1997 Eclipse GSX Rust Repair

[skippyman87]

I have a 97 gsx that does everything mechanically fine. The problem is rust from the rear fender well to the seam where the quarter panel ends, it is underneath the ground effects on both sides and looks identical to this.

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I know that I could fix it like this guy did on dsmtalk.com (my rust would need about this extensive rust repair as well)

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I just stumbled upon a clean rust free shell of a 97 gst magenta gray pearl close to me. I know it is alot of work to tranfer awd drivetrain over but rust like that isn't something I want to battle forever. I have some ideas for what to do with the gst before I swap over parts. The first thing is the interior. Does anyone have a tan leather interior in a 2g magenta gray eclipse? I'm hesitant to swap out the plain gray cloth because I dont want it to look weird. Also I am keeping power steering, ac, cruise, heat, but not emissions.

Phase 1 magenta pearl gst car cleanup and prep :

Clean empty engine bay, and whole underbody.
Fix any small rust of imperfections.
Remove emissions
Paint engine bay
Undercoat rear fenderwells and underbody where necessary
Install polyurethane suspension bushings
remove headlights
remove taillights
run fuel or brake lines of necessary
remove gst exhaust
remove rear subframe
remove gas tank
remove front steering knuckles and suspension

Phase 2 barcelona red pearl gsx process:

Remove whole drivetrain
Remove suspension
Remove interior
Replace timing belt
Replace water pump
Replace oil pump and housing
Balance shaft elimination
Arp headstuds
Tre trans build
Soild subframe bushings
Evo 3 intake manifold
Throttle body rebuild and port by throttlebodys.com
Install rear rm racing swaybar onto rear end
replace end links
Evo brembo swap
polish, paint or powdercoat everything I can!

Phase 3 whole car:
Install front mount
Install eprom ecu
Install gsx front suspension
Install new suspension parts with bushings
Transfer drivetrain w/all new parts
Install carbon fiber hood
Install mishimoto radiator

I know there is a lot more to think of. The real question is what would you guys do on here if you had a chance to start over from the ground up with your 2g gsx?

Magenta gray pearl with tan leather or gray cloth with black accent plastics (like gray gsx's came stock)???

Anything to watch out for with build from experiences?

Here is my car now:

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Its a damn shame, I know the car is beautiful.

 

[gho5tone]

Ah crap, that is some serious rust cancer. I would look for clean shell and swap the parts over.

Unless you want to do some serious DIY welding and cleaning rust, by all means do it.

 

[JasonStern]

wow, I'm spoiled living in Nevada. I didn't even realize cars made in the last 20 years could look like that until recently. X)

 

[kbiker76]

Goodluck with your build! Looks like you got the maintenence down but maybe remove the balance shaft instead of replacing the belt? That could definately cause problems down the road if its not eliminated.

 

[skippyman87]

I already have the clean shell, its a gst. I talked about it and the awd drivetrain swap in 1st post. Ohio hates cars and likes to eat them with a side of salt. The shell is rust free and clean. Also I had a 91 tsi awd and the oil filter kept backing off due to no balance shafts.Isn't that common? If so screw that!

Does anyone have pics of a 2gb magenta gray pearl eclipse with tan leather interior?

 

[Kingcof22]

Goodluck with your build! Looks like you got the maintenence down but maybe remove the balance shaft instead of replacing the belt? That could definately cause problems down the road if its not eliminated.

Exactly, its less of a headache if you do that sooner than later..

 

[skippyman87]

Got started on the gray car today, I have some questions for you guys. The car had an alarm that no longer works. I am trying to go through the wiring to see what I need and don't need. Do you guys know what these plugs are?

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Another question about the orange and black wires here.

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Also the car has infinity speakers with these boxes that say kappa on them. He had some tweeters rigged and hanging off the door panels.He also had subwoofers installed but I'm not sure why he didn't just use the tweeters in the dash. Why is this necessary?

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I know these are some kind of solenoid, there are three similar to it on the upper firewall drivers side. I have ecmlink v3 and could stop cel, but do I need them for normal running of the car? If not what should I do with the vacuum ports they connect to?

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An just a random pic of outside.... thanks for the input dsmtuners!!

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[nrwtrn6492]

I wish you were to keep your gsx, that color is amaizing IMO. You already fixed the rust
is the underbody toast also?

 

[JusMX141]

Build threads are frowned upon these days; they once had their place in a sub-forum of the Community section of the site, but have since been replaced by the Journal / Blog system. Some like it, some don't....but it's the way the founder of the site is wanting to handle build threads from now on.

In order to protect this thread from winding up in the trash, I'm going to edit your title to read "rust repair" so your thread has a place in the tech forums. Should you continue to update this thread as your build progresses is your prerogative; I'm just doing my job as I see fit.

 

[skippyman87]

thanks jusmx141, i appreciate you not trashing my thread. I guess you learn something new everyday. I have alot of respect for this site and you guys that run it, i dont ever intend to mess it up or do things you guys dont like so thanks for the heads up.

The maroon gsx is not fixed. I used another members pictures to show how bad my rust is in comparison because I havent taken pictures of my actual car rust yet. Trust me its just as bad. It really makes me sad to have to do this because the car has been so much fun and got a ton of compliments. I have always dreamed of bigger plans and more things to do to it. It just happens that I stumbled on the rust free shell and have the ability to change it over. I do not want to fight the rust battle forever and it seems that is what would happen if I didnt replace the whole rocker/partial quarter panel/fender well. Alot more money than the 350 I picked up the shell for for sure.

 

[JusMX141]

It's fine by me; personally I actually prefer the build thread format better than the journal / blog format...but this is how the site is progressing. Makes it rough on someone like yourself who has been a member since 2005 and doesn't have a high post count; so you joined when the site had one set of rules, and now everything's completely different. We do appreciate your continued support over the years, and keep up the good work!