MKII drop trunk

[jts359]

I would like to install a drop trunk in our MKII but there seems to be a lateral brace that later cars do not have , Can remove it ? Or deal with and have a smaller access to the drop trunk , Or I could weld a piece of square stock fore and aft to where I cut the brace , Ed

[i.e.427]

You mean these braces? Just work around them.

https://thefactoryfiveforum.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=177019&d=1671515210

[CraigS]

Agreed. Mine looked just like that. Obviously you can't stick a suitcase in there but the room is still extremely valuable. Just pack stuff in small soft side cases/bags/packs.
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I made a cover for mine. This worked really well.

[rich grsc]

3x, don't remove them

[jts359]

No , Not those braces , I have one that is in the middle of them that goes left to right and across the whole trunk area , This is a MKII , Ed

[Geoff H]

I have a Mk III and just installed Russ Thompson’s kit. It has the extra lateral brace too but the kit still adds space. You are correct there is less access because of it, but being able to secure/store tools, oil, cleaning products etc will be great!

Geoff

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[PG_Cobra]

I removed them and welded in a transverse tube at the front of the box and front to back tubes on the right hand side and 6 inches in on the left creating a small shelf to stow under. Also stretched the RT kit by 2 inches from 24" to 26". Now I can stow my rag top.

I spoke to RT before I did all this and he agreed that the diagonal braces could go. The only purpose I could find for the diagonal braces was to support the aluminum floor panel. With the tank out I removed the braces and saw the floor flap up and down without their support.

The braces are very thin walled and are not part of crash safety

[rich grsc]

I removed them and welded in a transverse tube at the front of the box and front to back tubes on the right hand side and 6 inches in on the left creating a small shelf to stow under. Also stretched the RT kit by 2 inches from 24" to 26". Now I can stow my rag top.

I spoke to RT before I did all this and he agreed that the diagonal braces could go. The only purpose I could find for the diagonal braces was to support the aluminum floor panel. With the tank out I removed the braces and saw the floor flap up and down without their support.

The braces are very thin walled and are not part of crash safety
Sorry but they DO help if you get rear ended, anything to keep from rupturing the fuel tank. It's not a matter of size, but of absorbing and deflecting the energy

[Bob Cowan]

I removed the bars, and made the well a smidgen larger. I was also using a fuel cell, and not a tank.

https://i.imgur.com/1FhaxKG.jpg

[jts359]

Thanks for the info, Geoff your pic is great and it shows what we are dealing with , I also went on the FFcars web site and there is a ton of options there , Some of them go back almost 20 years but in some cases pictures are no longer available , I was also surprised how many recent posts are made there , I may have to add it to my favorites , Thanks Ed

[otto halstead]

I removed them and my trunk looks very similar to the picture posted by Bob Cowan. I added additional bracing underneath as shown in the photo. And I went to Factory Five's website and their image of the frame doesn't have the braces in question.

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[jts359]

Nice work Guys , I decided to remove the lateral bar as It looked as just a floor support , Ed

[Jeff Kleiner]

…And I went to Factory Five's website and their image of the frame doesn't have the braces in question.


177068

That photo is of a very early Mk4. After producing them like this for a few months they added the diagonal tubes back in so that the trunk area is now configured like the earlier cars. Since they rarely add structure that isn’t necessary you have to think that they must have found that strength was compromised without the diagonals. Just sayin’

Jeff