Hi all, I’ve discovered serious rust by the ARB mounting on the chassis and am going to weld it up. I’ve already got the subframe and suspension removed.
Looking on the internet, I’ve found a couple of suppliers for repair sections:
Has anyone any experience with these and can tell me if they’re any good or not, or does anyone know of other sources?
Also, when it comes to welding, is it better to repair the minimal amount necessary (which would mean cutting the repair section to fit the rusted hole) or would cutting out the chassis to fit the entire repair section be better and easier?
Although I haven’t any direct MX5 welding experience (I’m sure someone who does will be along shortly), I’ve welded plenty of cars in the past.
I’d say, if you have the full repair panels then use them, as the panels will undoubtedly be better metal than that left on the chassis, so cut out the old rusty stuff and replace with the new. I’d also be more inclined to use the themx5restorer than some random, unknown source on eBay. Which of the 2 suppliers would be more interested in maintaining a solid reputation…?
I’d use the whole section. The more fresh steel the better?
The less OEM crap left in the car, the better as well in my (expensively experienced) opinion.
It would present a more favourable opportunity to inject rot-proofing agents into the remains of the double ( read moisture trap) skinned original, although these products generally have a good “creep factor”.
I wish these sections had been available when I fitted complete OEM chassis rails a while back…but my case was extreme with the engine threatening to drop onto the floor!
I think the other guy is John who used to work with Paul at PH Sportscars in Swadlincote, Derby.
Very different solutions! The full section piece would be great if the fit is perfect but welding inside the engine bay? I think I would cut all the metal away and weld to the inside of the rail if things had got that bad.
Most of the corrosion seems to occur on the outside of the rail and base. This job would be so much easier if the repair could be limited to these areas.
Always get as much rusty metal removed as possible but no point in removing good, undamaged metal.
Whilst is it all open I would convert/kill any rust that is left behind.
The main work here is removing all the parts that are in the way of you doing the work. So much stuff to remove and lots of rusted bolts that don’t want to be reused.
Definitely worth getting the legs repaired as engine removal for replacement an expensive task. The legs alone were nearly £500 each from Mazda last time I asked.
I checked out the feedback on the ebay guy, John, and it’s 100% with a lot of people who’d bought the repair section - so I guess it’s ok. It doesn’t look as cleanly finished as the MX5 restorer’s but it works out a fair bit cheaper, if you need both inside and out.
You’d think that Mazda would be embarrassed enough about their design flaw to give away repair sections to anyone who asks.
