Sail panel fix this way??
 

Okay everyone says theirs no way to fix the sail panel except to replace it.
Well I talked to two body shops that are practically the best around here and they both told me to drill out all the bubbles then 120 grit the sail panel and let it dry in the sun for two days but keep on cleaning it with degreaser and gasoline until it stops coming out. Then get fiberglass resign to seal them. Then plastic fill them then bondo?

Anyone ever try this?
Inputs needed since this way is way cheaper then buying a new sail panel.

I don't think too many people are going to say they tried it. So if its going to be cheaper I say give it a shot and report back on how it holds up.

might work for a bit. the problem is the adhesive gm used to put the panel on. it seeped through the panel in spots and causes the bubbling. id think it will start bubbling in other places later on. give it a shot. might be a good temp diy

You would have to drill out every bit of panel that is in contact with the glue holding it to the car. At that point, there would be no bond left between what remained of the panel and the metal frame of the roof.

Nothing you do on the surface will change the fact that glue has penetrated the panel material and will continue to seep (drawn out by heat/sun/UV) through to the surface as long as that panel is still on the car. But the better the patch job, the longer it will last. Nothing short of panel replacement will be permanent though.

The root of this issue is the lack of a proper barrier (sealant) between the underside of the panel and the glue. There is no way to fix this from the top side, since by the time you see the results (bubbles) the panel has already long ago been compromised from underneath.

Gasoline....near my good paint? No thanks!

The problem is not the adhesive, it the fact GM stopped sealing the underside of the sail panel late in 2008. That method would not prevent future bubbles.

Good luck drilling out a million little bubbles :jest:

Not gonna work.

Regardless of the panel being sealed on the underside or not, GM used the wrong glue for the application. They shouldn't have used a glue that destroys the fiberglass to begin.

it wont work , sail panel has to be removed and one from an older one put on .

I believe GM used the same glue on all '93-'02 cars, but the only ones that seem to ever have an issue are the '99-'02 (plus some 05/98 and later '98s). The only difference seems to be the lack of underside panel prep on the later models. I think the original glue is/was fine so long as the panel was sealed from underneath.

But I do agree, it would have been nice if a glue was used that wouldn't do this sort of damage in the first place. Then it really wouldn't matter how the panel was prepped/not prepped. FWIW, the TSB calls for an epoxy primer to be used on the underside even with the repair-approved glues that are recommended by GM for panel replacement.

I only drilled out like 10 1/4 in holes since I don't have many and so far it stopped seeping through the panel. and I haven't even put the resin down yet. I am going to give it another week without touching it and see if it seeps through. But this weekend I am going to car a few junk yards and see if there is any sail panels left on cars since I am still hesitant about this method.

Knowing GM, this makes the most sense. Saving X amount of dollars by not undercoating a panel nobody will ever notice!

Bingo. For whatever reason they stopped sealing the underside. I think given the fact that SMC is porus and most all adhesives emit gases to some extent in extreme heat, sealing the underside of the panel or using a different material all together is the only fix. I dont get how the revised process got through testing, facepalm on that move.

Still some for sale :)

https://ls1tech.com/forums/paint-bod...un-states.html

yes, and I just purchased one, thank you :)

Thanks!

So after 6litereater sells the rest of theirs and doesnt make them anymore the rest of us that dont have the cash right this moment to buy one will have to use used pieces??? Crap. :(

for those looking for a replacement panel, I have 93-97 OEM refinished sail panels. check below.

https://ls1tech.com/forums/parts-cla...ail-panel.html

We're not stopping now since we paid for the molds and are doing them through RK Sport...

Really??? That's great to hear, I'm sure that makes a lot of people very happy, considering how widespread this roof panel issue is.
Man I tell ya the 98+ Firebirds get nailed,first the roof panel, if not that the dash pads that look like they've been hit by a magnitude 7 earthquake, and lets not forget the door panels.

and nice thing is they may be from 93-97 but they'll fit all the way til 2002, GLWS. :thumb: