Lockdown

Obtaining a Water Tight Seal Around Your

Countach Replicar's Doors The Euro-Works Way

Of the problems faced by component car builders over the years, acquiring a good, weather-proof seal around door openings has been one of the most frustrating, and consisten of the issues. The one type of kit that seems to be much more difficult to seal than all hte others is the Countach replicas. Alan Schrager, of Euro-Works in Kettering, Ohio, has worked hard to find a water-tight solution to correct this deficiency found on Countach and other replicas which have a similar door opening.

A shrewd businessman, Schrager didn't want to give his competitors all of his proprietary information that he has worked years on perfecting, so we will only be able to show you here how to build the all important sub-frame which provided a stable platform to build the door around. But, Alan is also a kit car enthusiast and he has promised to personally help, via phone, KCI readers finish the top portion of the door install - no matter who's kit you have! This included bonding and shaping the top portoin of each door to achieve a perfect seal. Euro-Works can be reached by calling (937) 293-6834. KCI

1. The biggest secret behind Euro-Works' ability to get a proper seal with their Countach replica doors is that they do not pre-hinge the door. Instead, the kit assembler builds the door to fit the opening from bottom to top. The foundation for the door is a rigid inner structure custom made out of steel for each door. It starts with a metal mount for the door hinge, shown here, that is slotted with oversized holes and then welded to the Fiero (or tube chassis).

2. Prior to mounting the fiberglass inner door to the hinge, it is liberally slotted for ease of adjustment. An inner mounting plate is used to sandwich the fiberglass door to the hinge, and thus becomes a foundation to weld the cross support bars.

3. The next step is to take a piece of angle iron and fabricate a mount for the latch. Mount the latch with two bolts as shown. Now locate latch to the fiberglass inner door and drill a hole through both for a fastener. Finish by cutting the fiberglass that covers the area where the latch hits the striker.

4. Next, position and mount the striker to the door jamb. Don't just rely on the fiberglass alone. Tie the striker to the chassis with metal for a secure and rigid latch.

5. To add rigidity to the door structure, add one large, or two smaller (shown) pieces of steel tubing horizontally from the inside hinge plat to the angle iron used as the latch mounting plate. Tack weld at first, then trial fit the door skin and verify the door swings freely up and down. Complete final welding and reverify the latching of the door structure.

6. Additional strength for the lower portion of the door is provided by bonding a piece of band steel along the inside of the bottom of the door, and welding the terminating ends to the inner mounting plate and latch mount. Two welded in vertical tube supports complete the package. The last part is to bond the door skin to the inner panel, starting at the bottom and working up. This is when Alan Schrager's (the owner of Euro-Works offer to personally help, via phone, comes into play for KCI readers. Alan can be reached by calling (937) 293-6834.

Kit Car Illustrated Magazine February 1996