The posted picture of the USA "Left side" is the drivers side. Looking at it from the overhead perspective, You can see the holes for the seat belt mounting plates, the raised platform where the heel would sit while the toe hammers on the loud pedal, and the curve of the toe board as it swells out from the lower A pillar and back in to form the transmission tunnel mating seam.
BE aware that these stamping are somewhat universal in creation. Due to homologation of parts, and the age of the forming dies, the floor pans for G-Bodies, excepting the Camino, look pretty much alike. They are also designed to be cut to fit more precisely, meaning that they can be trimmed and tweaked to more tightly mate with existing material and produce a finer and closer seam for purposes of welding, Mig or Tig. Tig is prettier but the welds needs to be dollied post burn in in order to relax the metal; tig welded seams apparently can "shrink" slightly due to the heat of the fusion and the dolly work causes the metal to relax and expand again.
AS an example, this was the type of pan that I used when i replaced the floor on the driver's side of my 85 Monte Carlo SS. Just To do the preliminary test fit, I first had to pretty much cut away all the existing floor that had been ruined or destroyed by rust, all the way to the toe board seam in the lower fire all the back to the rear seat foot well walls, and out from the tunnel into the rocker panels.
This brings up an important point. These panels come minus one critical aspect; they do not possess the flanged extension that comes off the edge/end of the sill and which is used to mate them to the inner rocker panel. Don't assume you can just fit the new sill over what is left of the old sill; metal takes space and that affects panel alignment. For this install to work the floor panel has to go in first, then the inner panel has to be made; it is not available as a "buy it" part, and installed, tack welds, and plug welds as necessary, and then the outer rocker gets attached to that. To hang that inner panel there has to be a lip or thin flange that is actually part of the sill and it is to that lip that the inner panel gets attached. If you slither under the vehicle and look up at the inner rocker you can see in places where that flange is, or used to be, and how it interacts with adjacent panels.
How I did mine on the driver's side, at the time, was to cut away all the trashed rocker metal, while leaving the floor pan in place. Why I did that was to retain the shape and relationship of the door opening and the A and B pillars to each other as much as possible. A full up replacement would have probably required me to emplace square or round bar braces by welding them in from side to side and front to back to "Lock" the cabin walls and openings into their correct positions prior to any metal being removed. It also would have meant removing the complete dash assembly to gain access to the toe board seam. This actually is a video subject and they are worth it to watch, minus all the verbal drivel, to see how a good shop would do it.
By leaving the pan in, I was able to "cheat" the system slightly but it made attaching the sill to the inner rocker panel a lot more difficult. Gains and Losses.
I still have to visit the passenger's side and replace the inner and outer rockers for it. Them, I have; made the inner a long time ago but then had to stash it due to other issues intruding. Essentially it is a 6 foot long or so piece of flat metal that has been flanged and shaped to act as the inner face for the outer rocker. Why so long? Because the rocker in its entirely actually runs from the lower A pillar behind the kick panel all the way back into the rocket panel ahead of the rear wheel house and gets attached to the floor and various other points inside that panel. The outer rocker panel is not a cosmetic cover; it is structural and works to assist in keeping the body straight.
At the other end of things, I chose to leave the tunnel intact as much as possible, both to act as a brace and a structural member for the cabin and to give me an easier attaching point for the new panel. Like as been commented on elsewhere, the new panel gets laid over the old one, you figure out what you need to cut to have the two edged butt up to each other, take that first raw cut and then sneak up to the final seam that you will weld.
The method of attachment I will leave to the experts. My panels received a lot of Mig wire love.
A few final thoughts here, Expect surprises. Have spare new clean metal on hand to make bits with and don't try to do the work if you are less than mellow and relaxed. Stress is the enemy when you are trying to fit a panel and it is fighting back, HARD. Hide all your BFH''s, you can accomplish more with a lead core dead blow hammer or a heavy rubber one than with a 5# maul. Bring lots of clamps or vice grips to the party and expect to have to go out and get more. Make your cuts as neat and precise as possible; what you remove, you have to put back, easier to do if you don't have to piece in a whole lot of extra metal. Tag and bag the bits you disassemble as you do it. Saves the frustration of pawing through bags and boxes of ??? bits and pieces looking for that whatsit that you know you have but WhereTF is it??
This is an exercise that isn't going to be fun, BUT, You will feel a sense of pride in accomplishment if/when you wrestle it into submission.
Nick
