End of the road for 205/1000?

[blacksheep]

Well, was pretty excited this morning to work on the car. Decided to start on the build, per se. Took off quite a bit of the front suspension/brakes. Had an issue with some bolts like the endlinks and such, so I cut the endlinks etc. All I had left is to undo the PS lines and drop the front subframe. As I took of the fender liners to get to the ABS Sensor plugs, I started to see things I did not like and had a few bolts that broke. Yep, rust. So, I decided to take a closer look before I went any further. And this is what I found... /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/bawling.gif

Drivers side seemed bad, but I figured it can be cleaned up somewhat - notice the fender is missing in the bottom a little where it should bolt up. It was laying in the dirt busted all up /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/frown.gif I figure a new fender and some rust removal, welding and painting - it should be OK!

Then came the passengers side. Nothing prepared me for this! Pictures will say it all as its probably best...

Yep, missing the whole bottom part of the fender. Also, that pinch weld or whatever jack is on was all jacked up like that there, why I just put the stands there. Two gaping holes. You can see the inner part is not rusted from that pic, primer shows, but otherwise it is pretty messed up.

I am really, really bummed. I am unsure if this rust is fixable or is it even worth it? Not sure what to do at this point. The car is in great shape otherwise - original paint, interior, 129K, ABS, AWS, AC etc all working.

Rust is evil and so well-hidden on the car. Previous owner said there was only surface rust and I took his word for it. I am paying the price for it now. Its my damn fault for not looking, I suppose.

This was a real debbie downer for me. I cleaned up and stopped for the day!

So, any suggestions on what I should do? These cars aint worth sh*t on trade. This is a bone stock gvr4, so unsure if a part-out would bring any interest or buys. Any help appreciated.

 

[ktmrider]

Holy heck that is a total bummer sir. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/bawling.gif

I had to go and re-read the FS ad again to see if anything seemed funny. That car cancer is pretty bad, maybe someone who's performed surgery like that will chime in.

Part out wise you could probably snag $3k or so?!? If panel repairs run under $2k you might have to think about it....

 

[transparentdsm]

i wouldnt blame previous owner for that, that is under the fender, he might have never known.

also,it shouldnt cost much to have that welded. if your have half way decent welding ability then you can do it yourself. look on craigslist for a traveling welder. one that will come to you. shouldnt take more then 3 hours to clean that up. if you chose to not fix it like that, just drive it till it rots apart. just make it a beater, not a project. just keep the car running.

 

[blacksheep]

Its been a sad day, all right!

The lower front subframe is also pretty rusted. I may need a new subframe which I don't think RockAuto sells.

Yeah, I was hoping some body guy could chime in. I emailed a friend who does body work asking for his opinion as well. I am trying to understand what panels will be needed. Guessing interior will need some stripping to replace these parts.I found this illustration - I wonder if its #6 and #7 in this.

click

I am just nervous how much rust there is. I probably should remove both skirts (breaking every bolt in the process as well), but all I could take for a day!

 

[blacksheep]

Quoting transparentdsm:
i wouldnt blame previous owner for that, that is under the fender, he might have never known.

also,it shouldnt cost much to have that welded. if your have half way decent welding ability then you can do it yourself. look on craigslist for a traveling welder. one that will come to you. shouldnt take more then 3 hours to clean that up. if you chose to not fix it like that, just drive it till it rots apart. just make it a beater, not a project. just keep the car running.



Yeah, it has nothing to do with previous owner, I am just finding a lot of things as I dig deeper I am guessing he did not know about. I am trying to see what parts are needed to clean and weld it replacements. I will find a welder, but I would like the stamped replacements or whatever with bolt holes etc

 

[turbowop]

That hurts to see. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/frown.gif It doesn't look horrible, but it will require work/money to fix. Subframes and other parts can be removed, sandblasted, and powdercoated or painted. But that also requires more money and time.


I have a funny feeling you're not going to be happy with this car no matter what you do. Perhaps you should just put it back together and sell it to somebody willing to do the work required to fix the rust or drive it to it's death. And then buy a car like rdomeck's.

 

[Steve885]

^^^i second that last part

 

[GSX_TC]

Poor VR4 =(

 

[4g63mightymax]

I have been in your shoes with a variety of cars, and rust is only a death sentence if you make it into one. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif Just compare it to restoring any old car - If you were to grab a 70 Chevelle, a 57 Chevy, or a 32 Ford project to fix up, they will all have issue like this. Cut the metal out, and replace it with new metal. Soak it in rust prevention-type coatings and BAM - all fixed. If you don't know how to weld, or bend metal, this is an outstanding opportunity to start. MIG welding is easy, and has become incredible cheap to do over the past 10 years.

I'm not a body guy either, but I just replaced a ton of metal on my 1964 Impala and my friend's 1972 Nova. Here is some motivation. -> link (be sure to click the updates at the bottom to see the progress) and right here -> link. Moral is: If you love the car - Don't be scared or give up! Fix it and learn in the process! Heck, I will happily throw me 2 cents in if you need guidance from some guy on the internet! And you can always drive the car while you do this work. None of that is needed to actually make the car go down the road. Drive / fix / enjoy.

 

[rdomeck]

Remember two things about auto restoration....

1. Rust repair is the most expensive thing to repair on a car.....
2. Rust repair is the most expensive thing to repair on a car..........

You will not find a mobile guy to come to your house to fabricate. To weld, yes. Most of your time will be spent making and fitting. Very little time welding. Also I don't believe you will find the factory parts to weld in. You will have to make those.

It is up to you if you move forward with this work. You can purchase a welder to do the work and get some sheet metal tools and have a go at it. If that were in my shop to be repaired I could imagine a cost around $2500. Maybe less, but hard to see from the photo's how bad it is.

It's kind of like painting a car. It really doesn't take long to paint a car. Maybe 4 hours. But it takes hundred's of hour's to get it ready for paint!

If you haven't done this work before, I don't feel this is a good one to start on. You have some structural stuff that is starting to rust. Any of that stuff that is not fitted correctly means that your fenders and rockers won't fit.

 

[blacksheep]

First and foremost, thank you for the advice. I appreciate people chiming in with honest opinions and it takes effort, so thanks!

Stating the obvious, I have no welding and fabrication ability. No welders and such. This would be farmed to a body shop.

Rdomeck - the rust seems to be the worst in the two dogleg areas. Its about the length of the doglegs. Behind it, seems to be OK, but I have not taken the side skirts off and am nervous as the bolts will probably break off which means more work putting it back together.

At this point, I am truly at the crossroads, I have 2 options:

1) Part it out - I don't know what the car is worth.
2) Sell as-is - I don't know if anyone will buy it like this. I refuse to not disclose this rust issue, that's for sure.

Sad part is that the rest of the car is in damn good shape for being 20+ years old, actually! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/frown.gif

 

[MellowVR4]

I feel your pain man, i found a surprise on my first vr4 when i took the side skirt off. 50% of it was rotted. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/banghead.gif /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/bawling.gif made me very depressed.

 

[Street Surgeon]

Ugh, just looking at these pics makes my heart sink a little /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/frown.gif I know that you would want a super clean ride, and to make this how you would like to have it would just cost a ton of money, money that you basically could never get back. Personally I would drive it as a beater and start looking for another project, cut your losses, maybe even part it out. Damn man that sucks /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/frown.gif

 

[blacksheep]

Well, I am going to sell off a bunch of parts I had collected up for the build. They are posted for sale now. I will use money to buy parts to put car back together and post it up for sale. I will be eating my shorts on this one as I overpaid for the car thinking it was in great shape /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/frown.gif

 

[Jason G.]

That's terrible KC. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/frown.gif

 

[MellowVR4]

Quoting blacksheep:
Well, I am going to sell off a bunch of parts I had collected up for the build. They are posted for sale now. I will use money to buy parts to put car back together and post it up for sale. I will be eating my shorts on this one as I overpaid for the car thinking it was in great shape /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/frown.gif



Your not the only one buddy. ive been down this road once before, and it sucked. Just dont even think about it to much of the money. Lets this be your Galant's with rust lesson.

 

[blacksheep]

Thanks for the support guys. I just have bad, BAD luck with these cars. #13 was bad luck for me allright! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/frown.gif

 

[turbowop]

Trade plus cash for rdomeck's car. Then he can fix that one up in his shop and you get a sweet gvr4. Win-win?

 

[blacksheep]

/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/rofl.gif

 

[jcgalntvr4-244]

I'll trade you for a green one /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif