View Full Version : cutting out bulkhead panel double skined?
i want to cut out the bulkhead panel mainly because when it rains water collects around battery an causes rot
i ve cut out the rot an had it welded up so if i cut the bulkhead panel away the water will be able to drain off be flowing over the bulkhead were battery is an on to ground
but if i cut the bulkhead panel out is the edge thats left double skinned or does anything else have to be welded back together once the panel is cut out ??
Do you mean the firewall? The bit that the rubber seal sits on?
The bulkhead is the panel behind the dash.
yes mate i meant firewall
Yep a few people have iirc.
I think Dan has.
it is a single skin panel.
gm did eventually sell a plastic tray for the battery to sit on.
But the best fix is actually to use a delco sealed for life battery, and not one with removable tops, as hard cornering causes the acid to leak out
do u cut slightly above the seam seal line between the fire wall an bulkhead (if looking from front off car )so there is a slight lip left or can u cut it off so it totly flush the bulkhead
CorsaCruiser
26-03-06, 11:42 PM
Drill it out !
http://home.quicknet.nl/qn/prive/cw.jelsma/Corsa%20%2844%29.JPG http://home.quicknet.nl/qn/prive/cw.jelsma/Corsa%20(45).JPG
http://home.quicknet.nl/qn/prive/cw.jelsma/Corsa%20%2813%29.JPG
It's basically 3 pieces welded together, if u drill out the spot welds then you can take the top part out,
fold/hammer the lip that's left down and weld it.
If i remember correctly, this is how it looks:
http://i1.tinypic.com/scgguh.jpg
Red = battery/blower panel
Blue = wiperpanel
Green= bottom panel
I took out the blue part, cut the lip off the green part, then folded the red part over the green part and welded it back together.
Answering your question: cut into the standing part (blue) :thumb:
instead of welding it back together could i cut a couple of mm above the spot welds then fold the lip thats left (fold it down so panel is flat)
i cut along mine jsut above the join line... and left the wiper motor end in.
so if you do this where do tou mount the wiper motor???
thats why i left the wiper motor end on mine lol.
ive seen others mount the motor on the tray behind
does it cause the blower to leak water into the car as there is no longer a splash guard on it?
Meh, rip the blower out and and plate over the hole :thumb:
without the heater i would imagine the windows steam up really quick ,has any one made there own heater housing /splash guard to get round this problem ?
ive got a little SVA demister from a kit car bits site.. should do the job of de steaming the windows (oh and ahve a good air supply into the car.
how much was the demister how did u get good air supply into car do u have any pics
how much was the demister how did u get good air supply into car do u have any pics
www.nfauto.co.uk (or similar, google it) it was about ?25ish
as for air supply, ive got poly carb windows and the passenger side has a scoop fitted to pull air in, and the sun roof replacement in polycarb will have a similar scoop to the passenger side
i ve drilled most of the spots weld out now how do you go about cuttting / drilling the firewall near the strut tops also were are the ends of it joined to ?does any one have any close up pics of were its welded around the strut tops ?
once the welds r drilled does it have to be fully seem welded or can i do stich or spot welds i wont it to be spot on theres no point take ing short cuts an it letting water in to rust it to feck
to answer your wiper question, fit a citroen ZX or AX single blade linkage to the flitch panel, after fitting the nova motor to it.
I cut mine just above the welds due to being a lazy bastid, and not giving a **** about how it looked (function over form when your building a track bitch, all my moneys in the engine bay, so i couldnt be ****d to make it look 'pretty' lol)
Phil GTE
02-04-06, 01:18 AM
without the heater i would imagine the windows steam up really quick ,has any one made there own heater housing /splash guard to get round this problem ?
http://www.migweb.co.uk/classifieds/showproduct.php?product=935
;) :thumb:
to answer your wiper question, fit a citroen ZX or AX single blade linkage to the flitch panel, after fitting the nova motor to it.
I cut mine just above the welds due to being a lazy bastid, and not giving a **** about how it looked (function over form when your building a track bitch, all my moneys in the engine bay, so i couldnt be ****d to make it look 'pretty' lol)
why is it better to cut this panel out then?? what are the advantages
its it just the spot welds on the fire wall that u drill out ( the ones facing u when u open bonnet )?cos there are some along the panel were the battery sits they are on the angled part witch meets the fire wall
why is it better to cut this panel out then?? what are the advantages
Quite a bit of weight saving is the main advantage, but it also looks neater and gives the TB's a bit more room to breathe.
CorsaCruiser
02-04-06, 09:33 PM
i've drilled most of the spots weld out now how do you go about cutting / drilling
the firewall near the strut tops also were are the ends of it joined to ?
does any one have any close up pics of were its welded around the strut tops ? Different on each nova i think, clean / wire brush along the base and you should be able to see where the spot welds are.
(some are on the back of the panel near the ends, hamer/chisel between the panels to get them loose)
There are 2 or 3 spot welds on each end (vertical), just drill out the spot welds from the middle of the panel to the sides and
you should be able to bend the panel to reach all of the spotwelds.
once the welds r drilled does it have to be fully seem welded or can i do stich or spot welds i wont it to be spot on theres no point take ing short cuts an it letting water in to rust it to feck Stitch welding is fine, just take your time and start with 1-1,5 inches between each weld (to prevent it getting too hot)
and then weld inbetween the first welds until there's a weld every 1/3 inch or so. (finish with isopon p38 or similar)
Guess where my wiper motor is:
http://home.quicknet.nl/qn/prive/cw.jelsma/Corsa%20%2841%29.JPG
i still wanna do that dutch,
so all the spot welds are on the front of the firewall (except the ones on the ends).an none are on the battery side of it cos if u look wear the battery sits this panel goes on an angle to meet the fire wall an has lots of spot welds also.
what wiper motor is that how hard was it to make it fit ?
Guess where my wiper motor is:
http://home.quicknet.nl/qn/prive/cw.jelsma/Corsa%20%2841%29.JPG
Is it in the spare wheel well? :gay:
CorsaCruiser
03-04-06, 05:47 PM
what wiper motor is that how hard was it to make it fit ? Nova original, not too hard...on a lhd nova :thumb:
It's just in front of the spare wheel well...and right behind the glovebox lol
so do you need to drill out the spot welds on the panel were the batterey sits (the ones on the angled edge that meets the firewall)?
or just the ones that go along the front of the wire wall?
wich spot welds should be drilled out???
CorsaCruiser
06-04-06, 02:04 PM
I'm not sure but it's spot welded everywhere so i think you'll need to drill out the welds on the panel where the battery sits as well,
it was octobre 2004 when i did it so don't remember every detail.
P.S.
Isn't it out yet ? Shouldn't take more then a couple of hours with a drill, hamer and chisel ! (it's the finishing that takes time really :roll:)
just wanted to say thanks to corsa cruiser you<ve helped me out loads mate cheers.
does any one know how to stop the sponge under the bulkhead from burning when welding near it i ve pulled out as much as i can reach but its so flameable soon as it sees the welder it will burn .i was thinking before i weld the lip up maybe i should set fire to the sponge that way i can keep an eye on it as it burns when it has burnt away from the area to be welded blow it out with air line then fold the lip over an start welding ??
ps i only get 1 day a week to work on car (sunday) thats why it takes me a while
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