Monday 10 September 2012

Which rear cross members?

 
Not a great deal done this time but I did take some time to decide which replacement rear cross members to use. Since starting the project I'd been looking for a good quality pressing for both sides and in the process had collected three pairs of cross members.

The first set were sold by a well known UK seller as being genuine VW but when received were found to be Klockerholm parts (the sticker on them gave this away!). When queried with the seller they stated that Klockerholm was an OE supplier to VW. The pressings were far from good with heavy rippling on the largest flat face. The holes that the bolts go through into the floorpan were also not punched in.

I then looked for a better pair and, when Heritage linked in to supply VW Classic parts I thought my luck was in. Having ordered both sides again I received one grey and one black cross member (Mexican and Brazilian I guess). The grey part was excellent quality but the black one not. When compared to the Klockerholm parts I already had the black "OE VW" part looked very similar if not identical so I do now believe what I was told by the original supplier of the Klockerholm panels. Unfortunately the area where both cross members join was very different between the genuine black cross member and the grey one so they could not be used as a pair.

My final attempt was a web site purchase from someone who had bought a pair of cross members but not used them. I was informed they were "grey" ones so went ahead and waited for the delivery. On receipt I identified them as the grey, pattern type that Heritage used to sell and that were credited with good reviews by people who had used them when available.

So, given the Klockerholm are not the quality I'm looking for (worst quality in my opinion), and I only have one genuine grey cross member (best quality in my opinion and, if I had a pair these are the ones I'd be using), I've decided to use the two grey pattern parts (they need a bit of work to make them fit together but overall the pressings are quite OK).

Below are the six I had to choose from.



Here is the problem area on the grey pattern parts.



Reworking the problem area.



...and here it is finished.

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