Estimates for rust repair?

H

HisNameIsJoel

Low Mileage
Hey all! So I've been talking with @Andy about purchasing his '86 X1/9. He's been incredibly open and helpful along the way and I completely trust his evaluation of his X. One of the areas that's a little unknown to me (and Andy!) is doing rust repair on some of these parts of the car. I have no idea how to do metalwork and would need to pay someone here to do it. Andy has been super helpful and transparent, and although he's cautioned that the rust is in the sills and rockers, it's still structurally sound.

I asked him if he'd be fine if I asked the group about their opinions and he said of course. I've attached some of the pictures Andy has taken to show where the rust has gathered. Does anyone know what it might cost to do some of these patches? And the paint will need to (eventually) be redone or the car wrapped. Does anyone know ballpark figures of repaints or wraps? Is the rust going to be an issue down the road if it's not stopped soon?

Thanks so much, everyone!

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#5 is the rear edge of the targa top, all fiberglass; chipped paint but no rust.
#11 and 12 are the worriers, the missing front ends of the 'frame rails', where the spoiler attaches.
The doorframe holes are not too bad, where the holes were drilled around the seal for the hold downs.
 
The door sills aren't to bad, the main issue I see is the front frame area. depending on how far it goes back toward the radiator will determine how long it would take to repair. the rust at the badge is most likely just surface rust but you will need to pull the badge to see for sure.

I can do the work for you if you decide to buy the car, I'm in Washougal WA so only a couple hours away, I only do rust repair on a time and materials basis because you don't know for sure what you have until you start. PM me for more details if you want to.

Here is some rust repair I did on my 83 Ford F350.
https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/1362641-rust-repair.html

Brian
 
Hi Joel, I have been working on and off on a 1974 with some rust issues for several years. As you can see from my avitar, it is stripped and up on my homemade rotisserie. It had noticeable rust holes to begin with. The more I fixed, the more I found. I would guess that you have more than is apparent in the pictures. I found some in the structural rails, which I think once I fixed were stronger than original. The spot welding fiat used caused some of the issues with moisture collection. I would jack the car up and get an ice pick and look it over real good. Good luck.
Glen
 
AI bit if input from the current owner.
Picture #3 of the badge is not rust, some sort of adhesive I think. Picture was sent to Joel to show some of the defects in the paint job.
Picture#4 Is a crease in the rear trunk lid, paint simply did not stick. The paint job on this car is pretty sad, there are sags and runs, considerable bubbles, and places where the surface was not properly prepped before it was painted.
Picture #5 has already been addressed by Jeff, again the paint didn't adhere well to that area.

The spoiler mount areas are by far the worst, the radiator mount feels strong, but Brian bring up good points.

All input is appreciated.
 
HisNameIsJoel said:
Is the rust going to be an issue down the road if it's not stopped soon?

Thanks so much, everyone!
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Once it starts it does NOT stop, that's why people call it cancer.

IMO the front of the car is of lesser severity and importance to the integrity of the structure as they are not really load bearing areas, and those body sections are available new and used from our vendors.

The rocker areas are much more important---the entire backbone of the car goes thru the rockers and to almost the same extent the center tunnel. Each rocker consists of three stampings (outboard, inboard, and central) welded together to make a box beam. You need to get an inspection camera inside the rockers and eyeball what it looks like inside. Lots of inexpensive sources for inspection cameras: Harbor Freight, Amazon, possibly for rent at major parts chain stores.

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Might be a good excuse to join us in Ashland for the yearly camping trip. I know Andy has brought it there before. I don't think the camping trip is all that far off is it?
 
bpimm said:
I can do the work for you if you decide to buy the car, I'm in Washougal WA so only a couple hours away, I only do rust repair on a time and materials basis because you don't know for sure what you have until you start.
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Absolutely! I'll send you a message now. Thanks so much!
 
Cratecruncher said:
Endoscopes are so cheap now there is no excuse not to have one in your toolbox. The newest ones work on an app you download onto your smartphone. Check out the video too.
https://www.amazon.com/Depstech-End...&pd_rd_r=de0f6a00-cd2e-436b-954c-5286fe96e944
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That's the one I picked up. I originally bought it for looking into constructed partitions for a home wiring project so the length was good for that use. For dedicated auto use, I would think something in the 5-7 foot range would be more than fine. Picture quality is better than you would expect for that price.
 
Dan Sarandrea (Phila) said:
That's the one I picked up. I originally bought it for looking into constructed partitions for a home wiring project so the length was good for that use. For dedicated auto use, I would think something in the 5-7 foot range would be more than fine. Picture quality is better than you would expect for that price.
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Okay, sweet! That seems pretty cheap for what it does. That being said... what are we looking for, more rust? And if so does that dramatically change the prognosis for repairability? Does anyone still have any ballparks for what fixes like these would cost since I don't have the skills or tools to do it myself?

Thanks everyone!
 
HisNameIsJoel said:
Oh boy! Thank you for your detailed writeup and diagrams. Just to confirm... do you think that the rocker areas are unrepairable or just that it is very expensive/time consuming?
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Based on what I can see in the posted pix, that rust could be fixed in their sleep by any one of the metal technicians that work for Chip Foose, Dan Short, Mark Worman, Noah Alexander (especially that Scott guy, he's a magician), or Dave Kindig. But those guys can fix anything! The rest of us won't know for sure 'till we see it, like Brian Pimm said.
 
HisNameIsJoel said:
Okay, sweet! That seems pretty cheap for what it does. That being said... what are we looking for, more rust? And if so does that dramatically change the prognosis for repairability? Does anyone still have any ballparks for what fixes like these would cost since I don't have the skills or tools to do it myself?

Thanks everyone!
Click to expand...

That kind of repair is a localized thing. Depends on the shop, what they are used to working on, if they are busy or slow, whether the shop owner wants to get involved with fixing a teeny little furrin' car, their assessment of what they think you are willing to pay, etc etc etc etc
 
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