Front Wing Alignment

Technical Area Body, Interior & Styling
2

Hello All,

Another thing to add to my list of “things to sort out” concerns the alignment and fit of the driver’s side front wing.

The car has had some paintwork done at some point (not sure when, what or why, but I was informed by the seller).  I suspect some of it might be for the front wing, as it does not seem to line up as nicely as all the other panels on the car.  It is by no means bad, but when viewed from the front it does not line up flush with the drivers door - it seems to be a bit lower than the door at the top curve, and the gap between the bonnet and the wing on that side is fractionally wider on the other side.

It’s not bad, but it is annoying me and I know I will want to sort it as I get the car fully tip-top.

It almost looks as if the wing is a new one, and is not a perfect fit, if that makes sense?

Also, the driver’s door is ever so slightly proud of the rear wing when closed - but this is really minimal, and could be due to hinge and latch wear over the years I guess…so I am not bothered on this one.

Pics

Driver side - you can see how wing is slightly proud of the door - it looks worse here actually due to the flash, and this is the best angle to see it.  On a general glance it is not really as bad.

other side, as a comparison…

So, what is the best thing to do to fix this?  Coould it in fact be the door that is the “wrong” fit - I think it is the wing due to the fractionally wider bonnet gap though. New better fitting front wing?  Body shop fettling the wing I have got?

AS I say, it is not at the top of my list, as overall the car seems (so far) to be very sound (fingers crossed) for what is after all 19 years old.

I would welcome any comments, and even better if someone wants to look at it / meet etc, that would be ace.

cheers

Chris

3

My experience is that the panels should fit precisely, with no real need for adjustment. I spent ages trying to fruitlessly line up a bumper, bonnet, wing and headlamp lid before discovering that the inner wing and radiator support panel were all slightly bent from a previous repair.

I would get a body shop to give you an opinion; they’ll be able to spot if the car has been in a shunt, and what can be done. To make it easier for them, remove the plastic wing liner, so they can inspect the inner wing.

Does the bumper have any sign of having been off; are all the clips in the mouth present and correct (square clips at the top, triangular clips at the bottom); these often get lost after a repair (the clips snap and are a special order from Mazda, so they are either left off, bolts used or generic round clips). Have a careful look at the headlight lift frame; these get bent in a crash, and sometimes repairers will straighten them, or replace snapped bolts. Look for cracked paint, or signs the bolts have been disturbed (scratch marks). Bonnet; if its been off, and misaligned, primer will be showing at the hinge points. With the wing liner off, get a torch, and look up at the end of the wing, where it meets the bumper and inner wing (two bolts visible); does the metal look mangled at all.

You can try loosening the bolts on the wing, and straightening it out; you will have to partially remove the bumper to do this, plus some of the bolts may well shear, especially the ones at the base of the wing.

4

 

Pics of headlight lift frames - look fine to me, and I cannot see any other evidence of anything untoward in terms of past damage.  Bumper has a grille but I can make out parallelogram shape clips at the bottom of the mouth, adn 3 square clips at the top (there are 2 unclipped holes but it does not look like anything was ever clipped in these looking at the finish.

What I have noticed is this stamped onto the wing in question

TKY0709A - and nothing stamped on teh other wing - leads me to think that this could be a replacement panel, which is simply a very bad fit.  The prolife along the front edge of the drivers door is simply not the same on the wing, so it would be impossible to line it all up - the wing profile goes in too much at the top…

Taking it to Cavendish Classic Cars in Shardlow as recommended on here for him to have a quick look see.

Thanks

Chris

5

UPDATE -

Just been over to Cavendish Classic Cars at Shardlow.  He had a look and is going to adjust/rehang the wing on Saturday - reckons it has been badly fitted by a total amateur… As I suspected, he thinks it is a pattern part.

He (like me) could not see any hidden damage, so I will update on Saturday.

Cheers

Chris

6

TKY: Taiwanese panel maker (Taiwan Kai Yih). I know someone who looked at these, and decided they had been made using worn Mazda tooling.

Until the wing is off, along with everything else, it would be difficult to determine what was going on.

7

Makes sense. He reckons he can make it fit so we shall see.

8

All done.  Cavendish Classics, fully recommended, took him an hour or so, wing very much now in line. Job done.

Pattern wing, not a great fit, but it is now pretty much perfect, and there were no hidden surprises in terms of damage etc, so all is good.

Big Smile