48 coupe- front clip removal

[Bolts]

I've got some engine work to do as well as some minor stuff to the sheet metal under the front fender. I'm thinking it would be much easier to work on everything if the hood and front end was off.
I don't think I'll have THAT much trouble taking the front clip off, but...putting it back on concerns me.
Here's my question. After taking everything off as a unit, will it go back on without heroic efforts?
Oh, and can two men lift the front end or does it require a cherry picker?
Anything you might want to share here will be much appreciated.
Thanks.

[19Fordy]

Yes, with the hood removed 2 people can easily lift the front end sheet metal off the frame. However, you might want to consider removing only the hood and leaving the fenders and grille work alone as you may encounter alignment problems when you try to reassemble it. Plus, if you have inner fender or running board bolts that are rusted solid you will have opened a whole new can of worms. So, remove only the hood and do the engine work. BUT, if you also want to repair the inner fender sheet metal you might be better of removing one fender at a time then reinstall it and move on to the other fender so as to avoid alignment issues. Is there a chance that you can leave the front sheet metal in place, cut away the rusty metal and weld in new pieces? That way you know for sure everything will fit. Do not remove the hood hinge mounting bolts.

[Kube]

Originally Posted by 19Fordy

Yes, with the hood removed 2 people can easily lift the front end sheet metal off the frame. However, you might want to consider removing only the hood and leaving the fenders and grille work alone as you may encounter alignment problems when you try to reassemble it. Plus, if you have inner fender or running board bolts that are rusted solid you will have opened a whole new can of worms. So, remove only the hood and do the engine work. BUT, if you also want to repair the inner fender sheet metal you might be better of removing one fender at a time then reinstall it and move on to the other fender so as to avoid alignment issues. Is there a chance that you can leave the front sheet metal in place, cut away the rusty metal and weld in new pieces? That way you know for sure everything will fit. Do not remove the hood hinge mounting bolts.

I tend to agree. Having just recently installed the front clip on a '47, I can tell you it is probably more difficult to align properly than a '39 - '40. And as most guys familiar with those years realize, they are tough to align correctly.
That said, I'd suggest removing the hood only and working around the front clip.

If "show" is not significantly important to you, I would suggest drilling (2) 1/8" diameter holes through each hood hing, perhaps 3" apart from one another. that way, when you reinstall the hood, you can place a pair of 1/8" drill bits in the holes and the alignment will go back to nearly as it was.

[Graeme / New Zealand]

I'd advise on not pulling the whole front clip off if you can avoid it. These panels can be a pig to realign later on. Upset the fenders and you can end up buggerising around for hours trying to get the hood to sit down properly. When you remove the hood mark it so it can bolt back on in the same position. Don't take the hinges off at the firewall though as this will create its own problems when reassembling.


GB

[V12Bill]

Originally Posted by Kube

I tend to agree. Having just recently installed the front clip on a '47, I can tell you it is probably more difficult to align properly than a '39 - '40. And as most guys familiar with those years realize, they are tough to align correctly.
That said, I'd suggest removing the hood only and working around the front clip.

If "show" is not significantly important to you, i would suggest drilling (2) 1/8" diameter holes through each hood hing, perhaps 3" apart from onr another. that way, when you reinstall the hood, you can place a pair of 1/8" drill bits in the holes and the alignment will go back to nearly as it was.

This is the way that Ford assembled, disassembled, painted and re assembled the Mark II Lincolns. Next time you see a Mark II check the hinges and fender mounts.

[RalphM]

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No problemo!
Sure makes it easy to work on, as said mark where everything goes.

[RalphM]

Darn it, wish I could figure out how to get these pics straight. FWI it's harder to get pics straight than a 47 front end.

[JSeery]

I'm not sure I see the problem with Ralph's setup, that engine should just fall out!

Wouldn't happen to be any Apple products involved in the photo processing would there?

[Bolts]

I appreciate everyone's reply.

I'm asking, not because I'm intent on taking the front clip off, but because I just don't see how I'm going to be able to do the engine work reaching over the fender. I think the inner fender might be in the way also. Taking everything off will also expose a lot of things that need cleaning up and degreasing.

I'm not sure of all the fasteners that have to be removed, but it appears that the fender screws at the cowl and running board and the fender braces might be about it except for the radiator. Besides the headlight wiring and the hood release cable is that about it?

Let's say if you were to use blue masking tape on the cowl to indicate where the fenders should be placed when reinstalling them, would that help with the reassembly?

Is the problem that the fenders will move where they're fastened to the grill when you lift everything off the car?

[JSeery]

Everything moves every which way! If you haven't had a front end apart maybe your not aware of how much there is to getting all of it lined back up again. Can be an overwhelming job if your not familiar with aligning doors, hoods, trunk lids, fenders, grills, etc.

Note: You might want to re-read #2, #3 & #4 above, think they made it fairly clear that experienced people have difficulty with this. A much easier approach might be to pull the engine, that is a much simpler task and will give you the work space.

[Bolts]

Everything moves every which way! If you haven't had a front end apart maybe your not aware of how much there is to getting all of it lined back up again. Can be an overwhelming job if your not familiar with aligning doors, hoods, trunk lids, fenders, grills, etc.

I get the picture, thanks for the answers and advice.

[waterboychuck]

Alex, do you intend on just removing the front clip to get to the engine and not doing a restoration on it? If so then remove the bolts where the fenders mount onto the cowl and the radiator support. It's been some time since I have done that but that will get you clip off the car so that you can do what you need to do. It would be ideal to have two others working with you, one on either side while you unbolt/bolt.

[Bolts]

Yeah Chuck, I was hoping I could just lift the fenders and grille off in order to degrease the engine and fix a bad valve. Have enough room to work in order to control things and see what I'm doing. I want to clean all the gunk off the frame and the oil pan and paint some things. Maybe even pull the engine out, if I want to at that point, and replace the clutch. Leave the front end assembled sitting on the floor with the hood until it's time to put it all back on.
I can see where things might move around some, but I wasn't intending to unbolt the individual fenders or disassemble the front end off the car or remove the hood hinges from the cowl.

[waterboychuck]

That sounds to me like you are not going to do a total restoration which is fine as you'll save a ton of money and then when you're finished you will not want to drive it because it's too pretty. So just remove the bolt's that attache the fenders to cowl and the raditior support. For what you want to do that sounds like the best way to go. My whole front end is in pieces so I can say that you are on the right track.

[paul2748]

I just removed and replaced the front clip on my 48 to remove the engine and trans. To me 'it was the easiest way to do it. Like you suggested, I used blue masking tape on the cowl and fenders to make sure everything went back together the same way it was.

You have four bolts that hold each fender to the cowl (usually in cage nuts but you may find that some cage nuts may have either stripped or became loose in its holder. I would remove the kick panel and spray penetrant on the bolts before trying to remove.Then two bolts (one on each side)that hold the splash guard to the lower part of the cowl. Then the one at the radiator brace. Plus the ones at the running board.That's all I can remember right now.

I would suggest three people although it probably can be done with two. One for the front, one at each side. The fenders have to stretched out just a little to prevent scratching the cowl and lifted up to clear the tire.

Originally Posted by Bolts

I appreciate everyone's reply.

I'm asking, not because I'm intent on taking the front clip off, but because I just don't see how I'm going to be able to do the engine work reaching over the fender. I think the inner fender might be in the way also. Taking everything off will also expose a lot of things that need cleaning up and degreasing.

I'm not sure of all the fasteners that have to be removed, but it appears that the fender screws at the cowl and running board and the fender braces might be about it except for the radiator. Besides the headlight wiring and the hood release cable is that about it?

Let's say if you were to use blue masking tape on the cowl to indicate where the fenders should be placed when reinstalling them, would that help with the reassembly?

Is the problem that the fenders will move where they're fastened to the grill when you lift everything off the car?

[39topless]

With the headlight buckets out and the tires removed, you can get at those hard to reach bolts without removing the front clip.

[Bolts]

Originally Posted by 39topless

With the headlight buckets out and the tires removed, you can get at those hard to reach bolts without removing the front clip.

Thanks for the idea, but in looking at my car, I don't see any way I'll be able to reach into the engine compartment either through the headlight holes or from under the fender. What hard to reach bolts are you referring to?
Thanks.