Hey folks. So, about 18 months ago I bought a run-down 1985 Ford Tempo. I was told the engine was barely used, and the mileage was low. I was also told there were alot of Tempos in my area (that part wasn't true ).

Anyways, here are some project pictures, hope you enjoy, and feel free to offer some tips!

Before
Front


Back Left passenger


Back


Back at angle


Right back passenger


Right front passenger




1st coat of paint
Driver Fender


Driver Fender at angle


Driver Door


Note to mods: I had already posted this in an off-topic section in another forum I usually reside in, prior to finding this site. I'll continue the log here and link to this topic from that forum. Thanks.

Driver door and fender - 2nd coat of paint


Left passenger door - Before


Left passenger door - Sanded and Filler applied


Left passenger door - 1st coat of paint

Well, I'm not happy with the results, I was hoping some of you would have advice to give me on this...

I checked out this project and I already have an idea of how to redo this.

Happyd,
Not trying to offend you but want you to know why people aren't offering you tips.
You are working on a low value project that is probably not worth investing into it what it will take to fix it right.
All that rust needs to be cut out of there or the panels need to be replaced with non rusted ones. Anything less than that is like putting a band-aide on a mortal wound.
The guys on here don't want to offer advice unless it is the correct and proper way to do the repair.
If this car is your dream car and you want it fixed right and the money is not a concern then we can give step by step advice. Please understand that you will have more money into that car than you will ever get out of it.
Hope this helps.

None taken, but it's really just a project. I thought ppl on here were just hobbyists, so the stake (value) wasn't a concern.

Then again, this may not be an interesting project for some due to the make and investment, and that's something I would understand. If you see this as just a beginner's project, maybe you'll follow just out of curiousity, and if so, I'll be glad to entertain.

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In any case, I'm going to complete this with pure sanding and patching (so no cutting, no welding since I still have zero experience in that), so if people want to give advice past those 2 stages (as of the point of priming, sanding, painting), then by all means please join.

In the mean time, you can be sure that I'll post pictures of emerging rust once it pops up.

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One more thing, the rust is on the primer. When I sand, it goes away. That's because I, as a noob a year ago, used an angle grinder to remove some minor rust spots and created bigger bare metal spots. I patched those temporarily with primer as winter was coming, and wasn't ready to paint. A year later, what you see is what happened. Anyways, for your interest, I'll be sure to post more pictures on the sanding and angle-grinding phases to show you how the rust is removed.

We'll see who sticks around. Mind you, this is the only car I have, so the only project I'll be working on. Thanks for following if you do, this is my first car, and my first project. If better projects interest you, by all means, but for those who stick around, a big thank you, I have not yet given up on this hunk of scrap metal just yet.

Some do this for a hobby and others are professionals.
If you don't have a welder you can always use panel bond adhesive. That and a flange tool will allow you to cut out those rusted areas and replace with good metal.
Most sheet metal suppliers will even put some bends in for a small price.
You can see rusted metal being replaced in this thread and also areas where poor repairs were made and rust is underneath the filler.
viewtopic.php?f=12&t=14650

^Hooo man! That's alot of work in that one!! I will definitely read that one haha

Happyd, I opened this thread wondering who in the world would restore an 85 Tempo!
Well, the fact is it reminded me of my first car (many moons ago) and what I did trying to improve it.
It dosen't matter what it is or how much it's worth, it's yours and you're trying to make
it better, and learning along the way. Good for you.

Your friends in this project will be rust remover, rust converters, and panel adhesive. If you get all
the rust out, and I mean all, you can repair lots of damage by using metallic fillers and sealing the
back of the repair with panel adhesive. If done right, this will last a long time, possibly longer than
the car itself.

As was said, this is not the best way to repair rust, but it's inexpensive and you'll gain a lot of
experience doing it. Have fun, that's what it's all about.

You're pictures show the body filler stage and then paint, did you primer the door first before you painted? If not you should put a few coats of epoxy primer than put some 2k primer and block sand, than seal and paint and your results will be a lot better when you paint it will not show all of the patch marks.

NightTrain, thanks for your support! I will look into the metallic fillers and panel adhesives, that sounds like a great idea.

This far I have been using rust converter. I sanded down the rust with an electric sander and an angle grinder, then applied rust converter before applying bodyfill, then primer, then paint.

Audi27, hey I used regular primer (don't have the brand on hand), but only put one thin coat on. When you say "block sand", would using an electric sander be ok as well? Also, what do you mean by "seal" (after "block sanding", prior to "painting")? The way I understood it was that the paint goes right on the primer.

Another important detail, I'm working outdoors, so I'm not sure how many layers of primer I can put in a day before flash rust happens.