Body Repair panels for MK1 Cortina

[TCG999]

I am looking at where I can source repair panels for a MK1 Cortina. sills, front & rear guard lower panels. Can anyone give me some contacts? Neil

[jewels]

hello neil,
and welcome :)

rare spares sell both those items for MK1 cortina

i havent bought any since very early in 2007

the sills are only the outta skin and dont have the contoured ends

RP258 and RP259 are the front guard sections

not sure on the sill part numbers

[TCG999]

Jewels
Thanks for the info, found them. They do not have the sills or rear lowers?? Any other ideas? Neil

[jewels]

no worries :)
they do have sills im sure as ive bought them ...i hope they have not stopped production on them....

but as for lower quarter sections NO
the only place you can get these is the UK and they will be expensive once landed

try http://www.steelpanels.co.uk/

these go as high as the bumper line
52 quid each about $120 each +shipping

and http://www.mk1cortina.com (http://www.mk1cortina.com/php/clubshop.php?cat=PANELS)

these are lower versions
33 quid each about $75 each + shipping

[TCG999]

Thanks Jewels, Just a question about sills. In your experience do the panels have a slight curve?

[jewels]

tcg999,
i cant remember to be honest
but i had heard that they wernt perfect copy ..but they were better than nothing.

the sad news is i can confirm that Rare Spares are no longer supplying replacement sills for MK1's

this is not good news :(

i spose its all down to demand and they are always gunna sell a hr rust before a mk1 cortina

[a1topdog]

try http://www.steelpanels.co.uk/

these go as high as the bumper line
52 quid each about $120 each +shipping



Hi Jewels - I think you are a bit out on your price for the Expressed Steel panels sills. They offer 2 version of the sill - The budget sill at £40.85 (ex VAT) and the full sill at £92.00 (ex VAT)

I've never seen the budget sill , but I'm guessing its a cover sill , without the closed front end. I have just had the full sill fitted to my MK1 2 door and it is a very good panel. It has the closed pressing at the A post end , and I'm sure it has the slight curve along the doorline , but I can't check this right now as my car is 80 miles away.

I originally bought panels from the UK MK1 owners club , and returned them as I was not happy with the quality. The best I could describe them as is amaturish. I have had lots of repair panels from the Expressed Steel and they were excellent quality and fit , for not a lot more money. The only concerns I have heard about for Expressed Steel panels are the front and rear wings , and I have not bought any of those.

[jewels]

oh i was talking about the lower quarter panel repair sections not the sills in that estimate :)

[a1topdog]

My applogies - I should learn to read!!

I have also purchased a lower rear quarter repair. The expressed steel one includes the pressing above the bumper line , where as the MK1 owners club finishes below the bumper line. If you order the one on the Drivers side (of a RHD car) guaranteed you will also need the closing panel that sits behind the lower quarter repair , and underneath the boot floor.

My advise would be to make sure you get both panels from the same source , otherwise from my experiance the radius along the lower edge will not be the same.

[Dr Danger]

And you should learn to spell! Hahahaha, :)

Applogies????

[a1topdog]

You're lucky I didn't write it upside down so you could read it :-)

[jewels]

a1topdog, so you have used Expressed steel panels before ?
i have not purchased anything from them yet but they do have a panel i would like...

do they remove the VAT for us international buyers? coz that would make a difference...and did they ship sills in the full length or did they need to cut in order for the postal service to take them?

[a1topdog]

Hi Jewels - I'm based in the UK so don't have any of the issues you are worried about.

I phoned Ex-Pressed Steel for you today and they confirmed the following:

1) You will not be charged UK VAT on your purchase , as you will pay it locally.
2) Sills are too long to be sent via the normally postal service , so would have to be sent via a courier - hence more expensive. (I guess that was the Ozzie humour about cutting the sill down - right?)

I know guys in the US who have bought large panels from Ex-pressed (ie boot floors etc) and they have got them no problem.

I guess if I was you I would maximise my order to take full advantage of the shipping weight you will be billed for , and then sell on the extra panels locally.

If you need any more help / info for parts from the UK then just let me know.

[jewels]

thanx top dog that would be great

[a1topdog]

I managed to get down and see my car over the weekend , and can confirm that the Ex-Pressed Steel Sills (try saying that when you've has a few!) do have a curve that follows the line of the door bottom.

I'll try and get a picture posted for you to see.

[jewels]

I managed to get down and see my car over the weekend , and can confirm that the Ex-Pressed Steel Sills (try saying that when you've has a few!) do have a curve that follows the line of the door bottom.

I'll try and get a picture posted for you to see.


were those the budget models?

[a1topdog]

No - they are the full price ones.

[jewels]

whats the difference between the 2
as a matter of interest

[a1topdog]

I'm not 100% sure , but my guess would be the cheaper option is what we call a "cover" sill. This is one that you would fit over the existing sill , or one that would mean you didn't have to remove the whole of the original sill to fit it. So you would leave the original door step sill section in place between the A and B posts and trim the sill off in line with outside edge of the door bottom. The cover sills do not usually come with the closing section at the A post end , and do not normally have the return that goes underneath the rear quarter panel , behind the B post.

[a1topdog]

Here are some pictures of the replacement sills. The first picture is of a genuine ford sill , and the other 3 are of an expressed non budget sill.

I post a picture of it fitted to my car so you can see the curve - it just have to find the picture !!




http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y249/a1topdog/sillgenuinePhilHaydar.jpg

http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y249/a1topdog/DSCF0011.jpg

http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y249/a1topdog/DSCF0012.jpg

http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y249/a1topdog/DSCF0038.jpg

[jewels]

thanx for doing that topdog :)
so you have sanded back the paint on the middle to images?

so what is the last grey colored sill ?

the ends front and back are really needed on a sill for us here in Oz

mmm i see some other new panels there also

whats going on there topdog ? :)

[korkwai]

Ensure import paper work shows they are repressed reproduction pannels out of new steel or you will incurr Quaranteen Costs

[a1topdog]

thanx for doing that topdog :)
so you have sanded back the paint on the middle to images?

so what is the last grey colored sill ?

the ends front and back are really needed on a sill for us here in Oz

mmm i see some other new panels there also

whats going on there topdog ? :)

The repro sills come covered in a black primer , but it is not a very good finish - it more for protection during storage. I always remove it before painting , hence the pictures of it partially sanded off.

The picture of the full length grey coloured sill is the same sill from ex-pressed but I have painted it with por-15.

Good spot with the other panels. They are a pair of NOS gen for 2 door rear quarter panels. They have actually been sold to fund the ever increasing restro costs of my MK1 1964 A frame Lotus Cortina.

[jewels]

oh i see

got any pics of the lotus ?

[a1topdog]

Jewels - I've started a new thread:

http://www.cortina-mk1classifieds.com/forum/showthread.php?p=1278#post1278

[jewels]

i received a set of sills from the mk1 club (uk)
and im not that happy with them

you were right the shape is just not right :(
i will use the front and rear ends but not the rest

in fact the sills that were made here in australia were much better and they were complete with the scuff panel mount area

pity they have stopped making them now

try and get some pics up

[a1topdog]

Here's a pic of the Expressed full sill fitted to my car. As you can see it follows the bottom of the door line nicely. The front wing is only resting in place and need to be raised up a touch to get the lines spot on. The rear arch repair looks a bit proud where it joins the sill but it is actually lined up OK.

http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y249/a1topdog/Steve%20155C%20Restoration/DSCF0161.jpg

[a1topdog]

Ops - double post.