Hi guys,

I'm in need of options short of replacing the panels. I got rust that I first removed as much as my dremel could then usded a rust converter to treat the rest. I will have to do this again to ge the rest of the rust. My concern is how do I patch this up without replacing the panel, if possible. Here are pics to let you see what I'm trying to describe.









I hope this helps, please provide any options you can think of

Thanks again!

 

cut a junk yard qtr and weld it on your car...otherwise it's time to replace that qtr panel...also same for the rocker panel.

 

right way - what danny said
other way - fiberglass and bondo

 

unfortunately the jy panel will probably be your best bet if you want the best results.

 

actrually where that rust is, there is no reason that you cannot get some appropiat sheet metal, english wheel it, cut out the other, weld new piec ein at seams, grind, hammer/form, small amount of fill and done.

Same for the rocker panel.

alot easier/cheaper then removing the whole quarter.

 

do you know how to weld? it's gonna take welding new sheet metal in.

 

see post #2.

english wheel? stop watching horsepower tv.
why use the english wheel when the correct shaped panel is available off the shelf or at the junkyard.

 

I very much appriciate all your inputs. As for welding...haven't done it before but I'll practice on something and see how it feels. I was afraid of replacing the panel but it looks like you guys are right. I'll see if I can save the rocker before replacing that too. The quarter panel itself in my area is close to $200 with tax and everything else. Is that reasonable or am I going to be sore when I buy it?

I would love some pointers/tips/tricks on tackling this problem, cutting, replacing, welding, etc...anything that would get the job done right.....

Thanks again guys

p.s. if some of you have rust i recommend treating it ASAP or you can have the same problem I have

 

My thoughts:

1) You didn't grind NEARLY enough of the rust cancer.
2) Replacing the body panels is really the only "right" way to do it.
3) If you haven't welded before, do patch panel repair on thin Japanese sheet metal is NOT a great way to learn.
4) IMHO, even if you hired a shop and had them weld in used parts, it would probably exceed the value of the car.

 

^^ x2 !!
I just repainted my car and it cost me 1200.00
I paid 1000.00 For the car, But it's like new now. (Still exceded the value)
I'ts really up to you on what you wan't to do, IMHO... You should go to the junkyard and cut out a piece of the Qtr. pannel that is effected and have a b/s weld it in for you and do the paintwork.

My complete paint job was 1200 with bodywork but there was no rust or welding needed. If you don't know how to weld or do bodywork it's going to be costly, I'd say around 2,500 dollars to get your car looking good again.

Troy.

 

problem i have is

#1 - no 3rd gens in junkyards
#2 - atlantic canada winters with salt/salty air .. usually worse then what you started with.

Also to patch that is not a very hard job. I guess then again when you have everything in a shop for you to use it is even easier

 

I got plenty of rust on my max, im working on grinding it down and fill it back up. I didnt pay much (in Norwegian terms) for my max, so im not gonna cut and weld. Might even sell it or trade it during the summer.

 

If you go the junkyard parts route (which I would suggest unless you have a $2500 english wheel on hand, a good brake, a sandbag and dolly and know how to use these items VERY well), don't attempt this for your first welding job. Thin stuff really sucks. If it were me, I'd braze that anyway. Easier and not so much skill as welding that thin material. Works just as good.

If you go the glass route, get the rest of that rust out of there or you'll just seal it in and it'll come through deeper down in the body. Forget the Dremel, it is too light duty for this kind of rust scale. Get on it with a big sidegrinder and a cup wheel or at least a drill with wire wheel.

 

decent mig welder plus oxy/argon mix tank filled, 800 bucks
finding a junkyard quarter with NO RUST, HA good luck!
new 1/4 panel 4-500 bucks
new rocker 250
new paint for your 1/4 and rocker, plus blending the back door 5-600

that's worse than what was on mine, and i fixed it, but you never really get rid of rust. the ammount of work you need to do to do it properly far exceeds an average person's abilities( no weldingbodywork experience)

what i have learned is that the car will look much better in it's current condition(throw some black paint on the bare spots) than it will with primer or body filler on it for a long period of time. if getting water in the trunk is an issue then fiberglass the holes shut, but i can guarantee that what you see is only the tip of the iceberg and once you take the car appart it will be MUCH worse.

 

Taking my car to a friends shop. he has a welder and stuff, would like to weld myself but sounds tough so I guess I'll let him do it. I'll do more research till then. painting doesn't look too bad, did research about 6 months ago, whole supply should run me $400 tops. (ppg omni). The work is where it's gonna suk big time.

 

"finding a junkyard quarter with NO RUST, HA good luck!"

Depends on where you are. We have TONS of them down here with absolutely no rust at all. We get so little ice or snow the state, counties and municipalities don't even have salt trucks. They throw sand down if we get an icy patch, which is the equivalent of ball bearings on ice. Heat and sun kill interiors and paint instead in this area.

 

oxy/argon? you mean argon/CO2?

 

so you added a little carbon, big deal

why not throw out the % mix too......................lol

 

75/25
or
80/20



that carbon keeps the O2 stable...if you were running mig w/ that O2 it's gonna be a hot time under that welding helmet..LOL

 

That's a huge-a ss hole, but I know your pain because I had that on BOTH sides of that part of my car. You have to keep grinding around to bare metal. If you chip off more of the brittle metal, you still gotta keep going. What I did - and I warn you, this is very ghetto, was use drywall fibreglass. That's right, I used that because it is stickied in the back, and significantly less messy. Put several layers (over 10 layers if need be) to make sure you get the holes covered up nice, and then slab on the body filler. Spread it and mould it to the shape you like it, and let it dry. Sand with a mouse sander, and perfect it as best you can, before priming and painting. It won't look hot, but it at least the hole gets patched up.

I'm just throwing this out to you as an alternative. Good luck. Unless you have the money and/or love the car that much, it's not worth taking it to a shop to fix.

 

will, thats ghetto, but unless he has access to a welder thats the only way i see him fixing it

 

i think what BuckFutter said is reasonable. There is a nice junkyard market at sunrise blvd, Rancho Cordova, CA with some 3rd generation maxima. I think you can find the panel costing less than 100 $.