Rear driver coil spring perch rotted; need advice

[quicksilver]

I need some tips on what to do for this, I'm not scrapping the car or pawning it off to someone else either just yet. I'm going to come up with a solution for this problem, it's just the best way to go about it.

What I would like to do is find a way to get a new piece of metal to just weld in there, but I'm sure that there isn't a manufacturer of these types of parts. That leaves me with two options: either go to the junkyard and cut out a perch from a similar body style vehicle, which very well could be a crap shoot by looking at what has happened to mine; or I can get a small section of sheet steel and bend it up to match the shape of what's supposed to be there to begin with.

Btw here is a photo of what I have left for the perch.....



So unless you guys know of a place that sells something new that I can use and can share that info with me, think I should just cut one off a car at the junkyard? or make my own?

P.S. I am also an adept welder, and have done some successful jeep frame repairs, so I'm not worried about burning the metal onto the car at all or compromising its structural integrity.

[Luxrain]

I was legitimately searching for frame parts. I might have found some on gmpartsgiant.com . that may have what you need. I'm in the same boat

[quicksilver]

I was legitimately searching for frame parts. I might have found some on gmpartsgiant.com . that may have what you need. I'm in the same boat

You may have nailed it with that website. I'm seeing something very close to what I need, just need to call them to confirm. Thanks for sharing that site bud!

[Luxrain]

you can thank this post also! http://www.pontiacbonnevilleclub.com/fo ... 47535.html

[quicksilver]

That link was even better, they provided a slightly different website, one that actually provided a diagram of that parts.

I have ordered a new spring seat, hopefully I get it soon, I hate having open projects. Good thing I don't drive this car in the winter anyway... imagine if that broke.

[Luxrain]

Lol yea... My frame is rotted at the front which you might want to look at too. I have a rust post on here you might want to check those spots if your spring seat looks like that

[Luxrain]

Lol yea... My frame is rotted at the front which you might want to look at too. I have a rust post on here you might want to check those spots if your spring seat looks like that

[quicksilver]

It's fixed, took me about 6 hours start to finish, and it was bad.







You can see in the photos that the whole area around the spring mount was pretty well gone, when I pulled the bottom part away from the frame, it took an entire section with it. Good thing I had some 1/8" sheet laying in my garage. I had to cut out two sections to fit the side and bottom where there was nothing left. I ended up plug welding the pieces in and then seam welded them to the frame. That was a chore alone. Then you can see the new mount welded in. It's holding up well, went on two 40+ mile drives already and it feels pretty springy now.

Also note the hole on the body above the spring mount and more the left of the photo (front of the car), this is where the gas tank filler hoses pass through the body. Behind the sheet steel that was there, was about five pounds of sand, salt, mud and whatever else could have gotten in there. This was the main cause for all this damage that I repaired.

[Luxrain]

So that site was what we needed by the look of it

[quicksilver]

So that site was what we needed by the look of it

Yep, they provided the exact part I needed. They do have a bunch of other sheet metal parts that could allow you to replace many of the structural sheet metal points, but that's only if you really wanted to save your car badly. Those parts start to get very pricey as the amount of bends in the sheet increase.

[Luxrain]

I'm wondering if the frame that's rotten on mine is on there is can't tell what part

[harofreak00]

You should make a top plate to cover up that dirt catching hole that started the problem in the first place!

[quicksilver]

I'm starting to think that this car is getting more and more expensive than what it's worth. It's a shame cause I enjoyed my last one so much and really wanted another when I saw this one for sale. This current state of mind comes from an issue that I'll explain in another thread, to which I feel like I already know the answer.

[MKMike]

You should make a top plate to cover up that dirt catching hole that started the problem in the first place!

It's absolutely ridiculous how that collects all the road salt.
I cleaned it out completely in December and after 3 or 4 snowstorms, I found it was again packed full.
Designed to rust, IMHO.

[Jjohns1110]

I have a 2003 Buick lesabre with a similar issue. The shocks were bad and the spring came unseated up top. My question is what on the top seat actually holds the spring in place? Is there a metal piece on the seat that is supposed to come down into the cone of the upper insulator. I may not get a response but I have been unable to find any info on this topic really other than in this thread. Thank you.