Hi all...question regarding fender skirts. I have 04 Cougar and am noticing the plastic fender skirts are beginning to crack and separate from sides. Additionally they are beginning to show small cracks where the screws attach them to sides. Any secrets for keeping them from doing this or is ultimately replacing them the only answer?
I repaired my fender skirts. I used an epoxy for plastic that I got at Walmart. I removed the skirts, cleaned them and put the epoxy on the back side. I had small visable cracks when I was done. But they never got any bigger.
ReverendCharles wrote: I would call Keystone and ask them the same question. They may send you a set.
jacksonr ..Keystone won't do squat for you. I've tried twice. 1st time 4 yrs ago, that mickey mouse support bracket came loose tore up the rear curb side tire. Emailed em, called em about finding a better way to bracket it. They just blew me off. 2nd time this past fall bracket broke loose from the fender I re drilled the hole back, tried to reinforce the spot, but it broke again, this time the bracket got into the tire & peeled it thus tearing up the fender. Emailed and called em again, was told to get hold of my dealer. Keystone has very poor customer relations. Called my dealer got 2 brand new fender skirts for the price of 1 that all the internet dealers were selling theirs for. So contact your dealer. I'm gonna try using some J-B Weld on the older one & paint it to match. Have you had any problems with your support hangers? Mine are screwed way down at the bottom where it curves. I'm gonna shorten them up to attach them just about the mountain symbol. Feel free to PM me if you'd like to continue on about the problem or other problems with the Cougar.
milo
Janet(boss)& Milo 36 & 1/4 yrs 2gether
Retired Educators
Mona Mo 6 yr old Yorkie & (in spirit) our Beagle Buddy 13 F-150 Eco Screw HD 4x4 07 294RLS Cougar TT
Confidence is the feelin you have just before you fully understand the situation
Your problem may be because the screws are over-tightened. If you over-tighten the screw you could be pinching the two layers together, which causes the different layers to 'dimple inwards'. This places un-needed stress upon the components, couple this with the fender flairs flapping in the wind, you end up with stress cracks.
A solution for this is to use a screw with a rubber or soft plastic washer under the head, which will crush against the surface allowing a resistance against movement in any direction. In other words, holds firmly, yet not tight. You can buy screws like this in different cap styles and thread types in a good fastener sales depot that caters to body shop and truck/van body repairs.
If I am using pop rivets for this type of repair, I will use the largest head that blends with the repair area and couple that with a rubber or vinyl washer, plus a plastic bread wrapper tie as a spacer. I then use the pop riveter tool to apply the tension until the center pin breaks off and then remove the bread tie to maintain my clearance. Aluminum rivets require less tension than stainless ones, and will not compress the rubber or vinyl washer as much as the S/S.
If screwing directly into sheet metal or thin gauge steel using this type of fastener, these fasteners with a washer can be obtained from a distributor of agricultural steel siding. Sometimes they can be found at Home Depot and Lowes.
Most support gussets should be preformed out of aluminum extrusion, rather than bending one out of sheet aluminum. The reason being is the sheet aluminum will crack if bent in a sharp break, whereas extrusions are formed that way when forged and will hold that shape indefinitely.
I repaired mine with a fiberglass kit I bought at O'Rileys'. Easy enough to do and it should last forever. Put the fiberglass on the inside and you will never know it is there.
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