What would you do if you found this?

JNewm

JNewm

True Classic
Did you ever start picking at a scab and, despite thinking to yourself, "I should stop I should stop," just keep picking at it?

I basically did that today with a rust hole in the passenger-side rocker panel of my X.

If you found this amount of rust, what would you do? I'd initially planned to just pop-rivet a piece of steel over the hole, then bondo and paint the whole rocker-panel flat black. But that's probably not going to work now.

Worth trying to locate a good rocker panel before taking it to a shop? Or just take it to a body shop and have them fab something up to weld in? Is that rust INSIDE the hole on the upright structural frame able to be addressed without a major tear-apart of the car?


1607209987209.png

1607209938976.png

1607209960103.png
 
As i can’t weld or fabricate I’d take it to a shop and get the rot cut out and new metal fabricated and fitted
 
Excellent pictures, but they never quite give the same image of things as seeing it in person. But here is my take, starting from the inside out.

A little difficult to tell forsure, but the rust on the inner rocker doesn't look that bad. I think that could be properly treated chemically and sealed, and left in place. Besides, to replace that will be a MAJOR job. Lets face it, even if you never saw it and left it as is, it would easily last another 20 years or more.

As for the outer rocker, it needs to be cut out and replaced. I'd start by stripping the rest of the rocker to see just how far the rust extends across the rocker. Then I'd cut out all of the rust and make a patch to match, and weld it in. But as @NEG said that depends on your metalworking skills and equipment. If it is beyond what you can do yourself then it will be a bit expensive to have a body shop do it. But I don't see any other possibility.

To make the patch you can do one of a few things. Make it from a piece of flat sheet metal of the same gauge (the rocker is not that complex of shape so this shouldn't be too difficult). Find a good used rocker and cut out the same shape piece. Or buy a new "patch panel" replacement rocker and cut out the needed section.
 
I would take a very good look at the rest of the car.
Unless this was a badly repaired older fix, the rest of the car may be in similar shape.
If you start investing in rust repair now, it is hard to turn back.

if the rest of the car is in similar shape, I would consider buying a better car or at least body, as harsh as that sounds.
 
I'd go the 'cut a patch & weld" route, after treating & sealing the inner panels. You can spray cavity wax inside the entire rockers afterward to assist in slowing down further rot.

There appears to be an odd vertical crack inline with the fender - perhaps this stems from earlier body work from an accident repair? Would make more sense that way if the damage really is limited to the one side.

Looks like much silt/dirt sitting inside the rocker - all the drains are probably closed off (little rectangular bump-outs visible on the outer lip) . I would suggest thorough cleaning of the rockers on both sides to prevent it getting worse.
 
I'm with the guys who say this might not be an isolated problem. I would also get a scope as suggested by Huessein.
If you decide to see if a shop will fix it, get an estimate as the repairs might cost more than a replacement X.
It's that last picture that really scares me, is that crack at the bottom between the middle sill piece and the floor?
 
Carl, I am not seeing that crack.
Hussein, are you referring to the body seam that is supposed to be there and that seems to have been bondoed over on this car?
 
Thanks for all the advice thus far--super helpful! I know I should probably start over with a rust-free shell, but... well, this was the first car I ever bought, back when I was 16, and I've had it for ~20 years now, and... ¯\_(ツ)_/¯


Here's the vertical crack I think. I have also been wondering what the heck it is.
1607269684855.png
 
JNewm said:
Thanks for all the advice thus far--super helpful! I know I should probably start over with a rust-free shell, but... well, this was the first car I ever bought, back when I was 16, and I've had it for ~20 years now, and... ¯\_(ツ)_/¯


Here's the vertical crack I think. I have also been wondering what the heck it is.
View attachment 39338
Click to expand...
Thats a seam. Usually has body filler/under coat/ paint, in it. They do crack and dechunk. Atleast all the Xs, I've owned have done this, with not being rusted trough.
You have a large enough "inspection hole", there to get a mirror and light in there, to take a look, if your genuinely concerned 🤷‍♂️
 
On at least one of my cars (the one that is on a rotisserie, stripped of paint) that vertical crack is a seam originally filled with seam sealer.
 
EricH said:
On at least one of my cars (the one that is on a rotisserie, stripped of paint) that vertical crack is a seam originally filled with seam sealer.
Click to expand...

Update: got the chance to peek around the "inspection hole" some more. @Eastep that terminology made me chuckle--my sister and I jokingly used to call these "exploratory holes" when we fixed up a junk house to flip once upon a time.) Yep, it's a filled seam that was covered over with bondo. There's a piece of metal pop-riveted onto the panel closest to the back tire as well. It looks like my go-to for rust-hole repair, so I'm guessing I did that back when I originally fixed up the car in ~2001.

I also took some photos through the exploratory hole that faces toward the front of the car. I'm actually somewhat encouraged--the rust on the internal frame rail looks fairly isolated to the Eye of Sauron/Surface of the Sun area highlighted in the earlier photos. The outside rocker panel is totally shot, though.

Here's the view from inside the exploratory hole, facing toward the front of the car. The rust on the internal frame rail stops about halfway.
1607277619706.png


External shot of the body seam, pretty clearly showing the pop-riveted piece:
1607277726461.png


And here's a view reaching in through the side duct, facing toward the front of the body. The exploratory hole is on the other side of that vertical panel that's rusted through at the bottom. You can more clearly see that there's a panel pop-riveted in.

1607277970440.png
 
There’s a guy on Facebook Marketplace in central California selling a full frame X 1/9 for a couple hundred bucks plus shipping. Maybe it’s rusted less, maybe not. For anyone needing donor metal...
 
That's cool that you have owned this car for so long, and have a emotional bond with it. I think my first "real" car is the only one I've ever bonded with (I say "real" because I had a couple cars before it that I don't count). So I can see why you want to repair this one rather than start over. I agree.

Looking at your additional pics, the inner rocker does not look bad at all. I'd just treat it and leave it. However you should redo the previous patch under the side scoop, and repair the inner partition there at the same time. Same for any other areas that might have been repaired the same way previously.

How's the rocker on the other side of the car? Rockers are one of the worst rust areas, so you may not find a lot in other areas of the car...or not (it is a Fiat). So a good inspection everywhere is needed, as others have said.

As for this rocker, it needs to be replaced. And welding will be required. Are you game to invest in a welder (less than $500) and use this opportunity to learn how to do patches yourself? Believe me it will cost you WAY MORE than that to have this done at a body shop. Judging by the previous patch work you did, you seem to have the basic mechanical skills and motivation to do it, just need to get a welder. MIG welding is very easy to learn, and that's what I'd use for this. The technical steps can be found online in any format that works for you - videos, written manuals, photos, examples, etc. We'd be more than happy to give you pointers and advice on what welder to buy. Your bondo and paint skills appear to be very good. And that is by far the most difficult part of the job. So you're more than halfway there. ;)
 
Dr.Jeff said:
Are you game to invest in a welder (less than $500) and use this opportunity to learn how to do patches yourself? Believe me it will cost you WAY MORE than that to have this done at a body shop.
Click to expand...

I'd be game, but the biggest problem I'm facing is lack of a (real) garage. I'm already pushing the boundaries of what's appropriate to do in our building's parking garage 😄 Nobody's complained yet, but if I ran an extension cord from the elevator bay and started welding, one of the owners of the various Ferraris/Lambos/Porsches/Audis parked in the ramp might call shenanigans on me. I can rent lift space at a by-the-hour garage that has a welder, but they don't let you do body work.

I'm thinking maybe I can cut most of the rotten metal away and treat the internal frame myself, then just have an auto-body shop weld in a patch? I could then do all the finishing and paint work. Not sure how many body shops are willing to do that sort of thing?
 
Yes, I'd forgotten about your situation...sorry. Not sure if this is possible, but would the rental garage with a welder allow you to just weld the patches in, then you can do the rest of the "bodywork" at home? I'm sure what they do not want is bondo and sanding dust everywhere. If they have a welder then welding in the patches should be ok. Perhaps another question might be if your neighbors would complain about you doing the remaining bodywork at the complex? I fully appreciate how many people can get in this sort of situation. Perhaps take it is steps over time, use a cordless sander (no extension cords), and do the dirty work at times when no one is likely to be around.

As for having a body shop just do the welding, you might be better off having a welding shop do that. It would be much less expensive and they won't care about you finishing the project. Many body shops don't want their name associated with someone else's work.
 
JNewm said:
Thanks for all the advice thus far--super helpful! I know I should probably start over with a rust-free shell, but... well, this was the first car I ever bought, back when I was 16, and I've had it for ~20 years now, and... ¯\_(ツ)_/¯


Here's the vertical crack I think. I have also been wondering what the heck it is.
View attachment 39338
Click to expand...

Yeah, it's not supposed to look like that. Should look like this, a defined seam. Does the other side look normal?

Don't forget to flush out all the silt from both rockers blocking the drains

X19-Exterior00066.jpg
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top