<VV> Large oval floor plugs

[Tony Underwood]

At 07:38 hours 05/15/2005, Kirby Smith wrote:
>The Corvair lower part was galvanized because, I suspect, GM was afraid of 
>what might happen to a unibody car after it had rusted a while.  I believe 
>the intended purpose of the holes was drainage when the car was pulled 
>from the galvanizing bath.
>
>Too bad galvanizing was ignored for the next 30 years (or more -- are any 
>US cars galvanized today?).  Audi's are welded from galvanized steel and 
>then hot dip galvanized afterwards.  It really helps make up for using 
>water based paints.
>
>kirby



Corvair floors were not galvanized.   In fact, they were oft times not even 
painted other than what landed inside the car during the trip through the 
spray booths.   In the beginning in 1960 there was almost nothing in the 
order of rust prevention... later variants had rocker sheet metal and some 
other components galvanized and rust protection coating applied...  some of 
the stuff I've seen inside cut up early Vairs looked like zinc chromate 
surface sealer not unlike the stuff used on airplanes to put off 
corrosion.   Later variants had rust protection applied to rocker sheet 
metal panels and brackets; galvanized coatings as well as painted coatings.


However, Vair bodies were never dipped in anything, much less hot-dip 
galvanizing.     Too bad they weren't, more would still be around today 
although they would have cost a good deal more to build.


Now, Chrysler dipped their car bodies in sealer, submerged completely, then 
painted afterwards.   It worked... many '60s vintage Mopars held off the 
metal mites for a long time.   I saw film footage of Mopar bodies going 
through the sealer-dip process.    Unfortunately, although it did initially 
protect the sheet metal from humidity and the resultant surface rusting, it 
was not extremely durable and over time moisture would eventually find its 
way through the sealer, especially in dark hidden recesses and the sheet 
metal would rot just like any other car.

The saving grace was that those Mopars got an extra year or three of 
resistance to the tin worms.

Those various holes in the floor sheet metal weren't for draining nor for 
stress relief, they were assembly jig securement points.



tony..