[Andygoodbloke]

Hi all
My journey to get road legal continues
I have to strip the under body back to metal to prove it isn't going to rust away to nothing - I have spent a few hours with a wire wheel, rinding disc on the angle grinder and a sand blaster to get the thing back to metal and only a holding primer over it, once passed the black rubber with be going on.

I also got pulled up for a dent on the left chassis rail. I went to see a mate with a SJ413 soft top and he had the same dent in the same spot on his

Is this just pure co-incidence or have the SJ413's got a indent as standard under the middle of the door on the left rail?

I am preying it is standard so I don't have to get it pulled out.

Or is it just a common place to get a dent?

[Andygoodbloke]

OK I will ask it in a different way for this who look and don't answer.

Who has a dent in their chassis rail under the passenger door?

Please reply rather than look and passing as many have done as the fabricator I am using also said this could be standard, but nit is a matter of proving it so if every one has a dent, then it must be standard - right??

[fordem]

I'm replying - it's not a particularly helpful reply, but, you did ask for it.

Did you ever think that the reason many of us don't reply is because we don't have an SJ413?

[Gwagensteve]

SJ rails are fairly crudely shaped but I’d say the dent on the underside of the rail is damage, not from fabrication. The sides of the rails have various ripples and “dents” where they are bent for the taper.

[Slug]

What’s the black sealer covering, I’d be removing that you will get your own answer
I wouldn’t pass the first photo of that chassis either for engineering
Would be speaking to a panel beater or a fabricator to look at re making the section and joining the section in complying with the ADR chassis modifications all the ADR motor vehicles regulations are on line with diagrams, section sizes, cut & weld designs
I’ve lengthened chassis from a land cruiser to a Kenworth and replaced sections, it’s not that hard but follow all the ADR regulations and speak to your engineer
Even do a welding class if you not proficient welder Engineers do not want any grinding of any welds they will fail it fast

[Gwagensteve]

Shep- the OP is in New Zealand so ADR’s aren’t a consideration. AS/NZS 1554.1:2014 should still apply though.

I think (?) the OP was implying they thought the black side was normal but the underside dent was not, which I’d agree with.

Personally I don’t think the dent is concerning and weld repairing it potentially more problematic than leaving it alone but it appears the NZ rules are perhaps even more pernickety than our rules.

[Andygoodbloke]

I have spoken to many people, including owners of SJ413's / Sierra's / Samurai's and have not found a conclusive answer with most owners saying the dent has always been there, but that is not good enough for the repair certifier.

I have written an email to the local Suzuki dealer in New Zealand and asked for dimensions so a trammel assessment can be completed to see if the chassis is straight, plus also asked if the chassis dent is standard. They have a few old guys there who may have the answer, but their service manager is away on leave and have to wait until his return for an answer

Thanks Foredom for your view, I know there is at least a few SJ413/ Sierra/Samura owners in this group which is why there is a modification guide as the first post, and many questions and answers from people who have them.

The dents are not on the bottom, they are on the sides of the chassis rails, the top picture got flipped around 90 degrees as the pics need to be wider than tall

Thanks Andy

[Gwagensteve]

Dents on the sides are normal, they’re a result of oil canning during the pressing process. There is a clear dent on the underside of the rail next to the transfer case mount which is damage. If that’s not a problem then all is well.

[Andygoodbloke]

The repair certifier is asking for a tremmal test / measure.

I had to look at what this meant but similar to using an extending stick to measure between the chassis rails along different points on the chassis.

Does anyone have detail of what the standard measurements should be?

I also asked the local Suzuki dealer and sent pictures of the dent/s and asked if they are regarded as standard, have to wait until a particular member of staff is back to get this answered.

Yes it looks a mess but it had to be stripped back for the repair certifier to inspect

I plan to paint everything in rust converter, then prime it, then black tar type paint it - suggestions welcome on how to keep it from rusting and be everything proof.

Thanks Andy

[Gwagensteve]

I’ll keep saying it, dents on the sides of the chassis are normal. I have two LWB chassis here and they all have forming marked in the same places up to about 8mm deep. The factory service manual contains the chassis dimensional data. This will tell the tester if the chassis is square. This doesn’t have anything to do with the “dents” (forming marks) on the chassis and it doesn’t provide dimensions between the rails.

The measurements are very difficult to take accurately with the body on the chassis because they’re front he centre of the body mount holes on the chassis.

The chassis will rust out from the inside out. Ensuring the rails are flushed out and the factory drain holes in the rails aren’t blocked is probably the best insurance. What you choose to put on the outside isn’t of much consequence.

[Andygoodbloke]

A conclusion has been found.
I emailed the local suzuki dealer and the service manager eventually got back to me and said

"We have a 1986 SJ50 in our showroom on display, this vehicle is very original it too has the dents in the chassis rails in the same place as your pictures show. I cannot prove this but it’s probably where the factory tooling bent the rails."

So the answer is the dents probably are standard
I still have to get a trammel test or a 3d scan to prove the vehicle is not a rolling death trap

Right onto the next issue

[Gwagensteve]

Ever wonder why people are slow/ reluctant to help you? I told you dents on the side of the chassis are normal a month ago but you continued to ignore/not respond to my post, but some other random guy looks at one they have lying around and says it has dents and now you have “facts”

I can guarantee old mate hasn’t spent as much time working on a sierra chassis as I have but that’s ok, you’ve chosen your “expert”

Good luck with your build, you’ll be doing it without any help from me going forward.