Pulled my carpet out today for spring cleaning, as one does.
Posted by This_Trackted_Driver@reddit | projectcar | View on Reddit | 12 comments
A couple of years ago I removed all the sound deading from .. everywhere, as one does. But this floor hasn't handled it very well. Wanted to let it dry completely, so I will be leaving the carpet out until my next fine day off. I live two miles down a dust road, so I needed an air/dust proof plug for that hole. It should be a good temporary permanent fix.
1- What should I spead on the floor real cheap to arrest the spread? After scratching the hell out of it all removing the sound deading tar, i coated it with just aerosol black rubberized undercoating. It was good for a year, but i shouldn't have left it for two.
Without redit to ask, I'd have just painted it with my used synthetic motor motor any reason not to do that for now?
2, before noticing this, I have been on the verge of buying a cheap welder and a set of rockers. Calling up some skills I had in high school a couple decades ago. Seeing this hole makes me think I need a new car. (Same model, so this will become a parts car) Or, or, if I could be capable of doing my own rockers, is this floor repairable to where the car could pass a safety check again?
Cut the rot out, make a piece of steel the same shape as the hole, weld er in? Good to go? Cut the section out of a donor car and just cover it with that? That should satisfy safety standards. This car was rust proofed well by it's original owner. I smashed that floor off a rock like 7 years ago, changing the shape of the plug hole and causing a leak. Vw coatings seem to work wonders all the same, surviving for the most part until I destroyed its tar layer.
Its my first car, with 8 years and 400k km together. I've enjoyed firing the parts cannon, by doing all my own labour. Most see it as a shit box, rightfully based on its model and age. But its mechanically suitable for a track day every chance I get (mk4 golf, 260lbs, 10% lighter than stock, 115 hp gas.) That's been a couple years now, but maintained all the same. I'd love to see a welder pop out of the tool cannon, maybe this floor will be a welcome side project to the big rocker project.
Can I do it? My arts n crafts skills are on display for all :)
SolidVeggies@reddit
Nothing more permanent than a temporary fix
No-Enthusiasm3579@reddit
Cut a piece of sheet metal, hand bend it, self tapper it in and coat the crap out of everything in rust converter, primer, and paint
dscottj@reddit
POR & other "rust to gold" products work quite well. That should at least stop the spread.
YouTube welding university, which I have been attending for a couple of months now, says the least painful route is to cut the rust out, then use CAD (Cardboard Aided Design) to make a template of the hole. Use that template on either a panel bought for the purpose or a parts car to cut the specific section you need out. That makes it much easier to get the precise shape than outright fabrication. Spot weld to fit. Actual weld next. Grind it smooth, then coat the sh- out of both sides.
This is how you repair comparatively small holes. If you've got whole lengths of rocker or other structural metal rotted out, you need to be very careful. Learn how to stabilize the body, otherwise the doors won't shut when you're done.
EC_CO@reddit
I used Chassis Saver, that stuff cures hard as a rock and has rust preventative and conversion stuff mixed into it too. I used it on my trunk pan before deciding to replace it fully, my body guy absolutely hated removing that stuff, he said it was bonded so well
Mopar44o@reddit
That’s a small hole. Rest of the floor looks good. Just cut it out and weld in a patch.
Watch fitzees fabrication on YouTube. He does a great job showing how with minimal tools.
Make your patch first, then cut.
aj8j83fo83jo8ja3o8ja@reddit
2K epoxy primer followed by rustoleum. bulletproof
conventional wisdom is to avoid those rubberized coatings like the plague
Obvious-Dinner-1082@reddit
Yes you can 100% do it. Get a hold of a basic mig with shielding gas. Learn to make a good tack weld, adjust settings to get good tacks on the metal you cut out.
Cut to fit, and tack the new one in. The floors a great place to practice because it’s all covered up anyway.
I had zero experience, watched a couple YouTube videos and tally-ho!
Here’s my patch, I’ll reply with my results.
Obvious-Dinner-1082@reddit
I cleaned it up pretty good and sealed it. I can now beat this floor with a hammer, and it isn’t coming apart. It’s been about a year, and no issues.
You got this.
Bulldog78@reddit
You have to cut it out to clean metal or it will continue to spread. Rubberized coating isn’t great; a small score in the rubber will allow for water intrusion and you’ll never know it until your foot goes thru the floor pan. Based on the pics, you’re aware, but I’d avoid that stuff in the future.
You can likely find aftermarket floor pans to weld in. The Golf is pretty common so you may find them online for cheap. Cut out the existing, drop in, the new, weld, sand/grind, then prime and paint. Rocker panels, wheel wells and such can either be custom made for you ($$$), by you if you’re good with fabrication, or you can find a donor to cut them off of and replace yours. Good luck, it’s gonna be a lot of work to save your ride.
This_Trackted_Driver@reddit (OP)
Thank you, I'm not afraid of the work. I'm afraid of an engine, transmission or even clutch replacement. (Because they sound heavy and awkward, and I'm just me) They're all approaching 600k km lol. So, I'm always going to be looking for my next one, plenty of the same car for a couple grand with 1/3rd the mileage. However, theres a good chance they could have a lot more rot than this one, and it might be worth this one carrying on using thier powertrain. I trust in this 2.0 8v engine so much now, I dont need horsepower to love driving, it's a go kart in every other way. (Compared to the bicycles that came before it 🤷♂️)
Bulldog78@reddit
My ‘01 Prelude is similar. Kind of gutless but still fun to drive. I found bit of rot behind the rear bumper inside the driver’s side wheel well. Had a guy come patch it for about $250 USD, and the rest of the flaky bits were barely past the surface , so I scraped and wire wheeled everything behind the bumper, the wheel well, rear subframe, even the tow hook was showing rust. Primed everything, painted, and then I doused everything I touched with lanolin wax. I dare it to rust again.
You say you’re not good with mechanical - I’m the same with body work. I’ll do anything under the hood, underbody, whatever. The Prelude’s prior owner did his best to roll the fenders and failed spectacularly. I’ll pay someone to fix it before I f it up permanently.
This_Trackted_Driver@reddit (OP)
I'm not afraid of the mechanical, just the parts that will definitely require two people. I wanted new subframe bushings, but pressing bushings and bearings have remained beyond anything I've attempted. So I pulled a subframe off somebody's parts car, dropped it off at my trusted shop to get bushings installed on thier own time for cash and then swapped the frame out with mine in an afternoon. Did the same with a rear beam. Instead of buying two new rear wheel bearings, that would have required me to pay to have pressed on, I just put a used rear axle on hoping for the best, and bought myself another year before just paying for the bearings next time lol. I'm on my 3rd set of coilovers, all installed by me. Done axles and brake lines and engine mounts, swapped every removable body panel and door from my parts car. So, theres virtually no bolt outside of the engine and transmission that I haven't turned. And as bad as it may be to admit with all I've done, I've never had a functional torque wrench. I feel that would be a bigger deal doing a clutch, or the sought after diesel 5th gear swap.