Tom R.

My Left rear tire rubs the fender when I hit a bump. Strangely nothing happens on the right side. In fact, I can fit two fingers in between the right tire and the fender.

Other than rolling the fender what are my choices?

What are the steps to roll the fender?

Who rolled them in the metro NY area?
Thanks in advance.

my944

Hi Tom,

Do a search in the archives...a thread was posted about 2-3 weeks ago on how. It's very easy...use a wooden bat and start at one end of the fender, using the tire as the fulcrum for the bat, and roll the bat to the other side. There are much more details in the previous thread.

Jason-85944

Tom,

I believe that the previous thread was mine. I did as recommended and rolled with the wooden baseball bat. You must be extreamly careful as to not wrinkle the outside of the fender. I also used masking tape and covered it wit duct tape to avoid cracking the paint. I made about 6 passes on each side. I did not roll the fender all the way as my problem was not all that bad. I don't suggest rolling all the way in as your paint WILL crack and you WILL get a wavy look above your fender.

Good luck,

Jason

ram_one

Tom,
I have the exact same problem. I have read in earlier threads that rubbingon the left side only is not a problem. I've got to roll my fender as well. Just haven't gotten around to it yet.

Tom R.

Please correct me if i don't have the steps right.

1: tape the lip of the fender where i am going to roll

2: Grab the ol louisville slugger and wedge it gently at say the 3:00 position

3: slowly and gently roll the bat towards 12:00 applying a little pressure against the lip

4: have a hair dryer or heat gun on the area i am rolling

5: when i reach 9:00 roll towards 3:00

6: repeat until i'm happy with results or need a body shop to fix my mess.

Next question: is there an area that requires more rolling than others, say 12:00 needs to be flattened, but i dont have to start till 10:00?
remember time references are to the drivers side rear arch.

Thanks again, i will attempt it tonight if wheather (and she who must be obeyed) permits.

Jason-85944

Tom,

Really depends on how bad you're rubbing. I would suggest not rolling it flat if you don't have to. I have seen a wavy effect on cars rolled flat. I didn't use the heat gun or hairdryer and had no paint issues.

Jason

jim968

Tom, On an '89 S2, I _think_ (not real sure) that the fender lip is already rolled from the factory. I'm sure someone will correct if I'm wrong.... but I think the stock wheel / tire sizes are the same as the 968, and mine are factory rolled, tho' there is plenty of clearance with the stock setup.

Jim, not really sure here...

Tom R.

Jim,
the lip is at a 90deg angle from the fender. if I roll it i will somehow be stretching the lip.

I put 17" wheels from an 01 boxster on the car with the stock boxster tires.

there is plenty of room on the passenger side,and no room on the drivers side. see my post titled my car with crabs or something like that for a crappy pic of the car.

Im baffled now. i dont want to get rid of my brand new michelins yet

adrial

I think someone at some point recommended cutting the lip so that you wouldn't be stretching it...but I'm not positive on that??

How would I know, my car has the fenders rolled by the factory.

It's not completely vertical, but I think most of the way there...there is some stuff inbetween the fender itself and the lip (in near vertical position). Not sure why thats there? Maybe very very mild structural integrity enhancement? (The stuff in the gap is solid...not mushy at all)

Tom R.

Adrial,
do me a favor and take a couple of pics of your drivers side wheel well and e mail them to me.
thanks
Tom

IceShark

Tom. it isn't unusual for there to be tolerance differences in how the sheet metal is installed from side to side as you found out. If you only need a little extra clearance you might want to cut the L of the lip a bit rather than rolling.

I also have wondered what a sheet metal shop could do in terms of actually rolling the lip with some sort of hand held double roller deal that would have a vise type clap adjustment. Probably would only crack the paint at the U edge which you could touch up easy enough to prevent corrosion.

Tom R.

Dan,
Is there a place where it hits more? I havent yet played with the car to see exactly where it rubs. Im figuring its from the sides not the top. Any experience?
TIA

IceShark

Tom, my '88 951S has fatory rolled lips which are a fairly tight U so no experience with the L type lip like yours. When I went to fat wide tires in the back we tested out different widths and when we hit the rub point it was the 12 o'clock position. We just looked at where the paint was skuffed on the inside. So you might want to look and see where that L edge is being skuffed.

Jason-85944

Good advice Ice!

This is the way that I determined where I should roll.

Tom, are you rubbing in corners or just when you hit a pothole or bump?

Tom R.

Dan,
Your advice is spot on except for the fact that this only started when i drove through the Bronx Tuesday night, and when I drive over the drains in the center of the highway.

The tires are the Michelin Pilot Sports that tire rack sells for $200+. since I dont want to risk cutting the tire, and the weather is nice I've been using the RX7 convertible.

remember, i got the wheels & tires off ebay from a porsche dealer in palm beach fla. that took them off a new boxster.

Jason,
Its when I hit a bump, not when I'm turning.

TIA again