How do you split a frame?

I went and looked at a B-body today (not a wagon), and would love to know how you split a frame on a rust free car? I took a look at a 95 SS with 191k on it. Everything seemed great about the car, engine ran great, tranny was rebuilt with a shift kit installed, only needed some minor work. Then I found the deal killer. I noticed with one look that the frame on the passenger side below the rear door (visible in the last pic) was split and hanging an inch or so lower than the other half! The other side accross from it was 3/4 of the way split as well. How does this happen? Theres no rust on this car! I don't think it was wrecked, although the steering wheel was somehow broken to the point that you could fold it over. It's really too bad. The car needed very little (PS lines, slight body work, a new mufller, and a seat/steering wheel. It even had new tires and cats on it! He was asking $2500, but I told him it was only worth $500 as a parts car to me. And it was DCM, my favorite B-body color.

Dave, I had a 95 RMW that I had for about 12 years. It developed a soft spot, I believe it was in the same spot you are talking. It was in front of the rear wheel around the rear part of the door. When I went to get it inspected, it would not pass for that reason. He said it could be fixed.

I brought it to an autobody, an they welded a plate on the bottom and maybe on the sides. Rock solid and it passed. There is another guy on the this forum from NY who bought a low mileage wagon. Well it had the same thing. I told him about the fix and he repaired it. That was about 5 years ago. I believe it was "dservati". But not 100% sure.

You may be able to "score" that car at a good price and then have it fixed.

Tom

1. Score the car for cheap.
2. Buy a 110v wire welder.
3. Fix it yourself and you'll have a sweet car AND a welder that you can use inside any room in your house!

silverfox103 wrote:

Dave, I had a 95 RMW that I had for about 12 years. It developed a soft spot, I believe it was in the same spot you are talking. It was in front of the rear wheel around the rear part of the door. When I went to get it inspected, it would not pass for that reason. He said it could be fixed.

I brought it to an autobody, an they welded a plate on the bottom and maybe on the sides. Rock solid and it passed. There is another guy on the this forum from NY who bought a low mileage wagon. Well it had the same thing. I told him about the fix and he repaired it. That was about 5 years ago. I believe it was "dservati". But not 100% sure.

You may be able to "score" that car at a good price and then have it fixed.

Tom

But this one is split on both sides. The other side is almost at the same stage as this side. I would also be concerned with safety at that point.

And, what would you guy's consider a deal on this car? I didn't get a pic of it, but the driver's seat is trashed, big time. Steering wheel is shot, door panel is missing part of the arm rest, and needs exhaust work. The exhaust isn't that big of a deal though, just an excuse to put something decent on there.

95BRMW wrote:

but I told him it was only worth $500 as a parts car to me. And it was DCM, my favorite B-body color.[/img]

Well you set your starting point and he set his. I would say it is worth closer to your offer than his price.

Tom

Hey there, If you do decide to go ahead with this imp I am sure the parts car at my old mans garage would have the parts to fix this.The name and number on the side of the garage in picture its the yellow 9C1.PM me I think I got it all set up to email me finally and updates, I think.

Hey Chicken,I bet you wont try to hit that railroad crossing at 70mph.Way back when in my wild days I was the one
in the passenger seat that made the bet.Billy took that bet and broke the frame of that Pontiac Grandville on both
sides right where the front and back doors met.And yes we drove the car home.
True Story
Jim Gordon
Ps He didnt break the steering wheel but it sure was bent!

Scratch that. I contacted him about it and he claims he sold it to some mechanic that will be able to pull the frame. You know, because you can pull a severed piece of metal straight.

Yee Haaaaaw!!!


or as a starting point the frame is already set up for this mod:

It should be known that the frame on these cars consists of little more than front and rear subframes with subframe connectors between them. Seriously. On a sedan, I wouldn't even recommend jacking anywhere under the doors. It's just C-channel. On the wagons, it looks like they paid a high school welding student to box that channel in. Seriously.

There have been a handful of reports of frame cracks and whatnot. They usually happen at the front or the rear of the cabin. There are fairly "not smooth" joints with fracture points at those locations. If it was my car, I'd just weld some flat stock across the joint and keep right on going.

Oh, and if the rest of that Impy wasn't a total turd, I would never have let a frame crack stop me. What I WOULD let stop me is a bunch of telltale signs that it had been in a wreck or seriously abused, such as but not limited to:
1. Missing airdams or plastic undertrays in the front.
2. Wet bumper shocks (any bumpershock that has been compressed will leak, and must be replaced. They are one-time use).
3. any strange marks in weird places on the frame indicating it was on a frame straightening machine at some time.
4. Any weird body line mismatches.
5. Paint overspray on things that shouldn't have paint overspray.
6. Any body panel mismatches.
7. Headlight, cornering light or taillight mismatches from side to side.
8. Door or fender gaps out of whack.
9. Missing body mount bolts or subframe bolts (on unibody cars).

Keep your eyes out for these things and you will start to notice them.

Well at least now I know for next time. I posted some pics of it on the other forum and a few guys there mentioned the C-pillar emblems were placed poorly, which I didn't notice (this is the first SS I really looked at). Maybe there was some body work done t some point, who knows.

And heres the craigslist ad for those interested:
http://newhaven.craigslist.org/cto/1998028806.html

I have to say, I went with Dave to see the car, and the broken frame thing was quite a shocker. I couldn't believe the frame on the pass. side had severed completely in half! I was moving both pieces separately from each other in disbelief how such a nice car could have got this broken. I've been wracking my brain trying to figure out what could have done that, unless it was in a big accident at some point and the frame was straightened out, and these spots were weakened and then split later on. Also, the break points were in the same place on both sides, and were not at any weld points, the nearest being maybe 3 to 6 inches away. Oh, and that driver seat looked like bear got at it lol.

Just keep looking. You will sharpen your eyesight as you continue. When 200OZ and I went to look at that Lingenfelter Impala awhile back, it was amazing how much we picked that car apart. a lot of little stuff that most people wouldn't see.

FWIW, I'm at the point now where if I look at an Impala, the FIRST thing I do is check the VINs to see if they match.

BTW, that damage on the LR quarter is probably $1000 or more to fix. See how the sheet metal was pushed in at the taillight? That's $$$$.

I'm going to keep looking. This is the first SS that landed in my price range, and I really wanted it. The search continues.

yeah that's about my price range for one too..... want a 96 DCM myself....

Yikes. How does a rust-free car get a "soft" frame? Scary stuff!