Help: Removing the Exterior B pillars

I'm not having any luck searching through old thread about removing B-Pillars. I understand you have to remove the entire rear panels/covers to get the other side of pillar from the interior.

Has anyone had any luck with this project? I'm trying to replace mine and I'm not sure how to tackle this project. Is the interior panels just held by clips? What's the trick to removing the panels quickly?

Any info or links would help.

I found this old thread, but not much details:
http://www.nsxprime.com/forums/showthread.php?t=69788

Here you go, straight from the service manual.

greenberet said:

Here you go, straight from the service manual.

Click to expand...

Thanks a bunch!!

I thought it was a pain in the arse and you need some small hands and deep sockets.

A few pointers on removing b-pillars on coupes, which is harder than a NSX-T:

1. Pack the body cavities with rags (and just leave them there, good noise insulation), too easy to irrecoverably drop stuff in them. A lot better than having rattle that you can never get rid of.

2. You must remove the studs. I used a small vice grips to grab on to the top of the stud and unscrew it. If you are lucky, you don't even have to loosen the nut...it will just come off with the stud.

3. You don't have to remove the headliner, but you have to remove darn there all the fasteners....from the visors back so you can bend it down enough to work on the upper b-pillar fastener.

drew said:

A few pointers on removing b-pillars on coupes, which is harder than a NSX-T:

1. Pack the body cavities with rags (and just leave them there, good noise insulation), too easy to irrecoverably drop stuff in them. A lot better than having rattle that you can never get rid of.

2. You must remove the studs. I used a small vice grips to grab on to the top of the stud and unscrew it. If you are lucky, you don't even have to loosen the nut...it will just come off with the stud.

3. You don't have to remove the headliner, but you have to remove darn there all the fasteners....from the visors back so you can bend it down enough to work on the upper b-pillar fastener.

Click to expand...

When you mean fasteners are you refering to clips that just pops out? Is there a special tool for that or just pry it off with a screwdriver?

Did you install CF B-pillars? If so how did they fit and what drawbacks can I expect? I was thinking about 3M double stick foam tape along the edges for extra security.

When you mean fasteners are you refering to clips that just pops out? Is there a special tool for that or just pry it off with a screwdriver?

Click to expand...

I did not have to remove any clips...they have to be replaced if you remove them and it is easy to damage the headliner when messing with them. The headliner is flexible enough that you can keep all the clips in and get to the upper pillar stud.

additional note: the interior b-pillars were a pain to remove because they are fragile and can easily snap. I ended up using a very large screwdriver to pry out the clips at their mounting point.


My exterior b-pillars were removed for repainting.

Drew,

You were right. Everything that you said was true about replacing the B Pillars. What a S.O.B. that was. The first side takes forever when you're not sure what and how the interior parts come off. It did help to have a mirror handy since my neck was aching due to the cramped and limited space. I did take your advise and put towels in the side body cavity.

I also learned that you have to take of almost everything off the interior including the seat belt retractor.

The Carbon Fiber B Pillars sure looks good on against the red and black top. However, I did forget to pick up a set of weather strips for the top and bottom part. Any ideas where to get besides the dealership?

Now I'll need a CF NSX-R rear wing to match it.

Next project will be to take off the door panels. It should be a piece of cake in comparison.

Thanks to Drew and Rlt (Doug) for the help on this project. Couldn't have done it without the tips and info.

Gabe

What do you need the weather strips for?

I got some foam weather strip from Ace Hardware (used to seal gaps around windows), about 1/4" thick to put at the top to fill the gap between the pillar and body. I didn't have to use any on the bottom though.

Pics, where are the pics Gabe?

Veleno said:

What do you need the weather strips for?

I got some foam weather strip from Ace Hardware (used to seal gaps around windows), about 1/4" thick to put at the top to fill the gap between the pillar and body. I didn't have to use any on the bottom though.

Click to expand...

I didn't know that? So all I need is to get some type of foam weather strip from Home Depot. This is similar to double sided foam tape that is used in between the spoiler and the truck lid.

Maximus_NSX said:

Pics, where are the pics Gabe?

Click to expand...

Pics don't do justice for the CF look. In person is much better. I'm on vacation all next week, I'll stop by when completed. Still have to do driver side.

If you haven't put the interior B-pillar covers back on yet, I'd probably take the rags out of the B-pillar.

The rags do provide sound insulation, but I think the air in the cockpit vents out through those hollow B-pillars. The air comes into the cockpit through the vents in the dashboard and doors and exits through the gap between the rear cabin window and the headliner (at least in coupes). From there the exhausted air flows into the B-pillars, straight down the cavity to the one-way flaps under the rocker panels, and then exits the vehicle.

If you drop a nut while removing the exterior B-pillars, it's not irretrievably lost. Remove the rocker panel and the one-way ventilation flap and the nut will be right there, in that cavity that extends up to the B-pillars. Ask me how I found that out!

I put some sound insulation into the B-pillars myself years ago, but I had the feeling that the ventilation system wasn't as effective as it was before so I took it out again.

More good info. Thanks!

drew said:

2. You must remove the studs. I used a small vice grips to grab on to the top of the stud and unscrew it. If you are lucky, you don't even have to loosen the nut...it will just come off with the stud.

Click to expand...

When you grabbed the end of the stud..which way did you turn it?

The studs are regular thread:

left = loose
right = tight

On a coupe you MUST remove the studs in order to clear the exterior mounting holes.

Also take care not to bend the tabs between the b-pillar and the upper molding.

It is easier to remove the pillar garnish on a NSX-T because of the lack of the large headliner on the coupe but I don't understand the difficulty expressed here and on another thread.

I have a NSX-T in process (see lower pic) and will be doing yet another coupe tomorrow.

I can't remember ever removing the studs, just the nuts. I like leaving the studs on so I can hang the garnish with wire when I paint them.

I'll try to take some pics tomorrow of the process for a DYI if I have the time. Monday is usually pretty busy for fussing around taking pics but, I'll try.

As for dropping the hardware, one of my techs puts a little caulk in the ratchet socket to keep either of the two nuts from falling into the pillar cavity. I use a telescoping magnet, holding it next to the socket to keep the nut inside from falling out. I hold it next to the socket until it is over my parts bucket, pull the magnet away and drop the nut in.
Been doing this for years whenever I have a nut or screw that threatens to escape after being loosened.:smile: Really good technique when working on radios, doors and the like.:wink:

Here's a pic of the inside of garnish one I'm doing right now.

The problem I had was two-fold:

The stud was longer than my deep socket and I could not get the driver in place. I ended up using locking pliers to grab the socket and turn it.

Next issue: the pillar cover had to be "twisted" toward the front of the car to get it out. However, the studs were so long that they did not clear the body hole. I cannot remember why I had to twist/fold it and not just shift it toward the rear...might have been other clearance issues or old sealant.

Removing the stud first alleviated the need for super deep socket (as the retaining nut backed out with it) and allowed the exterior pillar to be swiveled out easily.

drew said:

The problem I had was two-fold:

The stud was longer than my deep socket and I could not get the driver in place. I ended up using locking pliers to grab the socket and turn it. .

Click to expand...

I'm curious. What brand of 1/4" drive 8mm socket are you using that's not deep enough?

drew said:

Next issue: the pillar cover had to be "twisted" toward the front of the car to get it out. However, the studs were so long that they did not clear the body hole. I cannot remember why I had to twist/fold it and not just shift it toward the rear...might have been other clearance issues or old sealant.

Removing the stud first alleviated the need for super deep socket (as the retaining nut backed out with it) and allowed the exterior pillar to be swiveled out easily.

Click to expand...

On the coupe, remove the two roof mouldings and the vertical retainer and you won't have to swivel the garnish. It will pull straight off.

I'm curious. What brand of 1/4" drive 8mm socket are you using that's not deep enough?

Click to expand...

Craftsman.

On the coupe, remove the two roof mouldings and the vertical retainer and you won't have to swivel the garnish. It will pull straight off.

Click to expand...

Well, there you go: it was just easier to remove the studs with locking pliers.

I don't get it. I compared a Craftsmen 8mm deep 1/4 drive socket to my Mac brand one. Same length.
I took off both sides in 30 minutes with a phone call in the middle.

Another employee, tired of waiting for me to finish with a customer put them back and button everything up after being painted in about the same time.

If anyone needs help with this, pm me your phone number and a time to call and I'll talk you through it.

BTW a small 1/2" piece of caulk laid across the tip of the socket was better for this than using a magnet to keep the nut from falling out into the cavity.