How I Replaced My Zed
Car’s Sills
By Wayne Eade
I knew that the
sills on my Zed were tired. In fact, I’ve known for the best part of twenty
years that neither side was in pristine condition. When I bought the beast in
1983, I poured huge volumes of fish oil down inside both sills on the advice of
a mate who was driving a ‘65 HD Holden (an Australian GM product) that was
similarly afflicted.
I’ve owned a
MIG welder for a couple of years now and have managed a few jobs on the Zephyr.
The first big job I did was cut the bottoms off both front guards (some of you
may call them ‘wings’, but here in Australia they are guards), and replace the
rusted-out, bog filled nastiness with 1.6mm carbon steel plate, suitably
shaped.
That was in
January 2001.
While the
guards were off, I also had a poke about, in and around the sills. I realised
after only a short while - maybe five minutes - that the driver’s side was well
on its way to Tin Worm Heaven.
Work and the
need to make repairs around the home when on leave conspired to delay
"Operation Sill Replacement" until July of 2003.
Before
beginning, I made some enquiries as to what to expect via the Yahoo Ford
Zephyr Zodiac Consul Owners Club. The advice I received from blokes like
Alan Thorp in New Zealand, and Syd and Dan in Australia had me thinking about
things I had not contemplated in my initial preparation. As a result, I think I
can honestly say that those gentlemen made the job a little easier - not that
there was much that was easy about it.
What follows is
a summary of what I found as I went, what I did and what I learnt. If it
assists anybody out there in cyberland with his or her own restoration work,
then my writing this article will have been time well spent.
On Saturday 5/7, I began the job of dismantling the front
end. If you intend to keep the wiring loom, make sure you draw yourself a
diagram that indicates which wire connects to which BEFORE disconnecting the
turn indicators and headlights - it makes reassembly so painless. I was lucky
pulling the front end apart, as it had only been 18 months since I had had the
thing apart the last time. Nuts and bolts become very much used to being in the
same place after 40+ years and are often unwilling to do as bid.
By the following day I had the old girl apart. Behind the
shed I had a 2 metre length of 100 x 150 mm timber. It was a leftover from
fence work that I knew would come in handy somewhere down the track. (Hint:
Despite what the wife might say, never throw anything away). I cut the end off
that had been in the ground, then placed the remaining section the length of
the inner sill. I had intended to place it on car stands but that made the
whole thing precariously high, so I place it on two breezeblocks instead - from
another project.
I photographed
the area to be replaced, both as a record of the work to be done as well as a
reference, should I forget what it was it was meant to look like.
There is something
that is really difficult about sinking the disc of an angle grinder into the
steel of a fully registered vehicle that was on the road less than twenty-four
hours before hand. After a big breath, I cut away the first 300mm of the outer
sill. I was surprised by how little of the middle sill rail was left. From a
line only 10mm or so below floor level and in line with the base of the A post
and diagonally down to a point about 55mm from the bottom of the inner sill
lip, there was nothing left that was salvageable. In fact, for the most part
there was nothing. I was amazed the car was not the shape of a banana. Thank
goodness for British over-engineering!
I cut away all
of the rust, then measured the area left. Using 1.6mm carbon steel, I then cut
and shaped a section to fit the space. I painted the inner sill in a rust
preventative paint, as well as the inner part of the replacement section. After
allowing everything to dry, I clamped the replacement section in place then
spot-welded it using the MIG. When using a MIG, make sure that you disconnect
your battery BEFORE commencing. I know that for many of you that last point
will sound like teaching your grandmother to suck eggs, but for those of you
who were not aware it’s an important safety tip.
Once the replacement
section was in place, I moved around it, filling in the gaps as I went. I had
decided not to seam weld, as should it fracture the resultant failure would be
disastrous. One thing I did decide early on was to set the MIG at its highest
setting. On this setting I would get maximum penetration on each weld. The real
trick is to be very fast lest you blow a hole through the job. I practiced on a
couple of pieces of steel before trying it on the car and found that on lower
settings the weld was fine on my side, but useless on the other.
Each weekend
through July and into August I continued to remove 300mm sections of the outer
sill, clean up and paint what was to stay, shape the replacement section and
weld each into place. Initially I had planned to save the portholes in the
inner rail, but from the B-post rearwards, there was little to save.
Between the
third and fourth portholes (from the front), and again between the sixth and
seventh portholes there is what appear to be a box sections between the inner
end centre rails. The old ones were basically gone up to the same
"high-tide" level as the inner rail, so I made up new ones and out of
U-channel, fashioned from the same 1.6mm plate, and replaced the rust with
steel.
After I had cut
away the outer sill from beneath the B-post, I discovered that the Tin Worm had
been feasting there too, quite undetected. I decided to leave that work until I
had completed the replacement of the centre rail.
Perhaps the
worst section of all after the area beneath the A-post was the area in and
around the C-post. After cutting away the rusted outer sill, I discovered that
the centre rail, the bottom of the dogleg C-post, the adjacent floor and the
last 200mm of the inner sill were all beyond repair.
I replaced the
inner sill first, shaping a suitable replacement part from the same 1.6mm
plate. Next I replaced the centre rail. The original was completely wasted,
right up to floor level and beyond. Using a hacksaw blade and considerable
elbow grease, I removed the upper section of rusted rail between the inner and
outer parts of the wheel arch. I was then able to replace the entire section,
including that which is above the floor level, with a single replacement
section.
Once the centre
rail was in place I replaced the section of floor and the top of the sill with
more of that handy 1.6mm plate. The long-since rusted away curve that forms the
leading edge of the C-post was replaced with suitably fashioned 1mm plate.
Using the thinner sheet - which is more like the original, makes replicating
the original shape so much easier. Hard to believe that what took several
weekends can be encapsulated in a single dot-point.
After I had
finished the C-post I moved back to the base of the B-post. I cut away most of
the bottom 60mm, as well as the top of the sill that connects the centre rail
to the outer rail. I replaced the inner section and painted it thoroughly
before replacing the outer section with a suitably fashioned piece of flat,
1.6mm plate.
All that was
left now was the replacement of the outer sill. I ground off the heads of any
of the welds that were proud and lined up the replacement sill. Problem! The
angles were all wrong. In profile, it should have looked like a., but instead
looked like b..
Sill sheet metal side view
I went to my
local steel suppliers, as they had the bending equipment necessary to affect
any remedial work on the sill. Unfortunately, the sill was too narrow to fit in
the machine without flattening the lower edge. D’Oh! They could, however, make
new sills to my specifications, using zinc-plated steel that was far sturdier
than the replacement one I had. The new left and right outer sills cost me the
princely sum of $A24.75 - for the pair. Hard to argue with the price!
I had to shape
the ends. The trailing edge was straight forward and relatively easy. To get
the leading edge right, I reattached the front guard. Using the guard’s
alignment and a black marker, I drew the curved edge on the sill. I then
removed the sill and made four hacksaw cuts in to the edge of the drawn line. I
then folded the tabs created inwards, maintaining the drawn curve. The
now-closed hacksaw slots were welded shut and the sill was ready for fitting.
Given Alan
Thorp’s advice, I rehung the doors to align the sill, spot welded it in three
places along the top edge, then removed the doors again.
Beginning at
the centre and moving towards the outer ends simultaneously, I used the same
hot-and-fast welding method employed on the middle rail to fix the top edge of
the replacement sill to the car.
When I had
completed the top edge. I drilled the lower lip of the outer sill at 20mm
intervals. Beginning again at the middle, I clamped the outer sill lip to the
inner rail and simulated the original spot welding method employed at Ford’s
Broadmeadows (Victoria, Australia) plant where the old beast had originally
been assembled.
After
completing the lower edge I welded the trailing edge in place. I then welded
the leading edge in place before grinding off any proud welds in the top edge.
I don’t know
how Ford attached the outer sill to the bottom of the outer part of the C-post,
but I did it using a wedge of steel welded in placed, then a thin amount of
body filler to smooth over the lot. I also used a tiny amount of body filler to
mask the edge where the top of the new sill meets the remainder of the car. On
the 1/10, nearly three months after starting, the Zed was ready for paint and
reassembly.
Now that the
right side is finished I think the left hand side will be so much easier as a
result of the lessons learnt. At present (November 2003) the sill has been
undercoated in etch primer and several coats of undercoat grey. I’ve liberally
sprayed the inside with fish oil and the car has been reassembled. Best of all,
I am back on the road again. The car is due for a registration inspection in
January. After that, I’ll start on the left hand side. Before too long I hope
to repaint the old beast in Norwich Blue, replace all of the worn-out rubbers
and bailey channel, and continue to cruise.
It’s easy to
talk yourself out of big jobs like the one described here. You may also meet
those helpful types who will ask you why bother when the amount of work put
into the vehicle can never be recouped in the car’s sale. The thing is, I never
started the job with the thought of selling the vehicle. Like Ulf Remper,
another Yahoo Ford Zephyr Zodiac Consul Owners Club member and provider
of encouragement, I do this because I want to - I am sentimentally attached to
the old thing. Equally, I don’t think that big restoration jobs should be saved
for the silver-spoon marques like Rolls Royce, Jaguar, Porsche, etc.. The Zed
car was - is - an everyman kind of car. I never get sick of the number of
people who see the old beast and immediately strike up a conversation about
their own Zephyr experiences.
Thanks to all
of those who provided me with either ideas or encouragement while undertaking
the work, including Karl Schluter, whose idea it was that I turn my three
months of sill wrangling into an article.
See you on the
road!
Wayne Eade.
Disclaimer:
The advice and guidelines given in these articles are given in good faith.
The owners and managers of the Galeforce Zephyr site will take no
responsibility for any injuries or loss sustained while carrying out the
described tasks and procedures or any consequences arising. Please read
the Safety
First Article