Junkyard Rant

[RYC CUKR]

So I was under the 88 this past weekend and happened to notice that the drivers torque box is torn up BAD. I don't think that there is anyway that I could weld it back together. It looks like it got slammed into a curb but I know that I have never curbed it since I have had it.

So I start calling around to the local junkyards and no one really knows what I am talking about and the minute that they here that I will have to cut it out with a battery powered sawzall they kinda freak out. Apparently around here you can't use a "power saw" at any of the junkyards, or at least the dozen or so that I called to day. That pretty much sucks. Its all probably because some moron hurt themselves and decided to sue the owner of the jy. This is gonna make it a real pain in the ass to get a decent torque box. I think that removing the rear spring, even with a compressor is more dangerous than cutting body panels out with a sawzall. So after a frustrating day I just had to vent.

 

[Aryan15]

The junkyards in my area pick up the AWD Aerostars with forklifts. Guess what happens to the only part I want that an Aerostar has

 

[stykthyn]

I was so tempted to pull a rear end at the JY last week without a compressor, but all I could see was that damn spring caving my skull in

 

[bentley429]

That sucks, How bad is it really? Not possible to just try and straighten it out some then box it up good?

 

[RYC CUKR]

The mounting area for the control arm is cracked, the actual piece of metal that connects the rocker to the cut into about 3 pieces and bent all to hell now. Its a real mess. I'll try to get some pics tomorrow after work.

 

[lang williams]

time for after market "battle boxes"? Check out craigs list for some one parting one out.

 

[LiquidGT]

I would look into getting some battle boxes.

The guys at my JY told me I could bring a sawzall on the days when the owner isn't around.

 

[SVT32VDOHC]

You all know I work at a junkyard my Dad owns. I've been around cars since I could stand up, and worked here since 1997.

The reason they won't sell it to you is because of liability. Yes, people have been hurt and jy's have been sued. They don't want to lose their business or their savings.

I do NOT let anybody pull their own parts, I don't let anybody even walk the yard. I only let them go out there with one of my guys. I don't trust anybody, not only with stealing, but with getting hurt. I would never let somebody use a sawzall out there.

If I was to sell a torque box from a Mustang, there is really no good way to cut it out with a sawzall. The labor of that would make up 90% of the cost if I were to sell it. Plus, if I cut out that area of torque box with a saw, I cannot get real intricate, so I know I would have to cut through a quarter panel or rocker. I am now ruining a popular part of the car, so I would need at least 250 dollars to cut out a torque box. To pull it correctly, you should be drilling the spot welds, and then use an air chisel to seperate it in harder spots.

I know people think, oh it's a junkyard, but we have a lot of be concerned about, a lot of overhead, and things are increasing in price. Tows are way up, scrap is way up, cars are getting more expensive to buy...etc...

 

[RYC CUKR]

I understand the liability issues and such and wish that we didn't live in a time when everyone so damn sue happy. If you hurt yourself its your fault, not the owner of the business or property. It really sucks that some people have no personal responsibility when it comes to their screw ups.

But if they are going to ban something like a sawzall because you can hurt yourself with it then why not ban razor knives and other sharp tools. I have hurt myself far worse with a razor knife than I ever have with a power saw.

It just sucks that I am having the bitch of a time getting a part that I need because of a bunch of morons in the past.

All of the battle boxes that I have seen reinforce that actual LCA mounting point to keep it from spreading. I need to do that as well as tie the rear subframe back into the rocker. The piece of sheetmetal that connected the two is cut in half and twisted and bent up pretty bad.

I guess that in the end I am going to have to find a wrecked or really cheap 4 cyl and cut what I need out of it and then part the rest. Hopefully I can make most of my money back.

 

[stykthyn]

how hard would it be to cut the bad one out and then fab a new one out of sheet metal?

 

[caseywan]

Around here, they don't want sawzall's in the yard is because guys cut catalytic converters off and sneak them out or toss them over the fence. I don't know why, but they leave a lot of the cats on the cars when they go in the yard.

 

[LiquidGT]

Around here they cut all the 'cadillac' converters off before they hit the yard.

I swear I have seen a replacement aftermarket torque box in the mags, I want to say Wild Rides makes it.

 

[black87ttop]

they do make a replacement box, its called the S box.

Tech Review: Wild Rides S-Box - NMRA Ford Nationals Series Forum

 

[RYC CUKR]

Finally got some pics of the torque box.

The first and last pic are looking from the front of the car and the middle two are looking from the side.

The battle box that you guys have posted is for the uppers. I haven't been able to find a full torque box setup like that for the lowers. I have a set of reinforcement plates that are going in once this is all fixed.

I have found a few full cars that are for sale pretty cheap, around $400 so I am thinking about buying one that has some decent parts, getting what I need and then parting it out. Do all the Mustangs from 79-93 have the same torque box? So if I found one from an 85 could I cut it out and swap it into the 88?

 

[Mustang5L5]

Wow, looking at those pics makes me want to reinforce my torque boxes.

Who sells a good kit?

 

[RYC CUKR]

Keep in mind the damage is not from dragstrip or racing. Someone hit something with the car at one point in time and did this damage. Rick91GT over at RNHperformance.com sells some nice kits to reinforce the torque box area.

 

[GT_Rich]

wow - i freaked out over a couple stress cracks i had and then full welded the box seems and welded in reinforcements. i can't imagine what i'd do with that. good luck.

 

[90lxcoupe]

i'd get rid of that headache as fast as i could. seems like way more work than it is worth

 

[lang williams]

"i'd get rid of that headache as fast as i could. seems like way more work than it is worth"

Might be a good call...find a roller an swap everything over to it.

 

[LiquidGT]

Thats a mess, I agree with the body swap idea, unless the roller is wreaked then theres no sense in tearing up a good roller for a torque box.

Or patch it up and get an IRS. hmm, I was just j/k about that, but the more I think about it, the IRS seems plausible because it takes the stress of the torque boxes (am I right?). It still seems like a PITA, but any route you go is going to be a lot or work.