Check out these pics. See what it takes to put a new frame rail in a FD.

http://community.webshots.com/album/69912816VsRYvb

I'll have it back for reassembly next week.

 

Looking good.

 

good job. glad to see you didn't just part it out and kill another one.

on the bright side at least it was hit in the front and not the rear.

 

how did you get the new frame rail?

 

Thats just amazing. The pics make it look so easy. It's like 1 pic engine in, and bent parts. Next pic, no engine, clean bay. Next pic, new rail in. Shoulda had you install my engine...

 

The frame rail is available through Mazda. There were 5 separate "crash repair" parts that I bought through Mazda seen assembled together in a couple of those pics. Total bill on those parts was like $750, amazingly cheap by Mazda standards.

 

looks great

 

Dude, what's that "Cheif Lift" looking thing you're car's sitting on? Thats awesome! I want one!

 

looking good jeff.

 

Actually the pieces with "Chief" written on them are part of a laser measuring system. The frame guy put those little "tab" on six different places on the body, a laser machine is placed under the center of the car and the whole thing is hooked up to a computer that knows the FDs dimensions. That way the guy can tell exactly what the diminsions of the car are compared to what it is supposed to be. That is how a car turns out straight again. Otherwise the fender/headlight/hood/bumper fit is a NIGHTMARE. Lots of pieces meet up.

Just for the record, I let a bodyshop to the body and paint. I do all the mechanical R+R, motor, suspension, etc.


Later...

 

that looks good in there, thats a pretty hardcore repair.

mike

 

jeff, how much is the frame repair place and repainting costing? you are hardcore!

 

Wow, you are really into these thrid gens Jeff. So this one is # 13 then?

 

awesome jeff, keep it up!!

 

how are the 5 peices held together? welds right?

 

1 piece is bolted on, the other 4 pieces are welded to the car. The only really structural part of the car is the frame rail, that sucker was pretty heavy. The smaller pieces like the part around the headlight bucket and core support (piece that holds the hood latch) are so thin and whimpy it seems like you could bend them with your hands.

The frame work and paint is gonna be around $2500, not too bad IMHO.

Yeah this is #13, I think. I'm starting to lose track.

 

So what you are saying is, I probably wont be getting one of those for my garage to work on my car.

 

Beautiful work!

How many hours do you think that you have into it?

 

How much was the used front clip ?

 

When I got it most of the damaged parts had been removed for an estimate by the bodyshop that declared it a total, I pulled the motor and trans in 1hr and 4 min. I bet a friend I could get it out in under an hour, I lost. Anyway I really don't have hardly any time in the car right now, probably 4-5 hrs (except for the drive to Seattle and back to pick it up). The bodyshop has done all the work so far.

Putting it back together will be time consuming, maybe 20hrs or so.

I had the front clip in my garage from a 94 so it was free to me. I still have all the structure from that front end, all I used were the fenders, hood and bumper. I bought the crash repair parts (frame rail, core support, headlight bucket) new from the dealer to save the hassle of cutting off the parts from the parts car.

 

Hey Jeff! Just brousing through and saw the picures here. How is it going?

(for you others, this was my Canadian 7 that got crashed that Jeff is rebuilding.)

 

Amazing (especially the $750 for parts)!

It's refreshing to learn something new about our cars. Thanks for the pics...

 

1 hour! wow, thats fast. Can I come over and play sometime? I was just looking at the pics again, and man that looks like fun. I wanna play!

 

next person who says "once its crashed it will never be the same" needs a smack and should look at the photos. looks good as new to me, and with the laser cmm should align perfectly.

 

I had a 911 that was crashed and really was never the same. *smack*

I'm sure it has more to do with who does the repair and to what lengths they're willing to go. It does sound like, at least from the insurance company's perspective, that this car was 'totaled'. For those of us not in turbojeff's position with expertise in bodywork, it's foolish to repair a car if the cost of repair exceeds the value of the car. Just get a new one.

Are there other parts to buy (radiator, headlights, signals, etc)?