[TR] Removing radiator without removing apron on TR3A?

[Steve Ball]

All,

Removing the radiator with the cowl in place can be done.  Before I ever got 
my TR3A it had been in a front-end crash.  The owner's idea of a repair job 
included welding and brazing the fenders to the front cowl, eliminating the 
fender beads, but also making it impossible to remove the cowl.   The next 
owner never had enough money (or support from his wife) to restore it back 
to it's original condition, so he just lived with it....including the 
problem of removing the radiator for a repair.  After he did the job, he 
told me he removed it "downward", somehow working it around the frame and 
other obstructions.  As I remember, he cursed a blue streak while talking 
about it, and the only comment that's fit to repeat to the list was "it 
wasn't easy".

As a matter of interest, the first thing I did when I got the car was to 
restore the bodywork to the stock configuration.  We cut the welded fenders 
off, and we've repaired the whole front-end mess.  The car is still a work 
in progress with much of it in primer, and the body guy is now working on 
the rear of the car which was also welded...presumably to match the front 
end.  I'd like to have a few words with whoever thought it was a good idea 
to weld it all together.  It probably only took them a couple of days to do 
it, but it took us weeks to undo it and repair the crash damage the right 
way.

So...it can be done, but good luck.

Steve Ball
Lompoc Ca
'60 TR3A
TS68164L