I recently removed my intake and exhaust manifolds to replace the rusted bolts on the exhaust flange, replace the intake/exhaust header gasket, and just general cleanup (my intake manifold looks brand new now). To make things a little easier, I removed the entire driver's side fender and wheel. (side note, I don't know HOW much easier that made things, but my guess is that I'd still be fighting with things for a few more days).
Everything went back on fine, no issues with the manifolds or exhaust (it's actually quieter now with properly torque exhaust flange bolts; I think I fixed an exhaust leak in the process). However, when I put the fenders back on, I noticed that they seem to sit about 1/16th or 1/8th of an inch too low. Low enough that it was causing the hood to not close properly.
I ended up loosening the four bolts in the wheel well and the four attaching the fender to the tub, putting a floor jack underneath the back corner of the fender, and applying just enough upward pressure to raise the top of the fender to be even with the lip of the body under the cowl. I then tightened the bolts that I could get to because of the jack being in the way, then dropped the jack and tightened the rest. I repeated the process up front.
The hood closes fine now, but I wanted to find out if anybody else had encountered this before, and if there's a better way to deal with it. I'm afraid that it will take one good bump in the road, or prolonged vibration from regular driving, and the entire fender piece ends up sliding down a fraction of an inch.
Everything went back on fine, no issues with the manifolds or exhaust (it's actually quieter now with properly torque exhaust flange bolts; I think I fixed an exhaust leak in the process). However, when I put the fenders back on, I noticed that they seem to sit about 1/16th or 1/8th of an inch too low. Low enough that it was causing the hood to not close properly.
I ended up loosening the four bolts in the wheel well and the four attaching the fender to the tub, putting a floor jack underneath the back corner of the fender, and applying just enough upward pressure to raise the top of the fender to be even with the lip of the body under the cowl. I then tightened the bolts that I could get to because of the jack being in the way, then dropped the jack and tightened the rest. I repeated the process up front.
The hood closes fine now, but I wanted to find out if anybody else had encountered this before, and if there's a better way to deal with it. I'm afraid that it will take one good bump in the road, or prolonged vibration from regular driving, and the entire fender piece ends up sliding down a fraction of an inch.
