'26 Coupe Trunklid fitment issues

[RadRacer203]

Seems I'm on the home stretch getting my coupe back on the road, so hopefully I can finally get the trunklid fitting well enough to latch. I've been trying to adjust it all kinds of ways, and so far I've only gotten it to catch on the lip of the sheet metal panel, not where it's supposed to. This past weekend I figured out that the lid itself seems to be a bit bent, mostly on the rearmost left corner. It isn't much but that corner seems to be pushed down so there's a fairly large gap in the middle where the latch is. Is there any good way to bend it back into shape? I had the lid off the car on some sawhorses and it wouldn't budge even putting my whole weight on it. I'm not necessarily concerned with keeping it looking perfect, if I happen to put a small dent or a scratch or two in it while straightening it, I won't be too bothered. Just wondering if anyone has any suggestions

[John kuehn]

I haven’t owned a 26-27 Coupe but I do have a 24 Coupe that was in pretty decent shape as far as the body is concerned. When I down to finding a nice almost NOS rear deck lid I had a little trouble getting it fit correctly.
After some head scratching I found out that the nice lid I bought was 3/8” out of square!

I remeasured the opening and it as 1/8” out of square! It would cover the opening but I squared it the best I could.

Going to the next swap meet I talked to some older long time T restorers and soon found out
it’s fairly common for T’s close fitment is not perfect. The 26 Coupes deck lid is all metal with no wood and maybe it’s a little better made. But again it was a lesson that Ford wasn’t building his Model T with Rolls Royce perfection.

[J1MGOLDEN]

The trunk lid has to be pressed down to let the key turn counter-clockwise to unlatch the lock.

[jiminbartow]

I would build a rectangular frame out of 4” x 4” beams wide enough for the lid to slide in and maybe 20” tall. It should have horizontal feet that will allow it to stand upright. It should be tall enough for a bottle jack, a straight board the width of the trunk and a couple of blocks under each corner of the lid. Slide the lid into the frame right side up with a block under each corner with the lid acting as a bridge between the two blocks. Place a straight board on top of the lid and a bottle jack on top of the board with the jack end braced against the underside of the top horizontal frame member. Gently jack the bottle jack until the lid starts to straighten. When the board going across the lid is flush with the lid, relieve the pressure on the jack. Hopefully, the lid will stay straight. If it pops back you may need to slightly over straighten, for that, use a shorter board under the jack. If there is any way to safely apply heat, it will probably help in straightening. Jim Patrick

[Mark Gregush]

There should be a little bow across the back edge, not as much as you seem to have. As said above, you need to press down a little to unlatch it.

[RadRacer203]

I would build a rectangular frame out of 4” x 4” beams wide enough for the lid to slide in and maybe 20” tall. It should have horizontal feet that will allow it to stand upright. It should be tall enough for a bottle jack, a straight board the width of the trunk and a couple of blocks under each corner of the lid. Slide the lid into the frame right side up with a block under each corner with the lid acting as a bridge between the two blocks. Place a straight board on top of the lid and a bottle jack on top of the board with the jack end braced against the underside of the top horizontal frame member. Gently jack the bottle jack until the lid starts to straighten. When the board going across the lid is flush with the lid, relieve the pressure on the jack. Hopefully, the lid will stay straight. If it pops back you may need to slightly over straighten, for that, use a shorter board under the jack. If there is any way to safely apply heat, it will probably help in straightening. Jim Patrick

That's a good idea, I think I'll probably try that.

I know that I have to press down to unlatch when it's set up correctly, but at the moment I can put my entire weight on the trunklid and I can't get it to latch. It catches just barely on the sheet metal, it seems like it needs to go down another 1/8", or just a bit more. Just have to get the lid a bit straighter

[jiminbartow]

I hope it works. I see no reason why it shouldn’t. Just be careful it doesn’t suddenly buckle. Post pictures of the process if you are able. I’d like to see it. Jim Patrick

[RadRacer203]

Will do, if it's anything exciting. If I happen to find someone with a hydraulic press big enough to fit it I might just go that route