vauxhallviva.com

Hi guys,
It's time for the viva to gain a new pair of wings, and as such will be purchasing a pair from Honeybourne mouldings. I'm curious as to how you lot have managed to mate the fiberglass wing to the metal body? I was thinking of using either rivets or self tapping screws but I don't know which is best or if there is a better way?
Thanks,
Ollie Parkes

hi, i've just fitted a pair of fibreglass wings to mine, i used m6 bolts on the lower trailing edge and the lower front edge , where it fits the sill and the front valence respectively. I also used self tapping screws on the top edge where it fits the inner wing, before they were bolted into place i covered all mating surfaces with PU sealer. they are very securely fitted using the PU. very good stuff

However . . .
they were a total pig to get straight and in line with everything, much redressing, trimming and adjustments were needed of both the fibreglass AND the metal surfaces, I did have wings from two different manufacturers though and one did seem to fit much better than the other.

The wings are a pain to fit neatly whether steel or GRP. I aligned them as well as possible using simple clamps like the ones you used to get with aftermarket mud flaps then added a couple of self tappers to hold them while the clamps are removed. I then used M6 stainless bolts with penny washers top and bottom. The holes were drilled as 8mm to allow a degree of adjustment if needed.

Instead of PU adhesive I used sticky backed foam along the edge of the inner wing to fill the gap, but PU adhesive would give a very secure fixing.

Fixing the rear edge along the door is difficult if you feel the need to attempt it. I made flat GRP panels cut to the profile of the wing and self tapped them to the door hinge pillar and GRP'ed them to the wing. If you don't have the metal filler panels fitted to the inner guards then these additional panels keep mud and dirt out of those awkward to clean places.

I had to trim those inner a-post panels on my wings, they just would not fit with the return edge on, they stood out a mile. I have PU sealed the gap and i do have a good set of the inner arch protector panels to stop mud and rubbish gathering in there. . . .

One thing i did for get to do was to cut the drain holes out in the bottom of the wing, its a lot easier to do with the wing off the car

Thanks you two, this has helped me a lot. Looks like I've got a big task ahead of me!