I did some fab work tonight.
I took off my bell pan so that I could crawl under the car for a goo look.
Looking up:
looking up and forward:
I decided that I was going to need some vertical space to mount the actuators, so I decided that I would mount the dampers even with the steel bumper (black thing in pic #1). But to mount the grates I needed to screw into the bumper, I can not get a drill bit and drill between the radiator and bumper. I could if I had a right angle drill (do not have, and none of my friends do). Plan B, mount to the bottom with a right angle bracket. I went looking for some brackets or angle iron. I found 2 30" pieces (31.5" would have been perfect) in the junk pile (free)! One piece on top, one on the bottom to hold the bottom part of the box on.
View of the forward facing side:
Radiator side:
The silver piece in pic #1 has a lip that held the grates for a test look:
Not perfect but close enough for testing:
Inside of lower grill (the sides of the box will be a pain):
I made the lower shelf as well. It slid in on top of the angle bracket and below the screws. A test fit and then some hot glue to hold it in place (notice the 4 1/4" holes to let water drip out):
Tomorrow I might take the grate off the top angle iron and screw it onto the bumper. I will reattach the grate once it is on. The screws will have to be hand tightened with a SHORT screwdriver.
I figure on mounting the actuators (one per grate) vertically. Will this work? how to attach the actuator to the grate? It will go to the sliders on the grates but they are plastic and thin (back sides have the movement notches). Will epoxy hold the lateral force of the actuator? I might be able to put a short screw in and add epoxy? Ideas?
Here is a pic of the actuator (taken off the ebay listing:
Universal Power Door Lock Actuator (2 Wires): eBay Motors (item 320579651247 end time Aug-29-10 08:33:14 PDT)
