Heres beginning to end…i fell in love with this 67 cougar someone put a 351c and c6 in. When i bought it the guy told me someone had patched the floor pand but could of done a better job, showed me it had frame ties in place but the shock tower braces were in the trunk not installed…after about a week of tinkering i noticed my genders pushing into the doors so i went ahead and bought the one piece export brace…now heres where thins got bad…i jacked up the front, put a jack stand under each side of car and let jack down…the whole front end dropped massively so…i went ahead and put the brace on the cowl and was able to get it on the towers with a block of wood in the chock hole and prybar…jacked it back up and took the stands out and let the jack down. Im left now with half inch gaps between the doors and front fenders and the front apron extensions that hook to the cowl one disconnected and the other broke in…that one looked like it may have had bondo… Im trying to fix things but not sure where to start…if i can send pics i definitely can
That sounds like you have some serious structural problems. Definitely don’t drive the car until you figure out what you’re dealing with. Some pictures of the problem area will help provide you answers. Take pictures of the cowl area, torque box (only have one on driver-side) and front frame rails.
My first thought when you say" its been bondo up" someone hid some serious rust in the structure to cover it up and sell the car. You shouldn’t have flex like that.
Not unusual to have to jack the car up from the center to get an export brace to fit. It sounds like the front subframe is compromised, probably (like Brian said) in the torque box/lower cowl area. You might benefit from more experienced eyes on the vehicle, so try to find a local resource that has experience with structural repairs.
Personally, I’d support the car well (from 6-8 points, not too high off the ground), keep the doors closed, and remove the front end sheet metal (hood, fenders, etc. ) to see what you have there. You might decide to fix it, have it fixed, or part it out & buy a rust free shell to continue the project.
Feel free to post pics: there is a very deep knowledge base here.
Sure does sound like some serious issues, Most likely major rust issues on the chassis. No way you should have that much movement in the chassis even without the export brace. Posting some pictures could help with further advise on where to start.
The aprons look fairly new or at least painted up real nice before the motor was put in, the rails up front look good…but yes i was told someone did some patch work to the floor pans but could of did a better job…
Ive tried to attach pictures from my phone gallery but its telling me the pixels are to big
Could the shotty floor pan/torque box work be the cause of this? Im assuming they keep the frame rails down in back and if there weak im assuming they would push up? I can take pics of the rails best i can tomorrow.
pics 5 and 6 say there are major issues, other then the the repairs that were done i would be checking the cowl and firewall, are the inner aprons attached to the firewall properly and is the floor attached properly to the toe board (where the floor meets the firewall) I hate to say it but the car is coming apart. I would be very careful when you jack it up to look under it for your safety
More pics please. It looks like you may have some damage, but until we see front frame rails & front core support, torque box(es), very difficult to say.
I have seen worse.
Location??? Year of Cat?
Ask somebody at a gas station to put it up on a lift. NOT the one that lifts at the frame points (too much body stress) but the kind you drive onto and support the car via the tires. I think when you get it up it will tell better what was done. Alternate is to call around to a body shop that does older cars and have them look at it since they will know better what to look for. Good Luck
Where are you located? There may be a member here that is close-ish to you, or possibly a local Cougar Club that could help you out.