Another Build Thread - My '32

[J. Robinson]

Yes, Seth, there are several Volts here in my little town. My son has a 2012 and I had a 2013 until late October. I would still have it, but getting in and out of it was getting to be a challenge for my wife and me. The Volt is about the same size as a Chevy Cruze and it sits pretty low. My wife has serious back trouble and I have Arthritis in my left knee which makes getting up from a low position a problem for both of us sometimes, so we recently joined the movement to SUVs. We really liked driving the Volt. The acceleration was surprising and, when running only on the battery, it was absolutely silent. The best part was the infrequency of buying gas; the first year we had it we put gas in it 4 times (9.7 gallon tank) and drove it a little over 9,000 miles!

[J. Robinson]

OK, one of the things I said I would do is bob the rear frame rails and recontour them to fit closer to the body. The original frame is built to hold the gas tank under the rear edge of the body. It is protected by a rear spreader bar and a bumper mounted on spring steel brackets. All that looks pretty good on a full-fendered car. The tank fills that ugly gap between the bottom of the body and the frame rails and a stock '32 bumper and brackets is pretty substantial. I see a lot of fenderless '32s with no rear bumper, but still using the stock gas tank. It fills that ugly space and looks OK, but to me, that is just asking to be burned to death in a rear end collision. Anyway, that's just my opinion and I'm not badmouthing anyone else's choices, but my fuel cell is going in the trunk just like the one in my '31 coupe. If someone hits me in the rear hard enough to get to that tank, I'll be dead from the impact before the tank explodes...

So, the tank is going in the trunk - what to do with those ugly frame rails hanging out there beyond the rear of the body? A lot of builders just lop them off somewhere under the body. That certainly helps the appearance, but I have this pretty brand new Bob Drake chrome spreader bar... Actually, I like the idea of having the spreader bar and frame rails under the back of the body in case some distracted asswipe, playing with his/her phone, bumps me at a stoplight, etc. (It's happened before.) It could save the fiberglass body from severe damage and at least keep it minimal enough to repair reasonably.

First some measurements are necessary. The top of the frame rails are 3 7/8 inches below the body and they stick out 8 inches. The trunk floor is sitting on the frame rails 17 inches from the end. I have to do the cutting and reshaping behind this point, so I put a mark on the frame rails with a Sharpie (not shown). Next I measure from the frame rails, at the back edge of the body, to the floor and write that measurement down. With all the measurements taken, I hoist the rear of the body up off the frame and just for safety, I put some 4 x 4 blocks on the frame under the trunk floor near the rear axle. If my straps slip I won't get my hands or fingers crushed.

[J. Robinson]

Using a combination square, I mark the frame rails 17 inches from the end (not shown) and cut them off with my 4 1/2 inch grinder with cut-off wheel.

Next, on a piece of cardboard, I trace around one of the cut off pieces of frame. I use a straight edge (ruler) to extend the outline forward slightly and also extend the cut line. Measuring on my cardboard image, I find 8 inches from the cut end of the frame rail (toward the right in the picture) and make a mark (It says 8 1/2 on the cardboard, but I changed it after I wrote it on there). Using a small square I make a vertical line up from this point. 3 3/4 inches above that point on the cardboard I make another horizontal line parallel with the outline of the frame rail.

Now I place the frame rail piece on the carboard with the tip end aligned to the new height and length location and the cut end aligned to the old cut location on the cardboard (see pic). I transfer the marks from the cut line on the cardboard to the frame rail, roll it over and use a straight edge to complete the line where I will trim it off at its new length and angle. I cut one frame piece and use it to mark the second one, then cut the second piece.

[J. Robinson]

To finish this modification, I bolted the frame pieces to the spreader bar, propped the whole assembly in position, and used some Visegrip claw clamps to hold it. I took that height dimension that I wrote down earlier, added 3 3/4 inches, and measured from the floor up to the relocated frame tips. Once everything measured correctly, I welded the frame tips in place. Finally, I let the body back down on the frame and removed the straps.

The spreader bar now fits up nicely under the rear edge of the body and isn't hanging out in the atmosphere with no purpose. When the welds are ground smooth and everything is painted, this modification will almost disappear..

[40FordDeluxe]

Nice work. That will look very nice and a lot of people will not even notice it I'd guess.

[Hotrod46]

That looks good. Can't argue with not wanting to burn up!

[rumrumm]

I don't have a good photo, but I did something similar with my frame. But I chose to curve the frame up and hide the crossbar behind the rear of the body. I figured if I ever got a mild hit, it would prevent it from caving way into the trunk. The fiberglass could always be reconstructed by a shop or a replacement panel could be ordered from Outlaw who manufactured the body.

[J. Robinson]

When I lift the body off to do all the finish welding, I plan to weld in another crossmember of 1 1/2 x 1 1/2 square tubing right behind this one so it's not visible from the rear. I will mount my license plate bracket and tailpipe hangers from it similar to what you did. I really like the looks of your tailpipe hangers; did you fabricate those or were they commercially made?

[rumrumm]

I had to fabricate the aluminum ones connected to the exhaust pipe. There is a manufacturer that makes them but not for 3 inch exhaust pipes, so I made a pair from 1/4 inch aluminum plate. My license plate bracket and the exhaust hangers that are welded to the hidden crossbar are pieces that I fabricated out of 1/8 inch steel.

[figure8]

Somehow I thought you were building a roadster. Love the 3w. Also am interested in your treatment of the bobbed frame with spreader bar tucked in. Thanks for sharing this build.

[figure8]

Wow I sure hope you can use the electric power steering. I have been wondering about that.

[39Deluxe]

Like the bobbed frame rail treatment. That spreader bar tucked up tight is a nice look.

I have/had 2 Equinoxes and one Terrain and have a total of more than 520,000 total miles on those electric power steering units with zero problems. They are bulky but would be a great swap.

Tom

[J. Robinson]

Figure8 commented he thought I was building a roadster... When I started this project I fully intended to build a roadster, but I later changed direction. I went back and read the entire thread to this point; I owe you all an apology for not being clear on the subject. When did I change my mind and why?

My original plan was to build a roadster to replace the Track-T I had up for sale. I was enjoying the open car, but my wife couldn't get in and out without help because of her back. I was going to build another roadster that had doors - a '32 Highboy. Meanwhile, I was still driving the Track-T whenever I was going someplace without her. In 2017, after I was already building my '32 chassis, I kept getting rained on. From late May until mid-November, every time I got the roadster out I got wet! I didn't even have to leave the house. I could set it in the front yard with a FOR SALE sign when there was not a cloud in the sky and 20 minutes later it would be pouring rain! After that I decided if I wanted to drive my '32 it was going to have to be a coupe. Yes, I could put a top on a roadster, but side curtains are a pain in the butt to deal with. A cabriolet would be the answer - a folding top with roll-up windows. That would be fine if I had $14,000 to blow on a body. I don't. A 3-window has a top and windows so I can drive it year-round regardless of weather and the body costs under $8,000. I made the decision to go with the 3-window last year after getting wet about the tenth time. For some reason I never said anything about it on here.

[J. Robinson]

The pic below is of my new steel grille shell and stainless grille insert. I have two fiberglass shells - one from Westcott's which is nice (it's the orange one in previous pics) and a second one that came with my body which is a POS (badly warped on one side). I almost bought a new stainless insert at the Turkey Run last month for $195, but for some reason I walked away from it. Anyway, I was poking around on Ebay after that and I found this steel shell with insert for $192 and free shipping. It had some mixed reviews from other purchasers, but I figured if I could use the insert in my good fiberglass shell I was money ahead and, if the steel shell was bad, I could use it to make a conversation piece for my shop wall...

When it arrived I was pleasantly surprised by the appearance. The shell was beautiful at first look and so was the insert. Problem was they didn't fit together! The first problem was the outer rim of the insert was slightly flared outward all around the back edge. I held the insert face down on a flat table and used a flat-faced hammer to "persuade" it inward slightly, all the way around the perimeter. It was much closer to fitting then, but still a bit too tall. Using a body spoon and a 20 ounce ball-peen hammer, I hammered the inside flange of the top and bottom of the shell (areas between the arrows in the pic) to lengthen the opening just a little. The insert still fits very snugly, but it goes in now. I will probably do a little more hammer and dolly (or spoon) work before I finish, but I now have a nice steel shell and stainless insert.

[40FordDeluxe]

Nice fix and that's a pretty good deal at that price from what I remember.