Fox T-Bird/Cougar Forums

Hey Carm,
From experience I can tell you it's much easier and faster to just take the fenders/header panel/front bumper off as 1 unit and then disassemble them on the floor. MUCH easier to reinstall as 1 unit too. You'd be suprised how light it is.

I cannot believe that the fender rusted that bad after being exposed to road salt for just a month. I've driven my car in the road salt here in NC for five winters and there is no rust on it at all. It must just be the amount of salt or something.
 
Either way, I'm glad you had that salt-free fender to slap on there.

NOW he tells me! :beatyoass:
 

 
It's more because Nova Scotia salt is among the most corrosive on earth - it has a certain chemical makeup that makes metal rust literally before your eyes. Toyota and Honda have both done durability testing here for years because their cars rust out so badly here (and in Newfoundland, which is just as bad). Think these cars rust bad? Try to find a late 80's puppiesanese car in one piece around here.
 
It's not just road salt, either - it's in the air 12 months of the year. After a high wind things are covered with a fine layer of sea salt. Lakes, rivers, and even the rain are all corrosive here. An example of how bad the air is can be seen by looking at the brake rotor and tie rod end in my pics - this car had not been driven for about three months, and those parts already look old. Same goes with that no-longer-shiny shiny 3G alternator - look at the corrosion forming on it from sitting around.
 
It might also have something to do with the fact that this car was never undercoated. The original owner knew he wouldn't drive it in winter and hated the mess undercoating makes, so he left it "clean". When I bought it I did some undercoating (removed door panels and did inside doors, removed trunk carpeting and did inside the trunk, and removed rear steats and plastic panels and did inside the rear quarters) but I didn't remove the front inner fenders and do them. Guess I should've. The fact that I drove it for that month, then let it sit without thoroughly cleaning the salt out of the wheelwells.
 
As for the mess undercoating makes - it still seeps out from beneath the doors and that seam between the quarter and rocker panels. I have to wipe it off frequently, because road grime sticks to it and turns it black. Better than having rust, though...
 
Funny thing about undercoating - the parts TC I got this fender from was undercoated religiously - it was an absolute mess to do anything to because you'd end up covered in the stuff, but the rear quarters and front frame rotted out - probably because they were never done (I'm sure the previous owner didn't remove the seats and plastic trim to get at those quarter panels). The front left fender, however, was mint, as are the doors. Lucky me, I found the only parts car in eastern Canada with a good fender :D

351w huh,351c is the coolest swap if you want to be diff. But 351w offer so much more speed goodies. But the 351c has the same to offer if you have $$$$$$$$$$$$$$