Easy Rust Repair the ‘Hack’ Way

[EricTheCarGuy]

Time will tell but I think this repair worked out pretty good. For now. That may be all I need though. As for the color match, well, the entire car needs paint so I’m not really worried about it. What are your thoughts?

Topic

[Shaun Flichel]

quick tip. I could do many tips lol. but as it was a hack job I just suggest wax paper instead of regular paper. it peels right off. OK, one more. bondo likes to stick to unpainted surfaces more than painted. rust needs oxygen to live. after the repair, seal the inside with undercoating, outside with paint. in the hidden areas such as behind the bumper, undercoat that as well, top it with paint

[Sean]

+1 on the wax paper. Not only is it easy to peel off, but you can also see through the paper fairly easy so not only are you feeling how the bondo is forming but you can actually see it.

[EricTheCarGuy]

Thanks for the wax paper tip. Never thought of that.

[Lee Ann]

Eric,
For not being a body guy, nice work!
Thanks for this video.

[Shaun Flichel]

bondo in seams won’t last long at all. you need seam sealer. seams do expand and retract at somewhat of a different rate. how much over spray did you get? it should have been mentioned to mask the area. sorry Eric, just trying to help others as well as you. stay dirty. and where’s my shirt lol. can we get hats?

[Lorrin Barth]

Bondo absorbs water. So the secret is to seal it with paint. Under the bumper and under the taillight, if sealed, it should last. Other places that get rock chips are susceptible to more rust. For the fenderwell, frequent inspection with the stray can handy is important. Anyway since bondo is used so frequently I think that is why body men say rust is always going to come back.

[Bill]

I was sitting here watching how much rust damage there was, thinking OHHHhhhhh Shit. I think it actually turned out well considering the time and money spent. Lots of paint and rustproofing spray and it might last as long as you need it to.

It shows us how a little patience and ingenuity can go a long way with a patch up job.

[vgs8606]

I don’t get it; isn’t there a door jam plate on that car telling you exactly which paint color to order? Granted, even if you had ordered the factory paint, with these many years on that paint, it might not have matched correctly.

[Rob megee]

Looks to me like you won’t have water leaks for a while. For a $500 car it was a good enough job. You aren’t taking it to car shows. As far as the color, some cars are just meant to be multicolor. It was fun watching you make that work.

[EricTheCarGuy]

[quote=”vgs8606″ post=100376]I don’t get it; isn’t there a door jam plate on that car telling you exactly which paint color to order? Granted, even if you had ordered the factory paint, with these many years on that paint, it might not have matched correctly.[/quote]

Here’s how it went. “Hey parts guy, can you send me a can of dark red paint?” That’s about as far as I took it. I don’t know if you noticed but the entire car needs paint. Why bother worrying about a color match? All I was trying to do was seal the work.

[asetoftools]

Can I ask, what sort of primer was used? Do you need “auto paint primer” with its most likely elevated cost, or can I used any sort of hardware store metal primer after the rust treatment?

[EricTheCarGuy]

I used automotive primer and that’s what I would suggest. I suppose you could use the hardware store stuff but I don’t think it would work as well in this application.

[vgs8606]

I forgot to say that the repair came out excellent

[Steve Webb]

Cool video Eric. I like the paper sandwich trick.

I tried cutting out rust and using filler on my wheel arch. 6 months later…
[URL=http://s1226.photobucket.com/user/webbybear1/media/Rust004_zps16be2b3b.jpg.html][IMG]http://i1226.photobucket.com/albums/ee402/webbybear1/Rust004_zps16be2b3b.jpg[/IMG][/URL]

So, I have new arches on order and will be welding them in when they arrive.

As I have never welded before I got my buddy to teach me and I learned on the exact same area you were working on (i.e. rust under the rear bumper). Here’s a few snaps if you’re interested…

#1. The rust….
[URL=http://s1226.photobucket.com/user/webbybear1/media/weld1_zps656beffb.jpg.html][IMG]http://i1226.photobucket.com/albums/ee402/webbybear1/weld1_zps656beffb.jpg[/IMG][/URL]
#2. The rust was masking more rust….
[URL=http://s1226.photobucket.com/user/webbybear1/media/weld3_zps2318eaec.jpg.html][IMG]http://i1226.photobucket.com/albums/ee402/webbybear1/weld3_zps2318eaec.jpg[/IMG][/URL]
#3. All rust cut out and new metal welded in (we bent metal to keep the shape…not that it really matters under the bumper imo)….
[URL=http://s1226.photobucket.com/user/webbybear1/media/weld4_zps94a91760.jpg.html][IMG]http://i1226.photobucket.com/albums/ee402/webbybear1/weld4_zps94a91760.jpg[/IMG][/URL]
#4. Also used weld to form part of the structure for the awkward shape in the boot (where the outside meets the inside)….
[URL=http://s1226.photobucket.com/user/webbybear1/media/weld5_zps34c61847.jpg.html][IMG]http://i1226.photobucket.com/albums/ee402/webbybear1/weld5_zps34c61847.jpg[/IMG][/URL]
#5. Primed, painted and lacquered….
[URL=http://s1226.photobucket.com/user/webbybear1/media/weld6_zpsc78f2b5b.jpg.html][IMG]http://i1226.photobucket.com/albums/ee402/webbybear1/weld6_zpsc78f2b5b.jpg[/IMG][/URL]

Got to say I loved welding and knowing that’s good for years is nice especially as I love this car and it’s a keeper.

Hope you like the pics 🙂

[EricTheCarGuy]

Had the parts been available for the Vigor I might have gone that rout, but the parts are discontinued. Before they were discontinued they were $1100 per side. So for me, I think the tiger hair sandwich was appropriate.

Nice work BTW.

[Author]

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