I am just beginning the restoration of a 69GS400 convertible. I removed the seats and carpet, and found the floor pan in pretty bad shape, and so are the cross members at the seat location. While I am able to make small repairs, a replacement is out of my league. This car is very special to me -was my Dad;s since new. However, it was stored for 30 years, and unfortunately it doesnt seem to have weathered all that well. Can anyone give me some information on what it would take to have the floorpan and cross members replaced? Any idea on price and availability? Also, I live in northern Virginia, so any recommendations for a good shop that I might check into? Warning - this is not the first message you will see from me on this. I need all the advice I can get to take me and my son through this journey. Thanks, Joe
At one time George N. had a good instructional article for this topic on his website: http://www.buickperformanceclub.com/page1.htm
either find a donor car or purchase a complete floor pan + cross pieces for a '69 chevelle from AMD and have them modified to fit in your car.
Are you sure you can't do it? Sheetmetal hangs everyone up on these cars. I never thought I could until someone else screwed it up & I thought what the heck, I can screw it up all by myself. I don't need to pay someone for that and I taught myself. I'm no bodyman, but I've cut 'em apart & put 'em back together. After a long hiatus, I'm going to try it again and see if I have the time & still have the patience. It'll be my biggest sheetmetal endeavor yet, but I bought someone else's unfinished business (mess) so at least I didn't ruin a rare car - They already took care of that. Anyway, whichever way you decide, if you're interested, I have a full orig. Rust free '69 pass. floor I might be selling. I bought it for a 70-72 and there is only a minor difference, but I came upon a '70-72 & I may use that instead - I haven't bought it yet. I don't live too far away from you. PM me if you're interested.
It's not uncommon for convertibles to need floor pans since they all leak at some point. You need to decide how much needs to be replaced, you can replace it in quadrants, half's or the entire pan. The biggest challenge in your case is replacing the ribs since they wrap around and go down the inside of the rocker panels, so, you'll probably need to jack the body off the frame a few inches to get them into place. It's not that difficult but it will take some time. Tools you'll need: 1)small mig welder, get a Miller, Hobart or Lincoln from Home Depot or Lowes not a Datona mig, Eastwood or China freight. 2) a die grinder with a cut off wheel, or a 4 " side grinder with a cut off wheel. 3) a drill with a spot weld bit. You'll be surprised what you can do with those basic tools.
Hey Joe... This might be your lucky night. I have a summer home in SW Virginia, right by Natural Bridge. I have an entire floor pan, including ribs, from a 69 hardtop. It is in real good shape with just a couple nickel and dime holes in the rear under seat portion. I'd be willing to sell it .................................................. for a case of beer. I'm no body guy but I cut it out extra big. I'll be up there June 12th till early August. I have some other parts I stripped too. (My wife would be saying "Shut up John!" Let me know if you are interested. The price is real. I can send you pictures when I get up there. Text 561-722-0922
If not comfortable in attempting yourself, find some one that has done any A body floors before. If you do have plenty of room and a rotisserie makes the welding much easier and less painful The one piece floors make for a very nice repair. All the 68 to 72 floor panels for all the A Bodies (Chevelle,, GTO, Cutlass, GS) are the same. Good Luck!
I would get everything tacked into place while it's sitting on the frame before it goes onto the rotisserie. Make sure you put extra bracing where the doors go on a convertible. If you use a factory floor from a donor car you will probably need to remove the ribs to get it into place. Also, if you use a factory floor, you can take it out to the factory flanges on the sides and tuck it under the rocker panels, makes for a nicer job.
I have a combination arc/tig welder that I use for general home repairs. I would not use arc, but is there any reason why I should not use tig?
This is an excellent site, with lots of information for an amateur like me. Thank you for the information.
