View single post by JodyKerr
 Posted: 02-09-2012 02:49 pm
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JodyKerr



Joined: 05-15-2006
Location: Tempe, Arizona USA
Posts: 217
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Well, don't want to dissuade you from a crazy idea, as I'm a big fan of crazy ideas, but this is not a small order project. We have a pair of Spitfires and the flip up front makes working on them a joy.

If you want to do this the main issue/concern is structural rigidity. The fenders do add some structural rigidity to the front end of the car. You would also have to decide where on the fender you were going to cut it onto two (as the fender runs all the way to the door and wraps around to create part of the door frame. In addition, to make it truly worthwile you'd want to remove as much of the inner fender as well (just imagine how easy it would be to get to the lower valve cover or exhaust manifold).

If I were attempting this, once I figured out the structural part I would adapt a Spitfire front end hinge assembly to use as the interior structure under the fibreglass as well as the front hinge mechanism. But I think the hardest part would be figuring out how to keep the front end from flexing like a slinky.