Hog Troughs: Sheet metal vs Fiberglass ?

[Greg Giroux]

Curious to get opinions on Avanti II which had the hog troughs replaced with fiberglass not sheet metal !

[studegary]

1 hour ago, Greg Giroux said:

Curious to get opinions on Avanti II which had the hog troughs replaced with fiberglass not sheet metal !

I have heard of mild steel and stainless steel for these torque boxes, but not fiberglass.  I can see where you can get the appearance with fiberglass, but I am not sure that they would function as well.     

[Jim78]

Never heard of this before.  Is it possible that someone laid up fiberglass over top of a bad pair of hog troughs?  I would be very skeptical of this.  The steel "body stiffeners" are an important structural element of the body.   Do you have more detailed information about who and how?

[mfg]

Fiberglass 'hog troughs' for Avantis were once offered for sale by an SDC vendor....and basically, they reinforced the upper fiberglass floor areas OK.

The real issue here is there's no way the roll bar attachment point (riveted to a fiberglass trough) can be as strong as it would be if it were riveted to a steel trough.

MORAL TO THIS STORY....................If you install fiberglass 'hog troughs' in your Avanti,....DON'T ROLL THE CAR OVER!!!!

[Greg Giroux]

Getting additional info.  Thanks for the input Gents, especially DON'T ROLL THE CAR OVER!!!!

 

[adamderosa]

I remember the fiberglass hog trough being sold in the 1990's, and on display at the International meet in South Bend. From what I recall they were well made and quite sturdy, and the vendor had his Avanti parked on top of a pair of them to demonstrate their strength. I think they had metal brackets within them for attaching the roll bar to the frame. Had I not replaced my hog troughs a few years prior to seeing these, I would've bought these instead. 

[Greg Giroux]

After inspecting the vehicle in person, the rusted frame at X member and side rails along with other issues, the hog troughs were the least of my concerns and took a pass on making an offer. 

[mfg]

4 hours ago, Greg Giroux said:

After inspecting the vehicle in person, the rusted frame at X member and side rails along with other issues, the hog troughs were the least of my concerns and took a pass on making an offer. 

Smart move!.....When considering a purchase, a close inspection of these 35-55 year old automobiles is really a MUST!