Fender Cowl gasket replace = Failure!
 

So, after reading a post or two here about replacing that fender to cowl gasket that always looks like crap, I decided I was going to give it a whirl.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1114291343.jpg

I did so last nite, and met with failure, unfortunately. From what I had read, it sounded like loosening the two 10's accessible after opening the door:

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1114291438.jpg

then the four by the relay panel:

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1114291494.jpg

would give me enough flex to pull the old bits out and wedge the newies in.

Unfortunately, even after loosening up those six (as well as two clamping the fuel filler pipe to the fender), the fender was still not budging in the slightest. I took a look inside the fender well and spotted some more up in the corner, but that corner was coated with a layer of crap and would have required me to jack up the car, remove the wheel, and get filthy chipping away at the bolts to remove enough crud to even try to loosen them. Since I had a couple beers under my belt and couldn't really get enthusiastic about doing this on a Fri nite on the chance that it might help, I reluctantly called it a FAILURE, and decided to seek further assistance here.

Would loosening those bolts help, or is the factory sealing gook between the fender and tub too tough to expect to replace this without completely removing the fender?

Any suggestions?

ianc

P.S. All three of these shots were resized to 800x600. Why do they get randomly resized like this when posting?

On the drivers side you found the trick two at the fuel filler neck. And there are six in the wheel well. I can't imagine doing it without removing those. Maybe have to get the one inside the light too.

I'm trying to think of what you mean here, but drawing a blank?

ianc

I replaced mine over the winter. You are on the right path. Loosen the hex's underneath (at least mine were) and the bolts down the side of hood at least half way (they're easy). Pull the wheel off, scrape off the undercoating and remove at least two of the bolts at the top of the wheel well. Once these are all loose, carefully pry from the the fender from the cowl in a non viewable area and pull on the bead to remove. It would help to have two doing this, but I did it alone. Remove the bead and match it up with the replacement and trim to the same length. Make sure all the notches and bolt holes are aligned. You can trim it to be shorter also in width. Place in reverse order of removal. You will need to pry and push to seat it completely. Tighten all bolts when done. It is a PITA, but not impossible.

If your car is stock then the fender "goo" will be a b!tch to separate. You have to get at the 10mm bolts in the fender cowl to move the fender, almos all of them need to be loosened. You are lucky, you don't have the hex bolts under the sill area where the door is. The inner one is a MAJOR pita to get to with the door on...

cowl seals
 

I had to loosen all the bolts inside the fender well, inside boot, gas lid and two hex to get the new seals in. It was a biatch but worth it in the end. It wouldn't do to have old seals on a freshly repainted car -- or worse, paint over the old seals like I've seen on a couple of cars.

jt
-84 targahttp://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1114319564.jpg http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1114319583.jpg

Everyone keeps talking about these hex bolts, but I didn't see them. Where the hell are they?

ianc

On my '85, there are two 5 or 5.5MM hex head bolts that are accessible when you open the door - not sure why yours are 10MM, but these two plus the 3 or 4 inside the trunk up near the cowl were all the ones that I needed to loosen.

I also sprayed some WD40 on the old seal - 15+ years of assorted gunk has a way of solidifying. I did NOT have to mess with any of the bolts inside the wheel IIRC. I'd also suggest getting a plastic putty knife - I used it to loosen up the existing beading.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=185734&highlight=fender +to+cowl

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=129162&highlight=cowl+s eal

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=55885&highlight=cowl+se al

bolts
 

Looking at the pics your car has the 2 10mm hex bolts instead of the allens, which are accessible when you open the doors.
You should see a couple of bolts holding the filler neck to the fender inside the gas lid as well.

jt

JT,
Your new seals look great! Makes me want to replace mine... Maybe you could come to Detroit and replace mine?!

seals
 

Thanks Art. Like I said this project was pretty labor intensive. I didn't have to worry about the paint when removing the old seals since the car was getting stripped and painted. It was surprisingly tough to get the new seals in even with all the bolts off; my fingers hurt for a day or two from the work.

My car is just another red targa but I should prolly post some pics of it now that it's done, eh?

jt