Rust issues/ And repairs :)

[Chaingun]

quick update, almost have this damn wheel well done, been harder to get this finished than i thought and I've managed to set the underside of the car on fire a time or two or 12.... in other words my under body coating is apparently very flammable got to seal up all of the seams still and then i can start on the putty work blech

 

[Grandavi]

I would wire brush all the undercoating off. Chances are you will miss tiny perforations if you dont..

My passenger wheel well seemed perfect until I took off the undercoating.. then I found all the micro meteor holes.. and they were all up front so I wouldn't have noticed until the rocker panel under the door fell off.. lol.

As for the comment on car value.. I find that the MKIII seems to go up in value about 500.00 per year at present.. and at points.. you couldn't find one if your life depended on it.. and then.. wham! .. more than you can imagine for sale. Its odd.. lol.

In 5-10 years though, I doubt there will be that many "trash" ones left.. they will have rotted too far.

 

[Chaingun]

i plan on removing what little coating is left, i've scraped most of it off in this wheel well, i quite literally cut 90% of the old wheel well out so there isn't alot left. I didn't buy my supra with plans of flipping it for a profit to be honest, i planned on it being a very long term project that i may be able to give to my kid someday.... if i have one lol.

 

[Chaingun]

picked up the channels i had made for my new bumper support, welded it together, and well i'll let the results speak for themselves:

plans, and final measurements after i have it fitted and painted

 

[planemos]

Is that steel or aluminum?

 

[Chaingun]

16 guage steel

 

[3p141592654]

When the mk3 was built, the automotive industry had switched to electrogalvanized sheet metal. This stuff has a layer of sacrificial zinc on it to prevent rust. Once that zinc gets used up, rust starts unchecked. I believe the extensive internal rust some of you are experiencing is due to that zinc layer having been used up. I'm seeing similar things happening to fasteners on my car. They've been rust free for 20 years, then suddenly they turn brown and start leaving rust spots.

 

[Chaingun]

could also be due to me living in western new york the salt/snow capital of the world and the previous owner being retarded and driving it in the winter. but as far as the zinc coating your absolutely correct, it only lasts for so long under extreme conditions and once that first spot forms, rust works it's way underneath that coating and accelerates the process

 

[3p141592654]

Absolutely, the environment plays a huge role. My car is rust free, including the wells, but I live in a region with no salt, low humidity, and not much rain, as long as I remember not to park beside the lawn sprinklers!

 

[Grandavi]

+1 for not driving it in winter.. lol. Mine wouldnt last 5 years up here if I did...

 

[Chaingun]

Indeed, so any feedback on the design of the new bumper support? i wanted to go simple and keep it from building up dirt and stuff inside it like the stock ones. Plus it has the added advantage of being strong and lighter than the original.

 

[Grandavi]

My only thought is "crumple zone" and the effect of a rear impact from below or above instead of straight on (higher or lower car).
A ton of thought has gone into the regular bumper for how it reacts when hit. From what I see with yours, it will hold the bumper well, and probably stand up well on a normal rear end accident, but its very hard to tell what would happen if you actually got hit.
I think it would protect the fuel tank well, but it looks strong enough for a car or truck to ride up on which in my mind would scoot them into the hatch..

Of course.. remember.. I am only a car owner.. not a bodyman or mechanic.. so those are only thoughts.

Looks good, just wondering about function.

 

[Chaingun]

With respect to that, I thought of a few different thicknesses for the bumper, but it seemed to me that the 16 gauge is strong enough to withstand an impact, but if it's hit hard enough it will still bend. 14 guage was too stiff, but 18 seemed to flex far too much for my liking. Honestly i'm willing to have another made and weld it to an old truck frame then ram it with our farm pickup to test it lol

 

[Grandavi]

I was looking at my GMC.. and I think it should work fine

 

[Chaingun]

So i don't need to purposely run into stuff for funsies?

 

[Grandavi]

Lol, you may want to out if sheer frustration if you start noticing rust around your windshield...

I was just looking at my truck front bumper and it's built similar.

Just a note, I was reading your first post... The hatch seal isn't the place where I notice water coming in from. It's the brake light seal and on other cars it seems to be the hatch side glass. I have seen a few with rust bubbling just below the glass as well although I dont know what you would do to cause it.

 

[Chaingun]

On mine i noticed a few spots under the hatch seal that have rusted out and need to be cut out and replaced, this i think i where my leaks are coming from, as i don't have any rust around my windows that i've found yet and my interior is completely stripped atm.

 

[Chaingun]

So i may be insane but i'm contemplating adding a caddilac style canvas top to my supra after the new sunroof is put in... I honestly think it would look awesome

 

[Grandavi]

I would recommend against it unless you have a lot of free time and good skills. You dont just glue the vinyl (it has to be a certain type of vinyl as well) to the top, you have to have a channel for the edges or else "weather" will work its way in quite rapidly.. lol.

Cool idea and would be a first I think.. but I personally wouldnt go that route.. hehe.

 

[zby67]

i'm using a roll on coating very similar to rhinoliner lol, the spray is just too thin i want this job to never have to be redone\

the car has also officially been named, it is now the millenium falcon, because it's more replacement parts than original, and i plan on making it the fastest hunk of junk in the galaxy.


.... still working on the .5 past lightspeed but i'll get there

lol thats funny! never would of token a star wars look at a supra. hope to see more pics on the progress of welding!