Rust abatement / repair possible?

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PostPosted: Thu Mar 16, 2023 10:58 am
Really appreciate all the feedback. Two additional considerations:

1) The minivan is only worth about $3,400. I was resigned to just drive it into the ground and enjoy having a car without a car payment for as long as possible.

2) the fender appears to be part of the body that extends all the way underneath the door towards the front.

3) there’s another spot about a foot away on the fender that’s doing the same thing, just slightly smaller.

I guess I could just scrape it off and see what’s going on and then just patch it with some janky touch up paint from autozone until I decide to do more with it. Given the cars value I’d be hard pressed to pay a shop more than 300-400. Any idea a cost range for something like this?



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PostPosted: Thu Mar 16, 2023 12:27 pm
you'll be time and money ahead if you do no.1 i world sure like to se what under the cracked Bondo. pop it off and see what's there. you can always brush some epoxy or something on it to keep it from deteriorating any more, then revert back to # 1
Jay D.
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PostPosted: Thu Mar 16, 2023 7:56 pm
Seriously Jay? You know what's under there - a huge patch of rust, and judging from thge size, it will goo all the way through.

Why waste time? Just replace the thing. In an hour you'd be done and dusted. Get a second hand one from a wrecker and you may not even need to paint it.

siennaowner wrote: the fender appears to be part of the body that extends all the way underneath the door towards the front.


It doesn't. Quite often there is an overlap of the bottom of the guard and the sill. Sometimes there's a plastic cover over the sill, but that usually comes off with a few screws and some clips and you may only need to release one end.

What will it cost to get one from a wrecker? $50? A tin of filler big enough to fill those holes will cost that, and then you have to sand, refill, sand again, prime, sand again and then paint. Materials cost maybe $300. Add $200 for the tools you probably don't have, not including a spraygun or compressor.

If you have money to throw away then I'll send you my Paypal details and you can throw some in my direction.
Chris



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PostPosted: Thu Mar 16, 2023 9:48 pm
NFT5 wrote:Seriously Jay? You know what's under there - a huge patch of rust, and judging from thge size, it will goo all the way through.

Why waste time? Just replace the thing. In an hour you'd be done and dusted. Get a second hand one from a wrecker and you may not even need to paint it.

siennaowner wrote: the fender appears to be part of the body that extends all the way underneath the door towards the front.


It doesn't. Quite often there is an overlap of the bottom of the guard and the sill. Sometimes there's a plastic cover over the sill, but that usually comes off with a few screws and some clips and you may only need to release one end.

What will it cost to get one from a wrecker? $50? A tin of filler big enough to fill those holes will cost that, and then you have to sand, refill, sand again, prime, sand again and then paint. Materials cost maybe $300. Add $200 for the tools you probably don't have, not including a spraygun or compressor.

If you have money to throw away then I'll send you my Paypal details and you can throw some in my direction.
Cannot agree more. A few yr ago by brother in law had me do a "little" rust repair on a Cadillac around the boot and tag area. Looked innocent enough until I started grinding. Way more than he thought it would be. Kind of like an iceberg--way deeper than he thought of. Really, just buy a replacement at the scrap yard unless you really want to delve into total body/paint. It's a cool hobby for sure but if you are just trying to make a driver look a bit better, you can do this the easy way and still make it look decent. Just my .02 as I am just a hack at best.



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PostPosted: Fri Mar 17, 2023 12:01 pm
Ok well I finally figured out that the part is called: quarter panel.

And from what I can tell not only is the part expensive (even from salvage), it's WAYYYY beyond my paygrade as far as installation. It's not just a matter of popping some clips. I see mentions of welding, metal cutting, window removal/install, structural bonding, let alone all that's involved in painting the transition spots (assuming I could get one in the right color).

I might just take it into a independent shop and see what they'd charge for a barebones intervention.

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PostPosted: Sat Mar 18, 2023 7:55 am
siennaowner wrote: I finally figured out that the part is called: quarter panel.


Of course it is. I should have known that you meant it's on the back of the car, not the front. And I should have noticed that there is a tiny section of the trailing arm visible in your photo.

This being the case, I withdraw my previous advice. As you say, changing a quarter panel is a much bigger job than changing a guard, especially in that area where mutiple panels come together.

Nevertheless, doing it properly is always the best way and
siennaowner wrote:I might just take it into a independent shop and see what they'd charge for a barebones intervention.

is a good idea.
Chris
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