HOW TO - 'Vert door pillar removal

[takk808]

so im taking off the pillar...what a pain in the a**. but now im having problems with the seat belt...its locking and won't unwind, any suggestions? also i got my belts out a 240sx coupe but it doesnt seem to be long enough to bolt in the bottom retractor part...can i weld it? or am i looking at problems down the road?

[takk808]

OK...for the record, the project calls for coupe seat belts...it is actually the vert rear seat belts. honestly great idea wrong part to use...if anyone else plans on doing this i suggest using 240sx manual seat belts (aftermarket coupe auto replacements) you can find them on ebay. the top of the retractor wont bolt in with the rear seat belt as the manuals will.

[mmm240]

Is there any need for this piece? I see a lot of pictures with it still there? Is that because it's one of those damn star bolts?What size bit should I buy?

One more thing. Is it really this straight forward? I'm not used to things going this smoothly. I'm about to drill the hole for my spool and I don't wanna mess this up. Is it okay for the spool to be resting on the panel? It still locks and retracts so I think so.

Editx2: So what did you guys do about the female part of the belt? Just leave it all floppy?

x3: What did you guys do about the seat belt being twisted?

Seat belt un twisting was easier than I thought. Definitely gonna weld that spool in though.Off to grinding now. Gonna try to hit all the spot welds and hopefully save some discs
Modified by mmm240 at 5:15 PM 1/22/2009

[mmm240]

Well, I just started a small fire, so Imma call it a day. As usual I didn't realize how much of a pain a project was gonna be. Any tips on removing the pieces of steel?It looks to be stuck just underneath where the handle is. I don't see any welds there?!?

[Harman850T5]

I started a fire with mine too, scared the crap outta me, but at least it didn't cause damage.

What are you using to cut the metal? I used an angle grinder on mine. some of the cuts are not the prettiest, but they're hidden, so it didn't really matter to me. It did take some persuasion to get some pieces off.

I really need to refigure me seat belt situation. they get very binded and twisted and becomes a huge pita to put on.

[mmm240]

I burned my a pillar a bit.

I'm using an angle grinder with a cut off wheel and a dremel tool.

[autostylist]

we have built 18 sr swapped drift car and 2 verts now. this project took me a whole weekend. and beware anyone working around the jagged metal behind my door panels. Easier put the vert windows into coupe/hatch doors.YES!!!! Swap the whole door 2 hour project instead of your whole weekend!!!!i used s14 seats and seatbelts. and i do agree with the 80+pounds of weight savings!!! ok its not as hard as right hand drive conversion!!!!

[AZhitman]

For binding / twisting:

I cut a small slot in the metal belt loop, pulled the belt out, ran it straight, reinserted it, and re-welded the slot.

Voila!!!

[mmm240]

That was easier than I thought it would be.

What did you do about the female part of the belt? Just leave it floppy? Is there anything you can do about it?

[Piper]

Well, I just started a small fire, so Imma call it a day. As usual I didn't realize how much of a pain a project was gonna be. Any tips on removing the pieces of steel?It looks to be stuck just underneath where the handle is. I don't see any welds there?!?

i cut all that off and made it flush with the outside of the car, so when i get time, i can mod the inner rear panel and that little ouside plastic piece to be flat and flush with the profile of the car. thought that might look nice. just havent had the time!!

[mmm240]

Finally some progress! Only went through 2 cut off wheels!



Edit: how do you get the plastic pieces out without breaking them?
Modified by mmm240 at 6:22 PM 2/6/2009

[-RJ-]

Is there any need for this piece? I see a lot of pictures with it still there? Is that because it's one of those damn star bolts?What size bit should I buy?

Modified by mmm240 at 5:15 PM 1/22/2009

i was wondering about that too. What is that for anyway?

[mmm240]

That's what the latch on the b pillar meets up with. Since we are hacking off the b pillar...

Although I did try to remove it today, and it's on there good. I gave up, gonna hit it with some PB

[-RJ-]

heh cool, that thing messed up my door panel =/

[mmm240]

I got em off with a little elbow grease. It looks like I can easily hack em off too. But do I want to?

then the panel piece wont mount right and probably fly off at speed.

Anyone come up with an idea to finish this mod up (have it be totally flush; ya know, no b pillar or this piece) I believe that would make this mod complete.

[Piper]

I got em off with a little elbow grease. It looks like I can easily hack em off too. But do I want to?

then the panel piece wont mount right and probably fly off at speed.

Anyone come up with an idea to finish this mod up (have it be totally flush; ya know, no b pillar or this piece) I believe that would make this mod complete.

i cut all that off and made it flush with the outside of the car, so when i get time, i can mod the inner rear panel and that little ouside plastic piece to be flat and flush with the profile of the car. thought that might look nice. just havent had the time!!

no it wont fly off. ive been up to 130+ with the top down and they dont move. and as we speak im trying to fab a piece up that will convert the inner panels and that little outer panel into one smooth, flat piece.

[mmm240]

Feels good! And I went through a total of THREE cut off wheels! I feel like an angle grinder master haha. The passenger side was cake since I knew what to cut first after winging the drivers side.

no it wont fly off. ive been up to 130+ with the top down and they dont move. and as we speak im trying to fab a piece up that will convert the inner panels and that little outer panel into one smooth, flat piece.

So there isn't enough wind to pick up on it even without the front screw in place?Umm... pics! I realized that the panel piece acts as a piece of weather stripping as well. How are you gonna work that out?

Seriously I really would like to know.

[Piper]

im in the process of cuttin both of the piece right where they start to rise. then i will put them on where they belong and put a backing plate on them to hold the correct distance for fitment to the window. then fill it in with fiberglass and resin. sand nice and flat and paint the entire panel black again. if it wasnt so damn cold and nasty out, i could have done it by now. but i will take pics soon and show you what i mean. if it warms up.

[mmm240]

I know whatcha mean bout the cold. It's hard to get shiit done.

[the vert]

found a hatchback in a junk yard by my house and might start this next weekend. Seems like a cheap mod but makes the car look so cleaner.

[mmm240]

Are you taking the panels from the hatch or the doors? Save yourself some cash and just take the panels and hack off the pillars. It's fun too!

[the vert]

yea i just took the panels dont feel like painting the door. I might just go the harness route and just bolt it all to the floor.

[S15nS13vert]

sorry to bring this thread back to life, but i had to cut this brace in order to get the door trim panels to fit on my vert, i had to buy a spot weld drill bit, (it is a 2 piece) it was great, and it took me 3 hours to remove this 2 braces, in each brace there is 18 spot welds



this might help this spot weld drill bit it is great for this project
Modified by S15nS13vert at 9:06 AM 8/9/2009

[thienthan]

Is there a way to get the pictures to this thread?

[vert_guy]

The pictures on the first page of this post are not loading anymore?!?

I can figure out the pannel removal without but could really use some pictures on the S-14 seat belt mounting. Can someone re-post these? I'll be more carefull and save useful posts to my hard drive inthe future.

Thanks,

Will

[Genpac]

Swapping coupe doors onto my '93 vert, I decided to find the weight difference of just the doors, no seatbelts, window regulators, mirrors or glass.

Vert doors weigh in at 51lbs each. My replacement coupe doors are 38lbs each. The seatbelt assembly from the vert door, including the mount plate was 5lbs each.
Total weight savings from vert doors w/ belts to coupe doors, all power components swapped over, is about 18lbs per door, or 36lbs total. If you included the door panels, it would be just slightly more.

[CWA]

Hey I have been wanting to do this to my vert for some time now and found the how to pages here on nico to be extremely helpful and was wondering why all the tech pages pictures are gone now and all it is a little blue box with a question mark in it .. ANY HELP WOULD BE GREAT ... I am looking forward to starting this as soon as possible thanks guys

Dave

[AZhitman]

Long story short, our FORMER hosting provider / webguy kinda hung us out to dry.

We're working on getting them restored... bear with us.

[CWA]

Thanks alot ... Look forward to it ..

Keep us posted ..

[Filthy240]

PLEASE im begging you for the pics from this thread! I have read this write up 100's of times and would really appreciate to finally put a picture to a paragraph.I check back often if they are ever put back up. I have 2 verts i cant wait to do this to, i dont want to jump in head first (i know somebody had to tho right) and mess the doors up since they are hard to find. Even if you can email me the pictures that would be great. my email is gssdemon340@aol.com Thanks Ryan