Hidden Rust Problems on the Frame

October 2010
When I got my frame back from being stripped and cleaned, I checked over the metal with a critical eye and looked for problem areas. On the under side of the frame, where the trailing arms attach,  I found these small holes....

I figured I could weld a patch over the area and I'd be good to go....WRONG !   Fortunately, one of the 6-Pack guys was repairing his frame at the same time and revealed that these important sections of the frame have internal stiffeners to help support the rear suspension.  His stiffeners were nothing but a pile of rust, and as I viewed his thread pics, I got a bad feeling in my gut. Well, I couldn't just hope this was not a problem for me, I had to look for myself, and a few minutes with a metal cutting tool showed this....


Yep, my internal stiffeners were also a pile of rust !  Fortunately, new replacement sections are available, so I called "The Roadster Factory" a.k.a "TRF" and ordered a new section for each side of the car.

Notice the stiffeners built in the channel...these also double as guides for the bolts that hold the rear suspension / rear trailing arms to the car...pretty important !

I'd like to tell you that I removed the old sections and welded in the new ones, but this is too critical an area for a novice welder like me to be messing with, so the pro's at Mitch's Welding in Maumee, Ohio, were called on to do the job.


 Mitch's team did a super job !  Thanks guys, and thanks to 6-Pack member Mark P. who tipped me off about this problem !!

Stiffening the Differential Mounts on the Frame

One of the weak points of the TR6 frame is the area at the rear of the car that holds the differential and rear axles.  A previous owner of my car had the front diff  mounts reinforced, but Ted from TSI has a kit available to further strengthen this important area. Besides, this gave me a reason to buy another tool that I really need, namely a MIG welder !  I did a little welding with my Dad while growing up, but that was a long time ago, so practice and reading how- to books was in order.  Hind sight being 20/20, there are two things I wish I had learned before leaving high school....how to type and how to weld !!

Here are the front diff mounts that had been previously reinforced.

My new Hobart MIG welder...
Here is one of the rear stiffeners...gee, I guess welding over a plastic tarp wasn't such a great idea !  DUH !  Again, I don't know why I didn't do this welding before painting !

 Finally, the additional metal added to the front diff mounting area.