Hello,

I am about to repair / restore my S4 FC. (Here is the thread: https://www.rx7club.com/2nd-generation-non-technical-pictures-198/suv-bumps-into-my-clean-fc-side-damage-963959/)

I need to get replacement panels for the sides (under the doors).
I believe thats called side sills. As far as I know every car manufacturer does offer repair panels/metal for some areas. The side sills being the most common.

Mines are completly shot (see attachment) the bodyshop which will do the work told me too that I should get new sills.
Are there anyones available ? Where ? How much ?

The last option would be to let the bodyshop build them from scratch...

Many thanks
Steven

 

Contact your dealer, but man, that car is junk, find a clean shell. Given what I see in that pic that car will never be right.
I dont mean to be a downer, but ive been there, not worth the effort.

 

He stated in the other thread that these cars are hard to come by where he lives. Might be cheaper to source the metal for the shop yourself or buy a wrecked fc and cut out the parts you need.

 

mazda calls it a rocker panel,

the right is FCY1-70-271B list price in the US is $186
the left is FCY1-71-271A list is $275

there is stock in the US of both

i can't help but notice your car has already been fixed once, that greyish piece on the inside isn't factory

 

For the cost to have a competent body shop cut it all out, fab up new panels, and weld it back in you could EASILY find a clean shell. If the rockers are that far gone you can guarantee there are other spots that will need repair too. That's a TON of labor. I had a 90 GTU that was going to repair it myself, but got pissed off after spending an entire spring break on one rocker and not even finishing it. I still had the frame rails, the other rocker, and the rear wheel wells to do.

It was much cheaper, if you consider your time, to just eat peanut butter sandwiches for a few months and buy another shell. I found a completely rust free shell 86 GXL a couple hours away and am more than happy I paid the money to not have to deal with cancer. Every nut and bolt was rusted on my GTU and I lost count how many bolts I snapped. The GXL had maybe a couple bolts in the front bumper to fender bracket snap; that was it. I've torn the car completely apart and rebuilt every system and replaced all the suspension, body, and engine bay bolts for comparison.

 

+1 Vote for president:
Thanks to j9fd3s for that info, man even the parts number I contacted some local mazda dealer to get these things but still no response. 461 $ for both is a freaking bargain

Well yes, it is badly rusted on the rockers (btw I didn't know that they were called rockers, we call them "Schweller" over here so ...)
The reason why the rockers are rusted so badly is that the PO considered himself as a super mechanic and did all the stuff himself, this leading sooner or later in bending/crushing the pinch welds when jacking the car.

From this point on they were never repaired, just left to rot and drove through salty winters.
Some years later he sold it instead of fixing because it couldn't pass inspections (and he couldn' afford to fix it) due to rust damage on the rockers.
I bought it for cheap and went to a shop which were supposed to fix that rust.
Guess what they did ? Point weld a plate under it, smear tar over it and call it a day. Writing a bill for over 1000$. (Thats the greyish plate j9fd3s) mentionned.

The rest of the car is actually in good condition, and FCs are super rare over here.
You see Porsches etc ... on every corner, but no FC's.
The areas towards the frame rails are not rusted, still solid from inside & outside.
Car will be repaired as getting another shell for me is completly impossible, not even in my dreams.

Many thanks
Steven

 

hmm Schweller? neat, car words are fun! side sills is valid too, if you went to the UK that's what they would say, mazda went with rocker panel...

 

Yeah, a schweller lol, thats how we call these things. But the germans can´t be topped, they have some car words, you would roll on the floor

Did not expect that the rocker panels were available for the FC. Cause I never heard someone writing about them on the forum. So I figured this kind of part doesn´t exist.

Steven

 

Ha, I didn't know those were available either.

I will pick some up for myself some day when I have money as I'm in exactly your position. The body is straight and almost completely rust free (small areas in the rear wheel wells, but its really just on the surface) EXCEPT for the stupid rocker panels. It seems no FC survived this long without somebody trying to jack the car up by one of those and consequently crushing it.

Then again... WTF Mazda, every other car on the planet has a jack point on the pinch weld there... except the FC. Its no wonder why they all end up smashed.

 

most people don't even check. Mazda used to be excellent for parts availability, about 10 years ago you could buy just about every part of the car new.

 

Yup, just got the answer from the dealer, both pieces on stock for about 350 $.
They will be there in 2 days.

I dont know but wonders still happen in luxembourg

One thing though, the number is FBY1-70-271B not FCY1-70-271B

 

lmao! this is actually the first time i've ever heard of a euro dealership actually being able to supply a part....

 

What about importing? Couldn't you import a non running shell from another country? Just pay the registration in your country and shipping costs?

 

yeah lol, exactly the part where I was sure they couldnt get it, they did, or at least they say so.

As for the shell, I dont have any space left for that. Hell I am running out of space. I have 2 cars now in pieces all over the house lol. People are getiing on my nerve for using all that space ..

Steven