Tim,
Are you are referring to the TR6?
Tim Gaines wrote:
>
> I need advice on a couple of problems with my crash pad. I made a
> series of mistakes that have got me thoroughly depressed and just
> about defeated. I wanted to replace the crash pad rather than just
> cover it with a plastic overlay. But, without realizing it, I
> ordered the overlay. Apparently there is no pad replacement. Well,
> I didn't catch my mistake until I had already removed the old pad
> completely. When I discovered that there was no pad replacement in
> the catalogs, I decided to just use the overlay; it seemed to fit
> nicely. This morning I tried to reinstall the whole crash pad with
> the overlay glued on. What a bear of a job! I couldn't get the pad
> to go in far enough toward the glass or to lay flat enough on the
> mounting surface. Finally, I used a big C clamp to to pull the pad
> down far enough to start a nut on one stud bolt that projects down
> from the metal pad frame through a slot in the mounting surface.
> After that I was able to get all 6 nuts started, but I still couldn't
> get the pad pushed in far enough to get the vent slots to align
> properly. I figured that if I tightened the pad down more, I could
> then try to force the whole thing back further. In doing that I
> tightened 2 of the nuts too far and the studs started turning with
> the nuts. Now the pad is down tight on the mounting surface and
> cannot be budged. What's even worse is that I can't slacken the
> 2 nuts because the studs just rotate with them. I think what I need
> to do is get the damn thing off and then reinsert it at a steeper
> angle to get it deep enough and THEN try to flatten it out. But,
> how do I get these nuts off? There is no way to get to the tops of
> the studs without cutting through the pad down to its metal frame, so
> how do I hold the studs while I turn the nuts? The only thing I can
> think of trying is to thread another nut on each stud (there is about
> 1/4 inch below the first nut), grab the new nut with a vise-grip and
> pull down hard while I use a wrench on the upper nut. If that
> doesn't work I'm at a loss. Honestly, I don't think I could get my
> Dremel tool in the right position to do any cutting under there.
>
> So my questions to you are:
>
> 1) Is there another way to try to get the nuts off?
>
> 2) Assuming I do get the nuts off, what is the best way to get the pad
> back in place?
>
> I would REALLY appreciate any and all advice. But PLEASE don't tell me
> that I shouldn't have taken the pad off in the first place! Jeez I
> wish I could get a "do-over" on the whole thing!
>
> Thanks,
>
> Tim Gaines
> Clinton, SC
> 1980 Spitfire
> 1974 TR6
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