Straightening front frame rails

These small sheetmetal frame rails dont take to many hard bumps before giving in and curling. Every shell I have checked all have rails curled up. My BE has been bottomed out too many times smashing the cover plates. With all the surgery I have to perform on this project I had considered replacing both rails. At least splice the rusted inner sides by footwells and straighten them while lower plate is being replaced. If you drop a long straight edge down the length of these rails, you may be in for a serious shock...

Terry,

Been reading your posts the last few days and you seem like the kind that likes to get right on things and get results. That's great but I'd hold up a minute and do a little research on these curled up front frame rails before taking any action.

I've read someplace, and I'll be darned if I can remember where, that the front frame rails were intentionally angled upward when the car was built. The reason given as I recall is this angle is what sets the castor for the front suspension.

And from experience, these cars do not normally bottom out. The damage (caved in panel on the bottom just in front of the oil pan) is usually caused by jacking up the car using that panel.

Tim

But the rubbed bare metal tire marks on underside of wheel arches didnt just happen. Neither did the linear striations and folded back metal on bottom of frame. Would make sense on rails but neither are bent close to the same. One later model Sprite is curled so bad on one side it hops when turning one way and plows turning the other. (Owners kid used to jump over railroad tracks)I am not jumping in and straightening yet. Not until I know for certian if and how much they are supposed to be curled. Thanks for the insight.

Have never seen beat up ones. Intresting. The bottom pan in front of the engine is from jacking of course.

Getting them right and straightening are two diferent things. Tim is 100% correct in telling you they had a upward bend in them from the factory, I knew a guy who had his straighten and had to go back and curve them back again because of handling issues. They are all like this, get your hands on a frame book and you will discover this, blindly straighten them and you will regret it, guaranteed.

You can reskin the bottoms of the frame rails, they are just 16 ga sheetmetal.
Do NOT straighten out the upsweeps on the rails.