this will be down to your new fibreglass , then glass the outside. Once the fibreglass on the outside is properly cured grind it down enough to allow a thin coat of filler over the repaired area. Finish to shape with a sanding block then give it to the paintshop . Goodluck.
PeteGriff said:
I have just bought a pair of brand new original Vauxhall rear light assemblies which include the bulb holder plate for £39.90 the lot delivered, from a stockist clearing out old Vauxhall parts!.
Are they GSI smoked lights? If they are you're a jammy bugger at that price. 
I paid £40 for my smoked N/S light and I was happy with that price, they are rare now. You can however buy new unsmoked ones for £20 on ebay.
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