[Bad Rat]

I am getting ready to have a new interior done for my bonneville,, the door panels are basicly in pretty good condition , except at the very bottom were the carpet is,, they have warped some,
origionally they just clipped on but at some point someone put screws in the bottom to help hold them on , and caused them to warp..
I thought about maybe trying to mold some new ones,, but thats a lot of work;;
next thought is maybe cutting a strip of metal a little smaller than the carpet and glue or screw that to the panel behind the carpet,, to help keep the panel straight

any ideas ?

[DanTwoLakes]

Why not just cut off the bad part at the bottom and replace it with a new section?

[Bad Rat]

Originally Posted by DanTwoLakes

Why not just cut off the bad part at the bottom and replace it with a new section?

Thats a good idea,, but how would I splice the parts together? overlap? or use another strip behind where the 2 pieces join, and glue?
The panel really isn't warped bad,, as you can see in the pictures,, just looks bad when installed with screws,

maybe another possibility would be to add more clips along the bottom and eliminate the screws

Thanks Dan,,,,,,,,,

[DanTwoLakes]

The bad part at the bottom would not take kindly to having more holes in it. If it's warped, it's water damaged. I would splice in a replacement from either 1/8" waterproof panel board, or PVC foamboard. Yes, just overlap it about 2 inches and glue in two pieces, one the size of the part you cut out and the other two inches taller and glue it all together. Because of the carpet, it shouldn't be very noticeable at all. You may have to leave the tall piece back a little from the outside edges so it doesn't look too thick.

[Bad Rat]

The panel is pretty thick, probably 1/8" + upholstery the material so overlapping the back panel shouldn't affect the thickness much,,
I havn't really got into this yet,, so after I get the Vinyl material thats on there now, off. that has a thin foam backing,,,I will know more about what I can do,,
how far up from the bottom do you think I should do the splice? its not water damaged at all,, just warped,, Looking at the picture of the back,, you see the tabs that hold the chrome strip that separates the carpet from the vinyl.. the carpet strip is about 3"
Should the splice be made below those tabs? not much room to splice above them, plus I would have to relocate the holes for the trim,
I'll take pictures as I do this,, and maybe help someone else,,,,
Thanks Bill

[Coodeville]

I'd like to know how to mold one of these panels in general. My Caddy has the same type and I always wondered what to do if the panel was shot beyond repair. I've seen plenty of stuff for cars with flat panels but nothing for this type of panel. There's a video on youtube showing a flat panel being made for a 1950 Ford.

[Bad Rat]

Originally Posted by Coodeville

I'd like to know how to mold one of these panels in general. My Caddy has the same type and I always wondered what to do if the panel was shot beyond repair. I've seen plenty of stuff for cars with flat panels but nothing for this type of panel. There's a video on youtube showing a flat panel being made for a 1950 Ford.

Yeah I know I have looked everywhere for replacement panels,, not alot of reproduction parts for these, Luckly these bonnevilles are the same body as the Gran Prix, and most parts are inter-changable, But I got pretty much what I needed from Ames Performance in New Jersey.. they have a great selection of Pontiac Parts,,especally the GTO G'P etc

Personally I don't think a flat door panel would look right in a large car like your Caddy or this Bonney Thats just my Opinion tho

I've done some plug, and mold making for F/Glass parts.. its alot of work,, but possable.. these are made out of compressed board.. and pretty durable,, unless they are exposed to moisture, then they soak it up like a sponge,, My Bonneville set in a heated Garage in Idaho from 74 - 97,, with 38K miles on it,, so everything was in really good condition..

[Coodeville]

Originally Posted by Bad Rat

I am getting ready to have a new interior done for my bonneville,, the door panels are basicly in pretty good condition , except at the very bottom were the carpet is,, they have warped some,
origionally they just clipped on but at some point someone put screws in the bottom to help hold them on , and caused them to warp..
I thought about maybe trying to mold some new ones,, but thats a lot of work;;
next thought is maybe cutting a strip of metal a little smaller than the carpet and glue or screw that to the panel behind the carpet,, to help keep the panel straight

any ideas ?

Suppose the top rounded part was damaged? how would you go about repairing that?

[DanTwoLakes]

The top rounded part is made of metal. If it gets damaged it would have to be pounded back straight. The padding would hide any imperfections, but it would be rare for the metal to be anything but rusty.

[Coodeville]

Originally Posted by DanTwoLakes

The top rounded part is made of metal. If it gets damaged it would have to be pounded back straight. The padding would hide any imperfections, but it would be rare for the metal to be anything but rusty.

Very interesting.