What is wrong with this radiator support...

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Jim Kueneman

Jim Kueneman

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Can one of you early A-Body guys help me understand what is going on here. It sure looks like the correct panel (this is a '63) but why did they cut it and why does it not fit correct..... The fender needs to be positioned where I show it to align correctly and that is where the fender should be positioned but the radiator support is not in the right spot.....

I am at a total loss as to what is going on here. The frame rails are parallel and within 3/8" of being square so I don't think that is it.

The radiator was in it (though it was a '69 truck radiator) and the mounting holes are square and the spacing is 21 1/4".

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Hey Jim,
You got the coronet all squared away so looks like your on the wife’s car now? From your pics it sure looks like there’s been some damage there at one point in the ole girls life. What I see in the pics is the bottom part of that radiator supports is not completely over against the frame rail lip. I know you
say it’s square but I sure see hammer marks on the radiator support around the spot welds so with that said looks your in for drilling the spots welds on the radiator support side panel and moving it over to correct location. Also the bulge on the inner fender between the frame rail and the bottom hole for the fender bolt is not normal.it’s for sure had some work done in that area at some point.
 
8B11D203-9446-480B-93EB-520235C8A39D.jpeg


In the red circle that’s about the amount over that section of the radiator support is off


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And this amount probably is real close to the same as the amount in the red circle.
 
Jim Kueneman said:
Can one of you early A-Body guys help me understand what is going on here. It sure looks like the correct panel (this is a '63) but why did they cut it and why does it not fit correct..... The fender needs to be positioned where I show it to align correctly and that is where the fender should be positioned but the radiator support is not in the right spot.....

I am at a total loss as to what is going on here. The frame rails are parallel and within 3/8" of being square so I don't think that is it.

The radiator was in it (though it was a '69 truck radiator) and the mounting holes are square and the spacing is 21 1/4".

View attachment 1715471963 View attachment 1715471964 View attachment 1715471965 View attachment 1715471966
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It looks like it got hit in the left corner at some point. The font end is probably swung to the right a little bit. The inner fender looks like it is rolled in and will
have to be pushed back out. I think the main culprit, though, is that the front end is swung. You may have to take it to a shop to pull it. The main problem in not
having the right equipment is securing the body to make a pull on the front end.
 
Jim, I just measured my 65's radiator mount holes in a diagonal pattern to establish squareness: 26 7/8 from lower to opposite upper if that helps. If you still got a 6 rad support in it , it will be smaller. probably put a V8 support in there to use the newer truck rad.
 
I am not convinced it is out of square (by that much). What it looks like in real life is the inner fender was hammer in above the frame to make it meet the radiator support, not the frame rail being pushed out to the left. Like I said if I place the fender so it aligned with the outer edge of the frame rail (where it should be) the fender aligns perfectly. I can't figure out how the angle for the fender can be so far off yet the radiator holes be perfectly vertical.
 
Look back on the full length of the frame rail You may find a small bend.That small bend can translate to a much larger distance out front . It's sort of like the very small 1/16 th of an inch gap at the throw out bearing on a clutch giving you 1 inch of free play at the pedal. There is something going on and it is the result of some sort of accident in the past. Chances are it is not near the problem that it is causing
 
valiantwagonguy said:
Look back on the full length of the frame rail You may find a small bend.That small bend can translate to a much larger distance out front . It's sort of like the very small 1/16 th of an inch gap at the throw out bearing on a clutch giving you 1 inch of free play at the pedal. There is something going on and it is the result of some sort of accident in the past. Chances are it is not near the problem that it is causing
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I have measured the front end for squareness. If it is out out it is not out by much.
 
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Jim Kueneman said:
I have measured the front end for squareness. If it is out out it is not out by much.
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I don't think the problem is the frame rails being out of square, I think it's the driver's side radiator support side panel that's installed incorrectly. I agree with cudascott that you'll need to drill out the spot welds and reposition that panel. It pretty clearly is installed too far toward the center of the car.
Here's a pic of my 63 at the inside left front corner of the engine compartment. Hard to get a good angle with the battery and so forth in the way, but I think it's clear that my side panel is installed closer to the frame rail than yours.
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65 Cuda 340 said:
I don't think the problem is the frame rails being out of square, I think it's the driver's side radiator support side panel that's installed incorrectly. I agree with cudascott that you'll need to drill out the spot welds and reposition that panel. It pretty clearly is installed too far toward the center of the car.
Here's a pic of my 63 at the inside left front corner of the engine compartment. Hard to get a good angle with the battery and so forth in the way, but I think it's clear that my side panel is installed closer to the frame rail than yours.
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So what is your center to center radiator mounting bolt spacing?
 
Jim Kueneman said:
So that is where mine is set to... Is this the right radiator support or not? I would expect a later V8 to wider so it would need to be squeezed to the center too far like this one is.... like @pishta said.
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OK, it took me a minute to figure out what you're saying, but yeah, if it has a 65 radiator support, the side panels would have to be moved in to make the radiator opening 63 sized. Your driver's side looks like the right piece to me (just eyeballing). What does your passenger side piece look like? Because the 63 panel on that side does look different than later ones.

Edit: Here's a 65 Barracuda radiator support I found on ebay:
65 barracuda radiator support.jpg
 
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65 Cuda 340 said:
And here's a 63 support I found online.
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Thank you, I think you solved the mystery. Mine has a RH side like the '63 and a LH side like the '65 (the smaller hole below the large hole) Where did you find the lower photo? Is that for sale? No wait I have look at too many of these damn things this weekend... mine does look like it is a '63. Could it have been moved in for the radiator?
 
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Jim Kueneman said:
Thank you, I think you solved the mystery. Mine has a RH side like the '63 and a LH side like the '65 (the smaller hole below the large hole) Where did you find the lower photo? Is that for sale?
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Just do a google search for "1963 Valiant radiator support." It's the second image. I clicked on the page in the link for the pic and that item is no longer on the page, so I'm guessing it's no longer available.
 
Looks like yours was piece mealed together at some point.
 
NOW I SEE IT. The bottom is rotated in a good inch. Look carefully at mine and the the photos of either the '65 or the '63. I need to really get serious with a tape measure to figure this out. Thanks.
 
65 Cuda 340 said:
OK, it took me a minute to figure out what you're saying, but yeah, if it has a 65 radiator support, the side panels would have to be moved in to make the radiator opening 63 sized. Your driver's side looks like the right piece to me (just eyeballing). What does your passenger side piece look like? Because the 63 panel on that side does look different than later ones.

Edit: Here's a 65 Barracuda radiator support I found on ebay:
View attachment 1715472403
Click to expand...

This looks like a larger (A/C maybe) radiator for the '65.
 
Stupid question since my Radiator is at GlenRay (waiting for me to tell Bob what size to make it after learning all this) does it bolt to the threaded holes or the slotted holes?
 
threaded. The rad flange is just sheet metal and the 4 machine screws hold it in .
 
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