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MG MGB Technical - How easy? GT wings

The time is coming for a sill job on one side of my c/b GT and I've got the idea of changing both front wings at the same time rather than trying to patch the rust forming around the headlamps.

Sensible or the start of "whilst I'm at it" madness?

Steve Postins

No it's a sensible idea, which is how the "may as wells" always go. You have to remove the wings to get access to the sill at the front anyway so you "may as well" replace it while its off. You'll have to cut part of the dogleg in front of the rear wheel well to access the back of the sill too.
william fox

Excellent, thanks for that. I've got handier with the mechanicals over the last few years but bodywork still foxes me. So now for a really dumb question: is it best to paint the wings on or off the car?
Steve Postins

Steve, nothing is easy no matter how easy it may seem. That's rule #2. Rule #1 is whatever you think it will cost, double it.
Mike MaGee

It is best to paint the wings OFF the car, but be wary upon reinstallation. It's easy to scratch a newly painted fender. Use lots of paint grade masking tape on installation at any point that may rub, such as around the door or grill openings.

Jeff Schlemmer

Steve: since you are doing the sills and the front fenders [wings] if I was to venture a guess, the rest of the body work is not perfect so rather then doing a blend a full body repaint might be the way to go.If you go for a repaint decide on what type of paint you are going to use and base coat the sills and the fenders before you bolt on the fenders. You do want the car to be the same color on the front and the rear, don't ya?
R E L Lloyd

Hi, Steve, if the rest of the wings fit nicely and there are no problems with the sills, I would suggest patching the bits round the headlights where they are. It should be reasonably easy to find some used wings which are OK round the headlights (GT and Roadster should be identical in this area, depending on the area affected, rubber and chrome bumpers should be the same too) and exchange good metal for bad. Heritage wings are not perfect and will need work to get them to fit.

Let us know what you choose.

Mike

Mike Standring

Steve
Whilst I had the engine/g-box out to do a clutch change, I ran into the 'may as well' syndrome which included an engine rebuild and front x-member. Whilst waiting on bits, I took the wings for the same reason, frillier than lace around the headlamps. I had thought about stripping back the paint to deal with the rust underneath, only to discover it was the paint holding the ferrous oxide together! The o/s sill was ok as it should have been, having just had a new sill prior to purchase, but the front end of the n/s sill was rotten, enough to make me want to scrap it there and then. But being a perfectionist and totally into the 'might as well' syndrome...
Like yourself, I am not a welder (car panels anyway) so I shopped around and found a local w/shop to tackle the n/s sill (£8/hour at 50 hours - very reasonable). However, as mentioned above the dogleg on the rear wing revealed more horrors and as a result, 6 months later the two rear lower half wings have also been replaced, so I took the opportunity to convert the r/b rear to take a Sebring rear valence. In the meantime I got hold of two 2nd hand wings and thoroughly stripped them and then re-sprayed them off the car.
Taking the wings off might reveal more than you want to see, but in the end, I am glad I did as I was able to utilise the experience of a professional welder at reasonable rates to rectify any rust spots such as under the rear n/s window etc. It also gave me a chance to work on the front x-member without the obstruction of the wings. It also meant I got to thoroughly check out underneath the wings and recoat the stone chip and waxoyl the wings. BTW be prepared to buy a new valence, too, as typically the front valence will be as bad as the wings. Also, fit some wheel arch shields to protect your new wings. New Wings from Heritage suppliers will be expensive (£230 ea) so shop around for good second hand. People like Andy Jennings that advertise on this site do them at a reasonable price (£75-85ea). Just remember the time and budget will be a lot more than you first think. So maybe, just get busy with the body filler for now!
HTH
Martin ZT

Thanks everyone. I am at that fork in the road between major panel work and patching, and being a daily driver, time and cost are going to dictate. Depending on the quote I get for the welding of the sills, I'm going to try for used wings as I can prepare them whilst the car is still on the road and if the old ones are coming off, replacement should be little extra work (I'm an optimist). Having had work done at intervals around the car the remaining crunchiness is now concentrated at the front end so it woould be satisfying to see it done. The rear wings got painted last year and the match was good so I'm happy to do the same at the front.
Steve Postins

Good idea Steve.

Keep it on the road as long as possible and look around for used wings in the meantime.

Don't rush things and you never know what will come up...keep an eye on the classifieds on this site...I managed to get a pair of second hand repaired wings from a garage clearout that were more than adequate for me (and cost me nothing).

Best of luck.

James
J Elliott

Having done headlight aperture patching on both my wings I can say it takes a long time and is very fiddly because of the multiple curvatures and creases. I fabricated my own repair sections out of flat sheet using hammers, pliers and the like, and was lucky to find a sound second-hand reinforcing ring. I doubt you would find sound headlight apertures in an otherwise damaged wing - unless it was rear-edge accident damage of a recently replaced unit. And if you find a sound second-hand wing then it will be much easier to fit it complete. If any other areas of the wings are suspect, like the sill cover sections, then definitely completely replace them. Unless you can get OE wings be prepared to spend some time fettling the fit. Sill replacement usually involves cutting and shutting the bottom section of the front wings, you should be able to negotiate a reduction if you ask for the area just to be made road-legal and not fully finished.
Paul Hunt

I had some bubbling in the paint just in front of the door. I took the baffle out behind the front wheel to get access to the inside of the fender. Once I did that I discovered major rust pitting (no perforation) of the forward extension of the sill (part of the uni frame). Given that the sill is a major portion of the frame, I had no choice but to repair that as well. I unbolted the bottom of the fender and the inner bolts holding the rear of the fender in and managed to get access to make my repairs. About 2 or 3 inches clearance was the best access I could manage. Of necessity all the sanding etc was done by hand. If the damage had been any greater I would have taken the fender completely off to make major repairs.

In short you may find major damage hidden which will likely require you to remove the fender to get access. First step is to take the fender baffle out and take a look.
Barry
Barry Parkinson

This thread was discussed between 17/01/2004 and 18/01/2004

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