What would you do? (rust issue)

[GraphicRage]

So I got my new carpet for the tan to black interior swap and got the whole carpet/padding out. i was expecting to find some light rusting issues as the car had sat for a whole year without a top. the back seat floor still had two inches of water as the tow truck put it up on the flat bed when i bought it 8 months ago. the carpet pads were still SOAKED and dripping wet as I pulled them out (though the carpet had dried, figure that one out)

There's hardly any rust, until I got to the passenger front. In other words, the location of the A/C drain hose. The drain hose that obviously disconnected long ago. Here's what I found:



It's not rusted fully through the floor board, just the top layer. The area still seems solid.

So, I have a few options.

1) Pretend it never happened. :razz: (obviously not going this route)

2) Have it sandblasted and rivet in a new piece, seal it up.

3) Have it professionally repaired with a new welded in floor board.

I'd like to have it done the right way, but I feel like once I get into tackling rust issues, I may as well have them do everything else while there, and that's a whole lot more than I'm willing to spend at this point. I just want to get out and enjoy this thing this summer and then maybe a few years down the road, do a total frame off restoration. Other than this, it's in remarkable shape given it's history.

What would you do? Has anyone done this before? Any ideas on cost?

[gobuffs]

sandblast and Por15 is what I used

[Mike325]

As long as the floor is still solid, you should have no big worries. I would go over the whole area with a flat head screw driver and poke into spots where you think there may be some rot. After you find out what needs to be done, think about cutting out the rot and welding in new metal. Then coat all the rust with por-15 and then with a top coat. What you have does not seem to bad.

Pay close attention to the corners, they rust the most. Good luck.

[e30 Luv]

Here's what I did. Hit it with a wire brush & grinder, por-15, weld in plates, more por-15, top coat, undercoat. I haven't checked on it since, and its been a wet winter, so we'll see how it held up. Be sure to use some good seam sealer and undercoating as well.

[Restoman]

Hey I would have loved to have seen only that much rust. A wire wheel grinder and POR-15 will set you sailing. Buy the por starter kit for 18 dollars at your local distributor, cheaper than online, and that will do you just fine. Do both sides, seam seal, and good undercoating.

[BBY1104]

I would have probably wired wheeled and ground all the rust off, then bought a patch kit

[Jparkr]

Here's what I did. Hit it with a wire brush & grinder, por-15, weld in plates, more por-15, top coat, undercoat. I haven't checked on it since, and its been a wet winter, so we'll see how it held up. Be sure to use some good seam sealer and undercoating as well.

This is a great patch job. I just did a similar job on the R3vPRO3 car

If there are holes you should patch them with new metal. Its the right thing to do.

[AndrewBird]

From what I've heard about POR15, you can use it to fill small holes (like, 1/4" and smaller). The stuff dries so rock hard, it might as well be steel. And better yet, it won't rust! Might need to tape off the underside so the POR15 doesn't just drip through, then remove the tape afterwards.

As far as rust removal, I suggest an angle grinder and a wire wheel like this:



You can buy them at Harbor Freight for cheap and they work great at removing paint and rust and anything else that might be in its way (including skin off your fingers. OUCH!) Josh and I de-textured his valence with one.