September 2019 - 1969 Chevelle gets new full floors, trunk floor!

So we got one more day in working on the car before we decided to pack up for winter. This marks a major milestone for this project... The first time in over a decade the body and frame have been together!

First, we rolled the frame out and dropped the new floor and trunk on it. We also fired up one more time for the year. This time it caught the attention of our neighbor who recently restored an old Mustang. He popped over to shoot the breeze for a while and admire our efforts. It's a great feeling to answer questions about this car knowing we've been building it all ourselves, including the engine and transmission. The pictures tell the rest with some insights in the captions below. Give me a holler if you like what we're doing!

This left what's left of the original body hanging by a couple of chains!😲😲

Next we started installing the new bushings. We decided to go with rubber bushings after hearing the poly bushings can give a harsh ride. Considering how much of the original rubber was still intact after pulling the body I felt new rubber would be sufficient going forward. Stainless hardware was used also.

Here you see we included the wagon and El Camino only bushings that install fore of the rear spring pockets. They were included with the kit from Ecklers, the frame has provisions for them, so let's use 'em!

Convertibles use an extra bushing at the firewall. Note the inboard bushing that is just a rubber biscuit. The outboard bushing is held in place with a bolt and a non-caged nut in a pocket on the firewall. Not pictured is the busing below where the door goes. This location generally just has a biscuit and no bolt. On convertibles this location is also retained with a bolt and a cage nut.

The factory assembly manual has been a priceless tool in working on the car so far. Here we are cross referencing the manual with the instructions that came with the bushing kit and getting the correct length bolts in the correct order before bolting the floor to the frame.

Just about lined up. Time to start lowering the body!

Touchdown!

This is one of my favorite pictures of the car to date. It may still look rough, and it is, but this is the first time in over a decade the body and frame have been together. Some minor adjustments and we'll be ready to start welding in some new sheet metal!