Hi 'Fellers (and hopefully some gals),

Roger down the street has mentioned this site a few times, and put me on to Dale for some parts on thursday (thanks, Roger). I have a 122 wagon that is just getting-together after 1,000's of dollars spent on paint, and rust repair. Oh-well, I love the colour, and it looks-good.

I'll bet some of you guys know a thing or two about 122's. I have restored a couple of 122's before, and although I know it is impossible to get it all, I want to be as smart as I can about rust, so here's a question for you: After I get all the front suspension together again, I'll put the fenders on. How best to prevent water getting in between the inner and outer fender??? Where they join, the inner fender (flange?) is actually wider than the corresponding part on the outer fender; I never realized that before. It forms a sill for water to collect on. "Dum-Dum" putty in-between? Non-drying caulking? I have both, but then, after it is in there, how do I adjust the position of the fenders? I'm also told it stops squeaking, but I still wonder about adjustents. What have you tried?

Happy Days, and thanks again Dale and Roger.

Hi Jim and welcome to the board. Craig (122_Canuck on this board) is the resident expert on this and will most certainly have some words of wisdom...

Hi Jim,

The rear closing panel of the front fender has a rubber gasket (always missing) that closes the fender to the outside of the foot well area. They are available from Olof at Vintage Import Parts (about $10 ea IIRC). The upper flange of the fender/body joint is a far worse place for rust to get going. I've used 3M strip caulk, but it's too soft. I recently found the right putty tape at Can Tire in the RV section for sealing vents.

Hope this helps.
Craig

Hi Craig,

Thanks. I have a roll of foam tape for sealing-up my topper - maybe that will work? Gotta go.

James

I don't think foam tape is a good idea as it may hold moisture...

The proper rubber gasket attaches to the fender splash panel lip protecting it as well as sealing it. You could also look at some fender liners. I've often thought about seeing if my 240 liners could be adapted to fit my 122.

Yeah on nixing the foam tape idea.

Craig, I don't get your description: "The proper rubber gasket attaches to the fender splash panel lip protecting it as well as sealing it." Gasket? Fender splash panel lip? I'm out of town at work right now, so no worries, but are you talking about the 'fender sill'? I remember that is what the inner fender flange is called that I was asking about. Why was the 3M stuff too thin? Is that what I am calling dum-dum putty (honest, right on the box)? How do you adjust the fenders once whatever-you-put in there is squeezed in, doesn't that make the fenders immovable? Is anyone-else using undercoating? I'm gonna have a similar question about what goo to use when I get to the headlight rings.

I appreciate the help, and look-forward to meeting you sometime; gotta-go.

James

Oh, and Craig, I am also curious as to what you mean by 'The rear closing panel of the front fender has a rubber gasket (always missing) that closes the fender to the outside of the foot well area." I thought I knew 122's, and have been handling my front fenders a fair-bit recently (on-off, on-off for various reasons) but I don't know what you mean here either. I do a fair-bit of business with Olaf however, and do want to know this.

BTW, anyone have any experience taking-off the rear trailing-arms (to replace bushings)? I have air, but do I need to get the car another foot off of the ground to properly work on them, or should I just take it in to somewhere with a hoist? Orrrrr....?

Jimbo

Hi Jim/James/Jimbo

I think I know what Craig's talking about with regards to that gasket, but I don't have a picture of it to show you right now. My 123 has one behind the driver's front wheel, "sealing" the back of the fender against the kick panel, right in front of the door. The passenger side is missing it's gasket, but the passenger side fender is whacked right in that spot so I'm not surprised. I think this is what Craig's talking about in both posts.

For the mounting rail, the goo is definitely a better way to go than the foam tape. The sponge will suck up and hold water against the body, rusting it completely away in no time. The putty should allow for some movement before you torque things down, but a little bit of water on the fender might let things slide around better. It should squeeze out and dry up, allowing the putty to grip the fender as it should.

I do all my work on 6 ton jack stands. A couple pair of these will let you get your car so far off the ground, you'll need a big hydraulic jack and a couple of 4x4 blocks of wood to lift it up high enough. However, you'll be able to host a tea party underneath, or at the very least, roll over while laying on a creeper under the car (and I'm a fairly wide guy). Princess Auto, $60 or $70 for a pair. Failing all that, you can always check out U-Wrench (mentioned in another thread) and rent their hoist if it's available. Might be more hassle and money than it's worth, though.

Gosh, if I was there, I could point to the spot I was talking about and not have to suffer with words. The closing panel I was talking about is as Matt described. It is the part of the fender that is visible from the front side of the door. In the photo, you can see a little darker area where the gasket closes against. It attaches to the fender.


These were my inner fenders before I fixed them. For anyone that thinks that they won't be rusty, they probably are. They do form a shelf where junk collects (thus the uber rare fender liners sold as an option by Volvo). You can see the caulking that someone else put on there and how effective it wasn't.

When I attached my fenders I used 3M strip caulk http://solutions.3m.com/wps/portal/3M/en_US/3MAutomotive/Aftermarket/Products/Product-Catalog/?PC_7_RJH9U5230GE3E02LECFTDQCEK3_nid=GSLRY5ZD4SgsXB20NJQ19WglSNZRWQSX0Dbl

It is black and doesn't harden...the factory stuff is more of a butyl tape that gets a little hard and the fenders need something harder as it also acts as the seam sealer where the fender contacts the nose piece. This is the product that I used on my 240 and it is the correct product.
http://www.amazon.com/United-States-R-011B-Butyl-Seal/dp/B000BQUPYE

Fitting the fenders is an art. It occasionally requires thumping things with a 2X4 and a BFH to get the fit right. Gaps are terrible, so don't sweat them that much. The nose cone goes on first and the hood and fenders. Mount the fenders and fit with just 2 screws (one front and one rear). If they fit well, then you can put the butyl strip on and mount the fender - but remember, once on that's it - they don't come off without ruining the strip. The test fit is needed as I've had to oval out holes to get the fit where I like it.

Does this make more sense?

Oh, and for undercoating, I did the following. POR-15 or epoxy primer on bare metal properly prepared, then a top coat of paint (automotive) then I use rocker gaurd as it is easier to clean than "undercoat (tar)". I was using 3M Ultra Schutz, but have not found that the finish that I get out of it is to my liking. I've switched to either UPol Gravex or ProForm Rocker Gaurd (this is the semi gloss stuff that I love).
Craig

Thanks guys,

I have a dream that I will find a way to make some fender liners; that seems to be the best insurance against the inevitable. My fenders were sandblasted, primed and undercoated, but the inner ones... ...the @#*^@ is already peeling-off - that is my worst nightmare, as then it holds water.

All will be well with mounting the fenders now, thanks. I'll talk to Olaf too.

Bigger jack-stands. I jacked-up and moved a 30'x 60' barn 5km two weeks-ago, I guess I can get my car up higher alright, hahahahah. Ever taken those trailing-arms off?

Jimbo

Ya, I've taken the trailing arms off - no drama but this was on a sedan not on a wagon. They are more like 240 trailing arms and those aren't bad to take off at all. You'll have to post some pictures. I'm dying to see what it looks like - I've got a soft spot for wagons.

Never worked on a wagon, but dealing with a sedan on jack stands is cake.

I have the link saved at home for a place in Scandinavia somewhere that does fender liners for our cars in alloy, IIRC. I think Olof can get them- which might make more sense re:shipping something that size, as he has worked out what gets the stuff here at the most reasonable price.

Hi - Ok, well I'll ask Olaf about that.

I've got my car up waaay high now, and although I have all of the nuts off (one side) I can't get some of the bolts out. Those rubbers are not letting-go!! I have a torch now (see new post), maybe I'll have to apply some heat (and stink-up my garage)?