It all started with a trip to Sears to check out a sale they had on a cordless reciprocating saw, just what I needed to cut the floor pan out of the Bobcat at the scrapper!

So I ended up paying about $30 more than I had hoped to, but was it worth it or what?!

I took my dad with me out to the yard today since he was bored and wanted to tag along. We dropped $5.00 of gas (at $1.71/gal!!) into the Saturn and off we went.

After arriving at the yard, we signed in, paid the entrance fee and out into the Jungle we went.

After finding the poor little Cat, stripped of it's insides and feet, we started by removing the windshield. Since I had already removed the trim and fasteners in a previous visit, all was left to do was to pull the windshield. It wasn't easy though, as it really didn't want to budge. With a little work of a crow bar and a severely damaged windshield later, we managed to pry it out of it's seat and rock in all out without any glass shattering (It already had a nasty crack across it, so I didn't mind hurting it more).

Once that was done, the next step was removing the dash. Now that was the easy part. Next up was the hard part, removing the pedal and column bracket to clear out as much space as possible so we could cut the floor out without being cramped up underneath anything. About 11 - 12 bolts and nuts later, it all came out. Now the cutting begins!

We drop a blade into the saw and fire it up with a start incision through the drain hole farthest back, slicing through the sub frame and fuel lines in seconds. We then work our way around the rocker panel and up towards the firewall, running into the upper sub frame which is considerably thicker than the one we started at. We decided to stop there and go around the other way. Now going the other way, we continue to cut around the floor and along the tunnel. Once more we hit the upper sub frame and stop, thinking of how we are going to get past this large chunk of metal that stands in our path. As we attempt to cut through the top and plan to finish it off by cutting through underneath the car, the blade dulls and the saw stops cutting. I reach for another blade but there are no more! Disappointed that our efforts have gone by fruitless and the yard was closing soon, we decided to call it a day and go back tomorrow. I take the dash and we head out to civilization once again, with anticipation of the return trip to save some good floors!


So, today I was able to get myself a nice reciprocating saw with two batteries and a charger, a replacement dash which I will clean up and paint to swap out when I have my windshield work done, and some 10" metal cutting blades to finish the floor pans tomorrow.

Did anyone else get anything for their Ponies or fun tools to help aid care of them?

The driver's side where my feet sit, right under the pedals, around the drain hole, has very bad rust. I put an old worn out bath towel between the floor and the carpet because it is so bad. When underneath the car, I can see some of the towel in spots!

Not only that, but that area of the floor also bows downwards since it is so thin. So it is more of a bowl than a pan right now.

lol. I was starting to worry there! Thanks Kim, I will post a shot of the pan when I get back tomorrow afternoon!

You have a wicked sense of humor there, Kim!  LOL :lol:
Dwayne :smile:

You paid $1.88 for an Omni GLH Turbo hood vent?!? Now that is a find and a half. Those suckers go for $40 easily! On the other hand, may another GLH rest in piece.. such a waste since those cars are rare in good shape.

Pics of what you got?

I believe the sending units are different  from a wagon to a sedan the tanks are  and the parts book has a different  # for them.

71pintoracer, thank you soo much for the heads up on the special drill bit, I now know how I will pull the cowl vent from the car at the yard!

I will try to get pictures tomorrow. It has been a long day getting things done.

Apparently a sawzall isn't even allowed at the yard I frequent, but they told me that AFTER I cut the floor out. I guess I will have to find another way to cut floor pans in the future.

If all else fails for the sending unit, at least I have a spare for someone whom might need one.

Try a Blair Double-End Spotweld Cutter..  The Blair does a nice clean job of removing the spot welds and the panel..

I couldn't find that special drill bit at sears or home depot, but I will check harbour freight for that other one, which is available on their website. It appears to just be a very small hole saw (I am more familiar with hole saws 1-6 inches).

I'll let you know tomorrow how it works out, Phil. I got your voicemail but have been a bit busy, and my black friday trip was my only time away from work all week. I will call you Monday about that part.

Dave, the drill bit is available on the tool trucks, (snap-on, mac, ect) not sure of the price. It is a double-ended bit so you get to wear it out twice! 

Here are some shots of the mud flaps and the floor pan.

The second photo of the mud flaps shows a comparison to the size of the flap I pulled off the Bobcat this summer. It was a Datsun flap, but it was cut well enough to look good on the car. It is what I am using as a template to cut new ones out of the Jeep set. I have flaps on the rear right now, just need to get the front done.

The second I removed from the floor wasn't much, as I don't have very much rust aside from the section that has holes through it. I should have enough material on this donor pan to overlap the good metal and weld it on.

Yup, that's pretty good for $35.00. I just bought a set of 8mm silicone wires for mine from Rock Auto, and they were $25 plus shipping.

I was considering it, but a new dissy from Parts America is only $48 and it comes with a lifetime warranty. I was just thinking that if I would replace something that is always moving, and electrical, it's bound to go out more than once during the time I drive the car as a daily driver, I might as well just buy a new one and replace it free of charge when it goes out. The salvage yard wants $30 for a dissy.

Here is a shot from a little over a year ago of the driver's side floor. It is only slightly worse now, but still stable for the most part.