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Front end not aligned with rest of body

Front end not aligned with rest of body

Gclyne

Jeeper
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Location
Indiana
Vehicle(s)
1978 CJ5, 258 I6, T-18a, Dana 30 with AMC 20. 4 inch lift, 1 inch shackle lift, 1 inch body mount lift, 2 inch spring lift. 33" all terrains. Daily driver, 60k miles. :)
Hi I am new to this forum and already love it!

Just bought me a 78 CJ5 in pretty good shape. One thing I have noticed is that the front end section if the body(front fenders, grill, and radiator shroud) are not perfectly aligned with the rest of the body. There is a slight misalignment, the frame is straight as an arrow. The jeep has been repainted and I bet they took the frond end off to paint. My guess is they did not align it properly when reinstalling.

My question is....what is the easier way to fix it!?
This is my first Cj. Any advice or tips would be awesome! I am still trying to figure out how to upload images but I will soon.
 
The hole front clip is held on by bolts thru the fenders into the tub and one big bolt in the center of the grill.So if the fenders arn't flush with the tub you should be able to loosen them to align them and loosing the big bolt under the grill to align the front. I would use a lot of penetrating oil on the front bolt under the grill so you don't break the nut loose.
 
Thank you! Didn't realize how simple it was to fix , that's what I love about these cj's!
 
You might get some further adjustment by loosening the screws where the front fenders meet the body and where the radiator support meets the fenders. You can open up those clearance holes for more adjustment if you want to. Some guys put in thin gaskets where the body parts screw together to create a better seal also. The hood can also be aligned to fit. I added large 5/16" fender washers to help hold things together.
 
Good point I forgot about the hood.
 
I forgot about the hood as well. So when I go to adjust the fenders and radiator support I will also have to adjust hood. Can the hood be adjusted from the hinges?
 
I would do the fenders and grill first and then see how the hood fits and if it needs adjusted you do it where the hood hinge bolts to the tub.
 

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