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'69 Coronet - a curious hole in the floorpan

kiwigtx

Henchman #4 and Jack-Stand Racer #2
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My buddy MowPar asked me today if I could post this up. He visited our friend who is a car painter, and is restoring among other things, a 1969 Dodge Coronet. When pulling the body apart, he noticed a hole which looked very familiar - located just behind the rear seat upright, and on the side of the wheelhouse. Apparently the painter has seen this many times before - same sort of hole, in roughly the same location....only on one side of the car. Does anyone know if there was some sort of failure on the factory line, or a process which meant the car needed to be hauled up/around/ or back onto the conveyor in such a manner as it was easier just to poke a hole in the body, and then fill over with some bondo type material?
Apparently the hole was never 'tapped' down to close the puncture (approx 1-1/2 inch diameter), and it was simply filled with a bondo, then sealed over on the outside. A very sharp and ragged edge remains behind the seat area. It is believed this occurred in the factory, as it has been seen before, and this particular car does not appear to have been tampered with in this location. Pics below;







Any suggestions or ideas will be much appreciated. :icon_thumright:
 
:)
 

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I've never seen this repeated in the same location before but have seen similar several times in different spots. my first thought would be that the tire either kicked something up or maybe there was a blowout at some point.
 
.....Apparently the painter has seen this many times before - same sort of hole, in roughly the same location....only on one side of the car. Does anyone know if there was some sort of failure on the factory line, or a process which meant the car needed to be hauled up/around/ or back onto the conveyor in such a manner as it was easier just to poke a hole in the body, and then fill over with some bondo type material?....

Doubtful that it was done at the factory however....if you believe it was a factory item, you would need to check other Coronets from that factory and built about the same time period.

'69 Coronets were built at three factories.

At which plant was this car built and what is the VIN range or SPD?

My early Nov built STL car does not have that.

Why would the factory punch a hole in Coronets and not Belvederes?
 
Go ahead and say it Doug, Matt's right.:bighug:

"Right?" I don't know but I think that explanation is certainly more likely and probable that it being 'factory'.
Proving it was done on purpose at the factory would take a lot of research.

(OK...screw it. He's right)
 
OK, had an update today from MowPar.
It seems the story was a little incorrect.

The material filling the hole in the wheel-house is apparently factory under-seal. It looks body colour as it has aged/been over-sprayed/got covered in dust over the years.
The Painter claims it is original, and un-molested under-seal.
It would appear to have been there since the car was new.
This guy knows his stuff, he restored my car, and has performed magic on many Concours winning vehicles over the years.
I have asked MowPar to gather the necessary data from the fender tag.
After some discussion it would appear that a hole was made for whatever reason, then maybe some masking tape or paper or cardboard was held over the hole by a second person, then a smattering of under-seal was applied from the outside of the car. Obviously this would have taken place after body welding and prior to paint being applied.
Not trying to say this is a standard practice, but the Painter is adamant that this is original damage from the factory. Not saying only Coronets, it maybe that there was a fault on the line and for whatever reason....a hole was punched by something in a similar spot on quite a few cars.

If nobody has a good reason for now, it would be nice if anyone spots this in the future, could you please consider taking pics and remembering this thread....maybe someone will see something similar. In fact, when I get the fender tag, anyone with a car fitting that time frame and factory info, maybe check under the back seat??? :icon_thumright:

Fortunately this is visible on one of the 'least-likely' parts of the cars to rust out completely. :D
 
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