3kcarbon
05-16-2011, 11:19 PM
Well that was fun... not! The front splash panels are known to be a mystery for some of us. They didn't want to fit, lots of trimming and test fitting and it started to work out. After the last test fit I installed 8-32 rivnuts and then painted the panels with bedliner in place of undercoat. When the body comes back off for paint I will clearcoat the F panels and be ready for reinstall.
efnfast
05-17-2011, 12:45 AM
Good call on the rivnuts - I'v ehad mine off/on several times. Would have been a bad bad move to rivet them in.
Pierre B
05-17-2011, 08:12 AM
I have had my splash panels off a couple of times as well, and I find it useful to keep them relatively easy to remove. For example, getting them out of the way makes it much easier to work on/modify the exhaust eyetem. I still use pop rivets, though. I have finally learned that those things are really easy to remove, if I only drill out the top flange collar. Once that piece is off, the rivet looses its grip, and I can simply reach back with a pair of pliers and pull out the rest of it from behind. That way, the rivet holes don't lose their shape. Also, that plier removal is easier with 1/2-inch grip rivets than with 1/4-inch ones: the extra rivet depth/rear projection makes them easier to grip. And yes, fitting these front and rear splash panels can be a bit of a trial. The front ones especially require that the 3/4-inch F-panel mounting flangeis bent at the proper angle, and the center crease of the splash panel needs the same treatment. Getting a good fit means having the proper bends in those two places, and that required considerable fiddling for me.