Body / Glass: mounting lower air dam, 53 coupe

[oldguy]

My lower air dam has 2 mounting tabs at the rear that line up perfectly with 2 bolt holes on the radiator support, but are 2 inches short of reaching them. Am I missing something or is this part from a later model?

[junior]

Just on my way to the dentist, so can't give you a full answer, but I believe you are missing a bracket, at least that's what my car has. IIRC, it's nothing fancy, just sheet metal c-channel shape. Can provide more info later if no one else has answered. Junior

[Jeff_H]

I had a lot of trouble getting that to fit up on my car.

The rad support can be moved fwd or backward on the frame and also angled a bit since there are slots in the fenders where they mount to it and the bolt holes through the frame where the support sits are much larger than the bolts. Try moving the support ahead some. If that does not get you there, your air dam may be warped or bent. From your photo it looks like its been welded up from cracks already so it could well be a bit bent too. If it was ever pushed in the center from hitting a parking lot cement log or similar, odds are those 2 ears that won't reach got bent forward relative the rest of the dam and need to be bent back and the entire rear of the dam straightened.

I had no end of troubles with my front grill parts getting them to fit reasonably. Bent air dams will cause problems with the grill fit since the vertical brace that goes from the front center of the dam up to the bottom of the grill panel will tend to pull or push the grills up or down and cause the fit of the grills with the hood to be off. My car was pieced together from used parts from several cars and needed a lot of tweaks to get reasonably well fitted.

[oldguy]

No doubt the dam has some tweak in it, but this is 2 inches, equally on both sides. Sounds like I need to make some brackets.
Missing that center support also, but I see the holes, so it shouldn't be hard to make. Is it adjustable, or just a solid bar?

[Tom Bredehoft]

Well, it isn't a solid bar, it's U shaped, bent out of flat stock. about 3/4 wide and 7/16 deep, with flat tabs top and bottom with holes in them.

[oldguy]

Thanks Tom. I have boxes of parts. I may have it and didn't know what it was.

[1954khardtop]

Oldguy, My '54 is up on the lift, so I just went out and checked the air dam mounting for you. The tabs on the air dam bolt directly to the sides of the radiator support. Sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but you must have something out of place.

[junior]

oldguy...I think I mis-understood your post, I thought you meant that pan bolted to the rad support, and that you were concerned that you could not bolt the center of the pan to the car...I was trying to tell you to get the center support bracket. sorry, junior.

[junior]

just checked the service manual, on page 4, it indicates that there should be 6 screws per side, and the center bracket that hold the air deflector on. in figure 10, it shows no tabs or makes any reference to the rad support tabs that your deflector has...is yours for a 53?? I will look at mine next time I'm out in the garage. junior.

[Stephen Davis]

Drawing number 1601-12 shows that the lower panel has the two tabs that are visible in your photo. The part # 303100 is the same for both model years, '53 &'54 c/k

[Jeff_H]

Here is a picture of that vertical brace installed and also the tabs on the back of the dam attached to the bottom of the core support.

On my car I had to add washers to lengthen the vertical brace or otherwise it would pull the grill panel down and make a huge hood to grill gap. I even tried to push up the air dam with a floor jack and wood block in the center to hopefully bend it up a bit but it would not go.

This photo also shows the '63 GT hawk sway bar mount bracket installed. If your car is stock, the bar is not attached to the frame like this

[55s]

I think you may have the wrong one - compare it to a known local car.

Yes, there is an early C/K "hawk" (53 on) scoop and a GT scoop. Typically, the GT scoop is easier to find. There are different depths for the radiator indentation.

You can tell because the GT has a big middle bracket and was typically welded on while the early scoops have only one hole in the middle and long middle bracket.

[rockne10]

Mounting points on my '53 match the picture Jeff posted; no extra brackets.

[junior]

Oldguy, I took a look at my car and it looks exactly like the photos Jeff H provided, so the deflector is bolted to the rad support...sorry but I have no real solution to your problem. Perhaps 55s has your answer. My whole front clip has sits about 1 1/4" above the frame where the fenders bolt to the frame. Check your door to fender gap...maybe the whole front clip needs to be raised? Maybe the rad support is not correct, or not in the correct position?? Just throwing out some ideas. If your front clip is mounted and lines-up with the door edges and hood sides, and if your hood latches and fits up against the grill shells, then bolt the deflector onto the fenders and see how it looks...if it all looks and works okay, then attach the deflector to the rad support by extending the tabs, or drilling new holes in the rad support...why fight this, unless you're rebuilding your car 100% stock and having it judged does it really matter? Just a few thoughts. Good luck...keep us up to date. Junior.

[oldguy]

Thanks guys. I was trying to put a 62 dam on my 53. Identical except for the depth of the pan. Looks like a center bracket was removed.
I can add brackets, or hammer out the 53 dam and spend hours getting the pitted rust out of it.