View Full Version : PS Footbox - how to fix this gap?
So today I started fitting and drilling the panels for the passenger side footbox. I have the top panel and the trans tunnel front vertical wall ("A piece") drilled and cleco'd in place.
When I place the inside panel in place and align it with the top, I have a 1/2" gap with the A piece.
Here's the inside wall fitted to the top:
https://thefactoryfiveforum.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=190782&d=1696283290
Here's the gap I get:
https://thefactoryfiveforum.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=190783&d=1696283290
https://thefactoryfiveforum.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=190784&d=1696283290
When I close the gap the inside wall is proud with the top, like this:
https://thefactoryfiveforum.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=190785&d=1696283290
Any ideas or suggestions?
michael everson
10-02-2023, 04:57 PM
never seen that before. Maybe the whole foot box needs to be moved towards the center of the car.
Mike
F500guy
10-03-2023, 07:58 AM
I would contact FF and see what they can do, or cut a new top piece oversize.
gbranham
10-03-2023, 08:57 AM
I would buy some sheet .040" aluminum, and cut a new top piece to size. That's a flat piece, so should be easy to cut.
Norm B
10-03-2023, 11:38 AM
How well does the outside edge of the top panel line up? I agree with Mike that it looks like it needs to move to the centre.
Norm
cc2Arider
10-04-2023, 06:52 AM
Hi Jeff,
Did you start off by locating the panels with the initial speed or tech screws as the "baseline"? If so, mine were a little off as-delivered. What helped me was to pick a single plane of reference as a starting point and then build off of that by joining panels together, but not drilling for the frame until everything fit well together. My passenger-side panels were bent well and fit together well with minimal "tweaking", but the overall location needed some adjustment...
What I found interesting was that at the start of this process, the outside vertical frame member hole appeared to be "off", but then as I assembled all the pieces and cleco'ed together, to fit all the other flanges, that frame hole came "back" and was acceptable in the end. The initial frame hole for the footbox floor and top panel were still "off" by about 3/16", so I felt OK about simply redrilling into the frame (because it was still strong there and could accommodate two holes somewhat next to each other).
Good luck -- lay it all out before drilling into the frame and you can make it work!
Craig C.
Thanks for all the responses. Much appreciated.
After sleeping on the problem I went back and completely disassembled what I had and started over. Craig (cc2Arider) was correct in the FFR drilled holes for the upper panel were off by quite a bit, 1/4" or more, plus the bent angle on the inside wall needed ample massaging to get everything to line up.
I clamped instead of drilling, did a little bending, hit a couple things with a hammer, and now it all fits. A couple areas aren't quite as nice as I would like, but I definitely learned a lot. The driver side should go together much better.
Several guys have mentioned taking the FFR holes as a suggestion, not gospel. I must agree with that. I will now know as aluminum work progresses.