Stating the obvious here but owning a black van means that it is hardly ever clean. Well…it might be clean but it hardly ever “looks” clean. That's why one of the first things to do was to install the fender flares to cut down on the road spray and mud coating the side of the van. I chose to buy the Bushwacker flares but I didn't get the slider version for the back, I chose the “barn door” style. As I said before, I'm working on a slider hinge design that will clear the barn door style flare (and bigger tire) but it isn't ready just yet. My current slider hinge is extended about 2” but it isn't enough to clear the flare…it needs to come out another 1.5-2” from what I can tell. In the meantime, I still need my slider to work so I did a little surgery on the current flare to get me by. I'll replace the flare once I have my new hinge ready.
First, I used a heat gun to soften the flare and push it in as much as I could, hoping that it would be enough. It wasn't enough though. It started to fold over on itself and I still needed another 1/4” inch. So I made a cut in the flare and heated/shaped some more until I got the clearance I needed.
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Then using a soldering iron and some of the trimmings, I “welded” the cut seam, sanded it and backed up the weld on the inside of the flare with an epoxy. The weld turned out pretty good. The sanding discolored the area a little. I might paint it…or I might not. Winter in Oregon means that it will always be covered in dirt so it may not be worth it.
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Still needs a little more massaging but I ran out of time for the weekend. The door now slides freely past the flare....though there is pretty much just a sliver of daylight between the door and the flare when the door is all the way back.
MG