Longitudinal Repair

[canadianeh]

I am in the middle of installing Brad Mayeur's longi reinforcement kit. I have some minor floor pan to inner long patches to do as part of the job but nothing serious. (left front and right rear) I'm starting with the left side and got into the suspension console OK and got a good door gap with corresponding good roof "gap" and window alignment.

BUT... When I open the door with correct gap it drops at rear by about 1/4 to 1/2 inch. With one hand I can grab the door bottom and lift it up and it closes nicely. At the same time I can see the long flex near the door hinges as I pull up. I have some repairs (holes) to do where the left front floor pan to inner long meet as well as in the wheel well where the floor pan meets it. The corner is pretty rotten. I was planning to fix it after the long reinforcement is welded in and I believe there is significant flex in the long in its current state. Also note that the door behaves similarly when all wheels are on the ground too.

So will this go away, get better, stay the same after reinforcement is welded in? Should I do the left front corner repairs BEFORE the reinforcement goes in? It almost seems like I would have to pre-stress it in order for the door to NOT "drop" after the repair.

I intend to bother Brad about this and have read the tech article on this site as well. Any others with similar experiences or ideas would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks.

[r_towle]

I have never used the Brad Meyer kit, but I have seen it and it is a fairly substantial piece of metal.

I would make sure of the following.
Make sure all the rust is cleaned, sandblasted, and use POR 15 to treat is.

Place the car on jack stands. Place a jack under the tranny or at the rear of the car and use that jack to adjust your door gaps.

If you fasten the kit to solid metal it looks like it could hold up to some severe abuse and weight...
Compare it to the metal you are replacing and you will have a new sense of comfort.

Rich