body not straight?

[Austria]

Hi!

by building my MK3 appeared one major problem, the body isn`t straigt. that means the front is about 2,5cm to the left, also the left wheelhouse about 1,5cm to wide against the right one.

does anyone has the same prob?

my change was now to reposition the front chassis to the right, by pulling the body it is now straigt on the main chassis and optical right placed
BUT the left door has now 2cm more gap on the front and the right door must be shortend

hope you understand my words...

Maybe there is a better solution, did anyone from you another change ? would be there a better solution?

[jimgood]

Try to get some pictures so we can see what you're talking about.

[Austria]

the pics are out of context, but they show the wrong fitting of the body
left is the wheel to fare inside
right is the wheel outside the body

the geometrie of the wheels are correct
the main chassis is correct -> straight

we changed the front chassis (cooler) to geht the body 2,5cm to the right, now the body looks good
but with the problems of the doors, of course by pulling the body....

[Austria]

an other snake tamer in Austria with the same MK3 has the same problem, seems to be more than just a single prob....

[Pierre B]

Your concerns coupled with my earlier building experience I believe reflect some of the realities of working with fiberglass bodies on automobiles. Those of us looking for extreme precision with this body to chassis fit eventually learn the art of compromise and accommodation. After all, metal hand-crafted bodies for Ferraris etc. were never exactly the same on both sides of the vehicle. All of these FFRs are handmade as well (by us), and part of the build process involves involves mating a rather loose and floppy (relatively speaking) body to a rigid, jig-fabricated steel chassis. I built my car with my son, and he had had considerable previous experience with other fiberglass-bodied kit cars. He found my MKII FFR easier to work with than most. He and I approached this more as a challenge than a problem. I understand Factory Five has much improved the fit of their bodies since I got my kit in mid-2004. Good luck, and don't let this get to you too much is my advice.

[Richard Oben]

The body does not get centered over the hood opening. Center it over the shocks and your problems go away. HTH, Richard.

[David Hodgkins]

Richard (Austria),

I sent you a PM...

:)

[Austria]

The body does not get centered over the hood opening. Center it over the shocks and your problems go away. HTH, Richard.
now, after we changed that, it is centered over the hood opening, distance from body to subframe is now the same left & right, but we had to change the hood bracket ?

i will have to change the left door for better fitting and forget the rest :rolleyes:

[3kcarbon]

My Mk 4 is better but still has problems. Assume nothing, think about everything that is effected before making trim or alignment of panels.The fit and function is much more of a open subject than you want it to be.

[Austria]

of interest to hear about!
becouse I was a little bit mad, after I bought and then the MKIV came out and I didn`t know of...
but we did many changes on my MKIII that I think there isn`t so much difference now to MKiV...

[3kcarbon]

For what it may be worth to you . When I started putting my hood on I put the hinges in the center of adjustment both fore and aft and verticle. Seemed like a good place to start. The hinges had to go all the way down and almost all the way back to get the hood to fit. The body was on in the position the quickjacks as supplied by FFR forced it to. The trunk didn't want to fit, it had pulled into a tighter radius while in storage. Don't expect anything to just fit and you won't be put off by it. Everything will need fitting, tweaking, shimming, trimming and a few things need a review of your 4 letter vocabulary..

[Austria]

just asked if someone had the same problem and what his solution was
no need for deep analyse and charge me and my vocabulary, would like to see some words from you in german....

[Snakely]

Easy there. I think by "review of your 4 letter vocabulary" he meant there may be a lot of cursing involved. Its just a phrase, i don't think he was commenting on your English. You're doing fine.

[Austria]

always want to improve my english, but sometimes you loose... :cool:
OK!

[Gumball]

Austria - Wie geht es ihnen? Es tut meir leid, meine Deutsch ist sehr gut nicht. As you can tell, you're English is much better than my German and you are doing just fine with the explanation and pictures. 3K's comment was a joke regarding the frustration you'll experience with these cars sometimes, especially the body alignment with the chassis and the hood hinge. Let us know if you don't yet have an answer as there are a great many people here who would like to help you.

Viel gluck!

[frankeeski]

Austria, I think what you are experiencing is a very common occurrence with the body and chassis. What I ended up doing with mine was to bend the front 3/4" tubes in the front on either side and make sure they were centered. This is where the body mounts to the chassis in the front next to the quick jacks. The issue you are having with the doors can be adjusted by spacing the body from the chassis with the addition or reduction of spacers (washers) between the body and the chassis. Hang in there, it will come together. If you need help with your 4 letter words, get a copy of the "George Carlin's 7 Dirty Words". It will make everything crystal clear.

[jxm99]

As this is an older thread, I'm hoping folks are still providing their valuable input. I have the same issue with the passenger side front wheel and thought I could also make the frame adjustment. After removing all the bolts that attach the body to the frame near the quick jacks, I tried to test the possibility of making this adjustment. The issue I see with trying this is the body opening for the hood sits tight on the square frame rail on both the passenger and driver side. Given the body is secured to the frame around the hood, how can you possibly be able to shift the body over the 1/2 inch? Any words of wisdom would be appreciated

[rich grsc]

As this is an older thread, I'm hoping folks are still providing their valuable input. I have the same issue with the passenger side front wheel and thought I could also make the frame adjustment. After removing all the bolts that attach the body to the frame near the quick jacks, I tried to test the possibility of making this adjustment. The issue I see with trying this is the body opening for the hood sits tight on the square frame rail on both the passenger and driver side. Given the body is secured to the frame around the hood, how can you possibly be able to shift the body over the 1/2 inch? Any words of wisdom would be appreciated


The body floats above the frame, not fastened to it.

[CraigS]

In the last 4 days or so this is the third time I have seen reference to the body floating over the frame tubes. I realize I have a MkII, but I used to have a MkI. The MkI actually had screws through the fiberglass into the tubes on either side of the hood opening. The MkII doesn't have any screws but it sits tightly on the frame w/ some sticky back foam in between. On MkIs, MkIIs, and MkIIIs, it is easy to bend the mounts out front sideways and many people have needed to do this. But how would you raise the body so it 'floats' above the hood opening tubes? And, since it seems to me that everything would be a little more solid w/ the body resting or attached to the tubes at the hood opening, why would you want it floating?

[skullandbones]

of interest to hear about!
becouse I was a little bit mad, after I bought and then the MKIV came out and I didn`t know of...
but we did many changes on my MKIII that I think there isn`t so much difference now to MKiV...

Hi Richard,

I didn't see a reference to the doors (may have missed it) but you will have to readjust the doors when moving the body since the doors are hanging on the frame by the hinges. So that isn't really a problem just one of the many adjustments you will have to make as you tweek things.

I have an MKIII and like you have made many changes that make it more like an MKIV. Not that I'm trying to do that. It's just that the mods are helpful for fitting in the drivers foot box, etc. and those things were added to the MKIV from customer feedback. So it is natural for us to be changing the MKIII. I will be driving mine in primer for several months to make adjustments to the body and check the suspension fit to the body and other related functions. So you should consider most of this as minor adjustments. After looking at your first post, I really didn't think it was any different than what I experienced when I first put my body on for the final time. You can move it some in the front especially but there may be places where you will have to compromise to maybe take out half of the measurement in one area and half in another (sort of averaging) to get a good look. I am doing this very thing with my suspension/body/tire clearance and it is pretty frustrating as you are unlikely to get it right the first time (maybe not the second, third, or forth time). Anyway hang in there and learn to walk away, have a beer, and come back even stronger. Good luck, WEK.

[Cobradavid]

In the last 4 days or so this is the third time I have seen reference to the body floating over the frame tubes. I realize I have a MkII, but I used to have a MkI. The MkI actually had screws through the fiberglass into the tubes on either side of the hood opening. The MkII doesn't have any screws but it sits tightly on the frame w/ some sticky back foam in between. On MkIs, MkIIs, and MkIIIs, it is easy to bend the mounts out front sideways and many people have needed to do this. But how would you raise the body so it 'floats' above the hood opening tubes? And, since it seems to me that everything would be a little more solid w/ the body resting or attached to the tubes at the hood opening, why would you want it floating?

I was wondering the same thing. Per the instructions, I used the supplied screws to attach the body to the 3/4" tubes on either side of the hood opening on my Mk 3.1. Maybe the Mk 4 has the "floating body"?

David

[Austria]

Hi David,
at least I had a damaged frame and body badly repaird. Got it from FFR but after a view words they told me: "we stick to our guns, thats not our product.."
For me FFR is not longer a company where I will by parts or kits.
We had to fix the frame, had a bend (first we were just thinking of an big welding disorbtion), but it had a kink with filler
The body was reapaird, but did not have the original foarm, so we had to cut the body 4 times to get it back in shape.
It was of course our problem that on delivery day we didn't see the bend and the body repair. Now when I look on the pics I did...
That was a lot of money I had to spend and I will never do it again.
Regards
Richard

[CraigS]

Did you car get "lost" in the shipping process? Did it get dropped off the boat, held up for repairs, and then shipped to you? I have never in 7 years on the other forum seen anything like that. No wonder the body didn't fit.

[Austria]

Did you car get "lost" in the shipping process? Did it get dropped off the boat, held up for repairs, and then shipped to you? I have never in 7 years on the other forum seen anything like that. No wonder the body didn't fit.

Nice idea! but delivery was on time...
packed from FFR in container (we paid for), no other parties involved.... but this can only be done by us :confused::mad:
sorry, but normal common sense tells you the true story.

[Blue MK3]

Austria, what type of rear suspension is installed on your car? If it is a three-link rear, I possibly can help. My MK3 has three-link rear and I observed the same issue.

[skullandbones]

If Dave Smith found that a chassis in that condition got through the production line and shipped out, he would have a heart attack on the spot. They are built on a production jig! So FFR should know about this ASAP. There must be a valid explanation. That will be interesting to see what happened after it left the US and before it got to you. Good luck. WEK.

[edwardb]

There has to be more to this story. That chassis had to have taken a major hit to be bent like that. Body is likely collateral damage from whatever damaged the chassis. Most of us have had positive experiences with customer service at FFR, and how they stand behind their products. If they say it wasn't packed in that condition, I believe them. Somebody should be filing a claim against the carrier(s) involved because at some point it was seriously mishandled.

[Austria]

Hi Blue
I do not understand how the 3-link should be involved to that issue.

Guys. That was not a problem of transportation, that was on time and it was already fixed. Packed in container and transport from Holland to Austria by truck. On delivery day we did't see that, everything looked fined. But we did not measure the frame and I did not look on the inside of the body to the textile structure. That was a long time process to get the aha effect.
The problem on the frame we found out, because I wanted to repair the big welding disorbtion, because the drivability was not perfect. The car was finished and we tried a lot to fix the body offset until a new friend (who makes fiber bodys) told me there is a big repair on it. On the outside of the body you didn't see any repairs. Also on the frame.

The car never went out of my hands and never had a accident. That is all since start up.
And the pictures of delivery day, I have enough, show that every thing was fine from transport, but you can see on the last picture attached, that the new frame (originale sheet metal from FFR on it) is bent.
I can not give a better evidence then that!

Talking to FFR, the first time when I got the month POM, to Dave for what is the body offset about. No reply.
The next was after I was told from other custom companies that there is something realy wrong. Then some other guys from FFR wrote to me, first "jes, we will finde a agreement"... after a view mails "we stick to our guns...".
So that is my experience with FFR.
I do not lie, I have no need for that, but I bought a new kit an got a damaged one. Thats it.

Regards

[Blue MK3]

Austria, I read your original post again and now realize your problem is with front suspension. I was going under the assumption that it was the rear of the car. Ignore my comment.