Swb door and fender difference

[jhelgesen]

Before I get myself into trouble, what are the geometry differences between swb and lwb doors and fenders. I couldn't find it in searches. I'll be mixing some parts up fixing the 68.

Thanks,

[edmayo]

I'm not aware that there are any, can you elaborate more on what you think is happening?

[JT912]

'68 fenders are year specific. Geometry is the same as earlier fenders, but there are some subtile detail differences.

[Rotmilky]

Hi John,

I have heard that fenders are different between SWB and LWB. I also have heard there are some slight differences between 68 SWB fenders and the other SWB fenders. But, I can't tell you explicitly what they are, outside of the 68 has 4 headlight mounting screws and the 67 and older do not. Maybe the amount of flare in the fender over the wheels changes to accommodate the wider LWB wheels?

For doors, I plan on putting a set of '77 on my '68, so I have them in my garage along with the original 68 doors. There are some slight differences, such as holes for additional wiring and such that happened in the later doors. Also there is a thin metal lip along the front of the door (the part the sits inside the fender well) that is not on the 68. It won't affect fitment, but if you know to look there, you can tell it isn't the original 68 door. The '77 doors seem to have all the mounting locations to fit my '68 hardware (e.g. the holes on the inside of the door to mount the Durant mirror are there). I'm still early in my restore, so I haven't gone beyond a cursory inspection. I can probably try bolting them up just to see how well it will work. I can also post up photos of the differences if you want to see them.

You might also check out this thread for some more information. Door differences Based off of that thread, and knowing that the newer doors come with reinforcements, I decided to upgrade my 68 doors for safety reasons. Since I have the originals, I can go back if (when) it turns into a fiasco.

[jhelgesen]

Thanks guys.

I just wanted to be careful about putting later fender sections up against my 68 doors. I can save the doors, the but the 68 fenders were almost completely gone. I was only able to save the turn signal and headlight areas. I'll be grafting onto later fenders as I wanted a slight flare anyway.

[JohnT]

Von,

I don't know the year, but there has been a profile change to the front bulkhead of the door. When a mismatch occurs either the interior lights won't turn off, or there is interference between the late model door frame and early model door. So make certain the profiles match before making the swap.

johnt

[Rotmilky]

Thanks for the warning JohnT. Since I've kept the original doors, if the replacement becomes problematic, then I'll put the originals back on there. I'm willing to go the extra mile for safety sake, but not an extra 10! Honestly, I don't know how much safer the reinforced doors are compared to the 68 doors, but 'reinforced' certainly sounds better than 'not reinforced'.

[Rotmilky]

Aah, after re-reading the thread, I mis-understood your question John H. You were asking about fitment differences at the intersection of the fender and door between the 68 and newer cars.

I think we're going to be finding out the exact opposite answers in our builds. You've got 69+ fenders and 68 doors. I have 68 fenders and a 77 door.

--Von