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Unibody Frame Repair

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Blurred Talon

15+ Year Contributor
2,307
43
Jan 2, 2004
Paradise, NL_Canada
Oh the joys of rust.
I'm almost pretty sure I've got some rust issues in my 2G's unibody frame, how hard is it to fix something like this?

I'd like to do it myself if possible rather then pay a shop an ass load of money.
 
well... rust prevention, where to start.

post some pics, grind down some of the rust spots and see how bad it is.

most rust can be solved by grinding and sanding down. wiping off with acetone, priming the surface using rustoleom, and either paint it, or use the rubber undercoating.
 
Strut towers have already been repaired.

I'll have to get my side skirts off to get pictures of the bad spots. Here's pictures I've taken so far.
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I would cry if my car had rust like that...I have had my car literally every bolt off of it for inspection and paint, and I thought my only tiny rust spot was bad on my strut tower.

Is this something you want to tackle yourself or take it to a body shop??
 
i have the same issues. for the trunk the best solution ive found would be to find another talon and cut out the trunk and weld it in. most of the rust around the radiator support doesnt look to bad. grind it out. primer. and paint it. i would just buy another hatch from the junk yard and that takes care of the rust on the hatch LOL
 
Finding a rust free hatch around here will be hard, I live on an island surround by salt water and DSMs weren't overly popular I don't think.

Truck panels I can get from JNZ for cheap or make my own. The lower rad support needs to be replaced, again JNZ.

I'd like to do this myself, I'm not huge on body shops as I don't know what ones are good here and I've been dicked around before. I'm not looking to repaint the whole car just yet but I'd like the rust fixed up.
 
i don't mean to be a kill joy or anything like that... but with as much rust as that car has then i would think you might want to get up under the car and look at the frame underneath the car, especially where the suspension bolts up. if there is a bunch of bad rust there then you might want to.... well, i will let you figure that part out.
 
Your car is pretty far gone. If you have a 2nd car and have a place to work on this Talon for a few months you might be able to save it. Your headlight support doesn't look too bad, but the truck and especially the wheel wells look very bad. Once you remove those side skirts you'll see that a huge section probably needs cut out and replaced. I did this to my Talon and it was a ton of work.

I guess it depends how much skill and time you have. But I definitely wouldn't pay a body shop, to do it right it would cost more than just replacing the car.
 
In the front you need a New radiator core support. I did one and they are not that hard to replace at all. The rear hatch I would replace with a carbon fiber hatch or a used hatch off another talon/eclipse. The wheel wells need the rust cut out and new sheet metal welded in place. Do the same with the rear quarters, spare tire well and strut towers.
Its a lot of work but its fixable if done right.
 

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Jeff, where did you get the core support and how much?
 
Jeff, where did you get the core support and how much?

Believe it or not I bought it from a supplier on ebay about 3 or 4 years ago for like $150. It was a perfect fit.

The factory one was spot welded in place. I don't have a spot welder so I MIG welded mine. I used an air powered hammer/chisel to break apart the spot welds. You can also use a spot weld cutter/drill. Once the old core was off I used a grinder to smooth out the old spot welds. Then with all the rust gone and the bare metal exposed I used a ZINC coating on any exposed metal. This will help the metal resist further oxidization. Then you can apply an epoxy primer and paint the spots that are NOT going to be welded. Leaving the spots that need to be welded, bare metal.

Set the New core in place and begin to weld. Once it is fully welded in place, grind the welds smooth and Zinc coat them as well. Prime and paint, then reassemble the car.

These don't need a TON of welding. They were only spot welded on originally. So don't go nuts on the weld haha. I see some people putting 3/4 inch thick welds on sheet metal and I'm like WTF?
 

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i don't mean to be a kill joy or anything like that... but with as much rust as that car has then i would think you might want to get up under the car and look at the frame underneath the car, especially where the suspension bolts up. if there is a bunch of bad rust there then you might want to.... well, i will let you figure that part out.

Replace it? Nah, chances of finding a rust free shell on the Island are slim to none plus getting one shipped to me would cost too much.
The suspension mounts are still perfectly fine believe it or not.

Your car is pretty far gone. If you have a 2nd car and have a place to work on this Talon for a few months you might be able to save it. Your headlight support doesn't look too bad, but the truck and especially the wheel wells look very bad. Once you remove those side skirts you'll see that a huge section probably needs cut out and replaced. I did this to my Talon and it was a ton of work.

I guess it depends how much skill and time you have. But I definitely wouldn't pay a body shop, to do it right it would cost more than just replacing the car.

I saw some of your pictures of the repair you did. I've got till next spring/summer to have the car back on the road, right now it's parked for winter.

I've replaced floor pans and repaired the frame of an old Toyota Truck before so I've got a bit of an idea on what I'm doing, the rest of it I'll gain by reading, reading and reading some more.

Looks to me like you need a new body shell.

...Wait a sec, you are surrounded by salt water? Have considered getting a car that isn't made of steel?

Newfoundland is the most eastern province in Canada, an island 41,010 sq miles in size. Takes a 8 or 14 hour ferry crossing (depending on port) to get to the island.

Jeff, thanks for the pictures, I don't think I need to replace the entire rad support as it seems it's only the lower part where the front cross member bolts to is screwed. However I don't be sure till I dive into this.

I'll try and pull the side skirts off next time I go out to my parents place (where the car is parked).
 
$150? Unless this is for the NT, even if it is for the NT, is the core support different?

Im going to pick this up if it fits for my car, the cuts the previous owner made for the SSAC a long time ago are hideous to say the least.


I bought mine 3 or 4 years ago. It may have went up. I dont see why there would be any difference from GS to GSX. The one I bought just said 95-99 eclipse/talon. It didn't specify if it was for the Turbo or Non Turbo.


Watch the cheap body parts, the metal can be sub par.
They are better than driving around a rust pile haha. If primed and painted properly it would last a LONG time. A lot of body repairs are done WRONG and that is why they rust prematurely. If you grind something to BARE metal you have to re-apply the Galvanizing or zinc coating that the factory used. Otherwise it will rust back 3 times as fast. I will admit some of the aftermarket body panels are THINNER gauge metal than stock, but if the metal is 100% sealed from OXYGEN it will NOT rust. Why do you think they have guys painting the Golden Gate Bridge everyday?

Rust is a form of OXIDIZATION without oxygen there can be NO rust. So paint is basically sealing Oxygen and moisture out of the metal
 
Believe it or not I bought it from a supplier on ebay about 3 or 4 years ago for like $150. It was a perfect fit.

The factory one was spot welded in place. I don't have a spot welder so I MIG welded mine. I used an air powered hammer/chisel to break apart the spot welds. You can also use a spot weld cutter/drill. Once the old core was off I used a grinder to smooth out the old spot welds. Then with all the rust gone and the bare metal exposed I used a ZINC coating on any exposed metal. This will help the metal resist further oxidization. Then you can apply an epoxy primer and paint the spots that are NOT going to be welded. Leaving the spots that need to be welded, bare metal.

Set the New core in place and begin to weld. Once it is fully welded in place, grind the welds smooth and Zinc coat them as well. Prime and paint, then reassemble the car.

These don't need a TON of welding. They were only spot welded on originally. So don't go nuts on the weld haha. I see some people putting 3/4 inch thick welds on sheet metal and I'm like WTF?

A word of caution on the zinc primers when used as a weld thru primer. The fumes/smoke from welding are very toxic and the zinc can affect weld quality. I used it on the backside of my sons front strut tower before welding because it would be inaccessable after it was welded. I posted my weld quality concerns on the welding forum and was then alerted to the toxic nature of the fumes/smoke.

1995-1999 Mitsubishi Eclipse Radiator Support - Cooling System - Action Crash 95-99 Eclipse Radiator Support - 7128-04032539 - PartsGeek

$150? Unless this is for the NT, even if it is for the NT, is the core support different?

Im going to pick this up if it fits for my car, the cuts the previous owner made for the SSAC a long time ago are hideous to say the least.

The up front price is good but the shipping is a flat $119 making it more expensive than other sites and this also goes for shipping on their $79 fenders.

Not to long ago these were $189+/- delivered on ebay. Does any one know why the price spike?
 
Thanks Jeff.

The radiator support posted will cost as much as getting one locally by the time it gets here, maybe even more.

I should be going out to the car next Tuesday I hope. I'll remove the side skirts to have a look at what I'm facing there, I'll also bring a wire wheel with me so I can knock some rust off to see how bad it is.
 
wow..you need a new car bro.

theres no way to abate/stop that rust short of chemical dipping.

its in structural places and cavities. Once water is allowed to enter rust starts and never stops.

get a bug sprayer full of OSPHO and get to spraying!!! EVERYWHERE the nozzle will fit!

this is what body shops use to wash and seal the bare metal before priming it.

as far as radiator core price spike...its because the price of steel.

and they are going out of production.

2g eclipse is AT BEST ten years old. this is now an antique or relic vehicle. ALL the parts for these cars are being phased out of production.

Koni quit making shocks for 1g's. You cant find chinese crash/body parts anymore. Radiator supports are gone completely. there are still fenders and hoods in stock..but those will dry up soon as well.

if you can get a new part now, i would. Radiator suport is easy to change. harbor freight has a handy little tool for cutting the spot welds :)
 
It's too bad I'm on the opposite side of the country, I've got a rust free 97 AWD shell for sale for cheap. As a bodyman by trade, I can definitely say that you've got your work cut out for you on that. I'd definitely be getting it on a hoist and inspecting all the underside (frame rails, etc). It can all be fixed, but it depends on if you really want to sink that much time into it.
 
I have had it on a hoist but it's been a while.
I don't think it was too bad for what I remember.

I'm determined to fix this car, I've seen people fix MUCH worse then this hell I've fixed much worse, I had an 82 Toyota Pick Up that was more rust then steel.

EDIT: Reading about OSPHO, thanks! I'm sure I've got access to a bug sprayer.
 
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