Heater channel replacement question

[Boaski]

I've finally got going on my floor pan and heater channel replacement project. Like everything else I tie into this project is a little worse than I thought it would be.

As I've worked on this thing it has become evident that there have been at least 2 rounds of patching (probably more) done over the years.

I'm not doing a restoration on this bug, I want to leave as much of its character as I can. I had hoped to leave the fenders on, but now I'm not sure I can.

The pans looked pretty nasty once the body came off:


It's amazing how much better things looks just by getting rid of nasty stuff.


The heater channels have been patched numerous times. There is rust repair to do around them.








So, my question is: do I have to remove the fenders to do the heater channels?

[darzoom]

No, but it would make it easier in the event you have to replace part of the fender well as many of the wheelhouse patches go up to or include fender mount bolts. Looking at all the rust it appears you will be replacing at least the lower wheelhouse sections. This site has most all the sheet metal needed:

http://www.mtmfg.com/vw/2118/Volkswagen ... Wheelhouse

I got my panels from different sites but this one had the most complete list. Good Luck!

[Boaski]

Thanks for the response!

This is turning into a bigger project than I thought, but I'm not leaving this mess like it is.

[darzoom]

keep us posted on the progress. You have a lot of metal to replace and it should/will be fun. I wish I would have replace more "complete sections rather than patch panels. I know it might have been overkill but the work required to blend in the patch took a lot more time than if the entire area was replaced from the welds out. Just my point of view.

[Boaski]

I found a lot of stuff at Raybuck.com . Has anyone dealt with them?

[darzoom]

I hve never heard of them but they seem to have all the pieces needed.