Making a coupe into a convertible

[outlaw17]

Ok now let me ask this , are there some welds on convertibles that are done after the fact with mig welders ? Like in the rear inner quarterpanel reinforcments , the rear seat support etc. ? The reason I ask this is because you can visibly tell that these parts look to have been welded after the fact , not spot welded from the factory , I can see that the front posts look original(with fenders on) but I can clearly see that at the bottom where they meet the rockers there is mig welds , so after I have the fenders off I'll be able to see if the cowl has indeed been tampered with . The vin tag is the same as the number stamped in the upper cowl section which tells me that the whole cowl is correct but is it from another car ? We will see when oit comes apart.

[jimbo67rag]

Hi Kevin
I went under the car and it does not have the x brace, but the factory threaded holes are there. I wonder if they put those holes on all the 67 coupes and rags or just on the rags? It does have the h re enforcing ribs.
Thanks for all your time and info, this is an excellent venue.
Jimbo

[jimbo67rag]

Thanks Kevin I looked and the x member is gone but the factory threaded holes and the h member are there.  Are these two features on only the rags.

[KevinW]

Ok now let me ask this , are there some welds on convertibles that are done after the fact with mig welders ? Like in the rear inner quarterpanel reinforcments , the rear seat support etc. ? The reason I ask this is because you can visibly tell that these parts look to have been welded after the fact , not spot welded from the factory , I can see that the front posts look original(with fenders on) but I can clearly see that at the bottom where they meet the rockers there is mig welds , so after I have the fenders off I'll be able to see if the cowl has indeed been tampered with . The vin tag is the same as the number stamped in the upper cowl section which tells me that the whole cowl is correct but is it from another car ? We will see when oit comes apart.

Yes, there are sections that were MIG or stick welded (not spot welded).  This was done either for strength or seperate part attachment at the factory.

[KevinW]

Hi Kevin
I went under the car and it does not have the x brace, but the factory threaded holes are there. I wonder if they put those holes on all the 67 coupes and rags or just on the rags? It does have the h re enforcing ribs.
Thanks for all your time and info, this is an excellent venue.
Jimbo

Jimbo, the H re-enforcements were only installed on verts.  The AIM does show the X plate as an optional thing (standard on verts), but if they bolted the plate to the floor of a coupe (with square nuts in the floor per the drawing) the exhaust would have NO ROOM in the tunnel.

[wagonman]

It is not a good idea to turn a coupe into a convertible!

There is a lot of structural integrity to a convert to prevent it from folding up...Also the windshield A pillars are stronger in case of a rollover.....

[KurtS]

Does anyone have a pic of a rocker cross-section for a coupe?

[jimbo67rag]

To clear things up. We are not intending to make a vert out of a coupe. We have a vert stripped and are restoring the car. The issue is that we came upon some welds on the vert components in the back seat area that do not look like factory machine type welds.  These are mig or stick type welds as Kevin has described. We were looking for some distinguishing features that would indicate a true vert and not a decapitated coupe.  We have now determined that the h member on the underside of the car indicates a vert.  Thank you Kevin for that info. I really do appreciate the interest from all the first gen freaks. ( as i am also one)  Does anyone have a photo of the underside of a 67 coupe. Thank you all.

Jimbo