Body Rust

INFORMATION Integra Help
1

My car is rusting…I’ve got some questions about it. I need to figure out whether to make it last or dump it.

  1. Have you ever seen a body shop that can reliably eliminate rust?

  2. Is it worth it to have the rust removed? Will it come right back regardless of what you do?

  3. Any other rust-related comments?

Thanks!

2

Re: Body Rust

Originally posted by 90integraGS
[B]My car is rusting…I’ve got some questions about it. I need to figure out whether to make it last or dump it.

  1. Have you ever seen a body shop that can reliably eliminate rust?

  2. Is it worth it to have the rust removed? Will it come right back regardless of what you do?

  3. Any other rust-related comments?

Thanks! [/B]

I believe the best way to eliminate the rust is to cut off the affected area and to weld in new panels, and even this isn’t 100 % reliable as the grain structure of the metal is affected from the welding. This is also farily expensive if you don’t have connections!

One thing though, DO NOT just get a bodyshop to grind the rust off, fill it in and paint over it. It will probably come back hella quick wasting your money!

3

If you actually have the panels cut and new pieces welded in, make sure to get the inside of the panel rustproofed afterwards, and a good paint job on the outside. Those seams are where the rust will come back the quickest.

4

Whether to fix it or dump depends on a few factors:

  1. How much $ have you got in the car?
  2. How bad is the rust? How much to repair?
  3. How long will you keep the car?
  4. Are you attached to it?
  5. What are the other alternatives?

You should separate emotion from objectivity, determine how much to fix and paint it properly versus fixing it good enough to sell. Do the math and decide. Living in Canada we have a lot of rust after a few years from the salt on the roads in winter. Many of the body shops here are very good at cutting out rust and replacing it with new metal. It is not cheap so it depends on those factors above. Sometimes it is better to dump and run. In my own case I have decided that it is worth it to me to fix a few rust spots and re-paint the car because everything else is good, including an immaculate interior. It will probably cost me $1500-$2000 Cdn to fix and re-paint my car but when that is done, it will be like a new car. I will have a total of $12,000 Cdn invested in the car but I expect to get five more years out of it. I have restored the supension system as well in the total investment. In Canada it is hard to buy a good car for $12,000. I could buy a clapped out 3 year old cavalier or have my Integra. The choice is obvious.