I’m looking for technical help or recommendations on: Rusty rear sills
My NB is looking a tad scabby at the rear wheel lower sill. This is the case on both sides. I’ve went around with a hammer and punch and it still feels solid enough despite it being wafer like at the edges. I was thinking for the sake of kicking the can down the road that I will flake away all the laters of rust, and slam some sort of rust prohibiting coat and then some heavy duty hammerite or something.
I’m not even sure this is worth doing, the MOT is due in June and the car only really goes to the track.
I do have a welder and can mig weld, been a while though and never welded body panels before. I don’t want to invest money in new panels at this time.
Doing something is better than doing nothing.
If you aren’t bothered about looks I’d just scrape away any loose stuff and use something like Kurust or Hydrate 80 from Bilt Hamber then touch over with primer and a choice of you colour finish
Track car wouldn’t need to look like a showroom finished.
Haha I know, until I can punch a hole through it I couldn’t really care less. The main sill area and arches are still solid, I reckon it’s got a few more years on it before I have to cut it all out if we are talking about just passing an MOT.
The car is covered in clearcoat failure as well. I’m considering cleaning up all the rusty bits, sanding back all the failed clear coat and just slapping on that rusty paint stuff. May as well embrace it.
The point is you won’t be able to remove the rusty. You will rub back. A hole might appear, or amazingly shiney metal appears, with a dark shadow in a circle. A the centre will be a little pinhole, which might be weeping water. If you push on the circle, it will crunch.
What you will have to check is the jacking point. Its a seperate bit of metal to the actual outer panel. If its bending inwards, the actual sill has rotted out, and now there is no strength.
Rust converter will only sort the rust you can see, and will be an utter waste of time. Mix up a can of waxoyl with paraffin to thin it, and flood the sills with it (via a plastic plug in the wheel arch), catching the drips from the weep holes. Leave the car outside, and not in a garage, put on a hood shower cap
The jacking points are good, completely flat and intact. The underside of the car is clean with no rust. It’s only the rear lower sill that has rust on it, at least on the outside.
I don’t think it’s at a point where if I sand it back it will be swiss cheese, it certainly doesn’t sound like it from hammer and punch strikes.
I’m not particularly bothered about looks, just anything to slow it down so I can get a couple more seasons of tracking it before I have to start cutting panels out.
I shall do as you suggest and pop the wax down the drain holes.