Fibre Glass Panels?

[cubensis]

I'm sure there is an obvious reason why these aren't used - what is that reason? It'd solve weight and rust in one easy step! Obviously you wouldn't weld, but i have heard of metal panels being sikoflexed so fibre glass would deffo be able too. What the reason? All i can think is that the metal is structural?

[donnieg]

I once had a mark4 ford cortina and it had fibre glass wings.While out in the car one day and a car comming towards me was cutting a corner i swerved to miss it went upa grass bankand hit a tree.The front of the car sheered off when the police arrived he said that if it had metal wings instead the car would still have been in one piece.So i guess what i am trying to say is that it is a lot safer having metal panels

[AdrianC]

The front of the car sheered off when the police arrived he said that if it had metal wings instead the car would still have been in one piece.

<cough>ollocks.

The strength of the front of a monocoque shell isn't in the outer wings - especially if they're bolt-on. They're not much more than cosmetic. Sounds like the inner wings, bulkhead, front main rails were all rotten. Cortina, did you say? Yes, they were rotten...

I don't fancy replacing stressed structural members like the side panels on a van, though.

[CovKid]

More so with the beetle, but like many vehicles the T25's strength is in the sum of its parts. Once you start using glass fibre, it has the potential to fold up like a small suitcase.

Useless info but true: Austin Hackney cab drivers actually favour glass fibre for wings as the originals tend to bubble with rust and as cab drivers have far more stringent tests after ten years on the road, the owners swap to glass fibre so the tester doesn't view any signs of rust as symptomatic of problems elsewhere. Its quite common for older cabs to get a complete or partial respray prior to the test just to make sure all looks clean. My father just retired from driving cabs and you wouldn't believe how tough the test is.

[cubensis]

Still reckon there is a market for fibreglass arches. Yea hear what your saying though.

[CovKid]

Clip-ons possibly. Quite a few on here have done extensive bodywork and looking back its difficult to see which bits you could replace with glass fibre without compromising strength. The real trick I think is considering how particular areas rust (ie particular causes) and making minor changes during replacement to reduce that. A prime example is the bit behind bumper which is like a swimming pool at times and rots out the front, but even this can be improved with a little thought. The DeLoreon was probably the best solution but no matter what you use, eventually it rots, warps, breaks up or corrodes. Even A gleaming new motor is at best a temporary thing.

[AdrianC]

The DeLoreon was probably the best solution

A difficult-to-clean brushed stainless skin bonded to a delamination-prone fibreglass monocoque, bolted to a rust-prone mild steel chassis? It's the love-child of a Lotus Esprit and a kitchen sink.

[CovKid]

Indeed but the nearest we got in that era. Nowadays there are possibilities with some of the more modern carbon fibre materials. But then, if it was a design for today, I doubt the T25 would even be on anyones drawing board.