[DeTomaso] frame drainage holes

[MikeLDrew at aol.com]

Somewhere amidst a bunch of HTML blinkylight crap, chrisvkimball at msn.com 
writes:

<< I read an article from the POCA 
archives concerning drilling holes in the bottom of the frame rails to drain 
moisture, and there was even a picture of the frame, but I still can't 
figure out the best places to drill.  

>>>It's pretty straightforward and simple, and intuitively obvious once 
you've eyeballed it from underneath.

>The article also recommened using 
a half-inch drill.  </DIV>
<DIV class=RTE> </DIV>
<DIV class=RTE>I have two questions for the forum:  1) where, exactly, 
should I drill the holes and 

>>>They are drilled into the very bottom of the vertical tubes which run down 
the outside of the inner wheelhouse, on either side of the driveshaft, and 
end with a taper where they join the main fore-aft chassis rails.

>2) won't drilling a half-inch hole through the 
bottom of the frames weaken them, and is this dangerous?</DIV>

>>>The holes won't weaken the structure, and the real danger is allowing them 
to continue to live undrilled.  Dirt gets into these tubes by various means, 
and road vibration pulverizes it to a fine, flour-like substance.  Water gets 
in and turns it to mud, which slowly rusts the tubes from the inside out.  
THAT is dangerous!

I'll e-mail you some photos separately, as the forum will strip them away....

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