1G Rust on underside

[hoonigane]

So today i removed my side skirts and found a lot of rust. The car has no rust pretty much anywhere else. How much of a problem is rust there and is it pretty common in dsms? Cutting it out and welding new metal plate will be too expensive for me i imagine so what are my options?

 

[SoulReaver]

So today i removed my side skirts and found a lot of rust. The car has no rust pretty much anywhere else. How much of a problem is rust there and is it pretty common in dsms? Cutting it out and welding new metal plate will be too expensive for me i imagine so what are my options?

I’d say you really should cut the rust out so it don’t continue to spread and take the whole side out. Tack weld in some new metal behind it and use duraglass filler in to smooth it out. Undercoat it and call it a day. Probably cheapest way. Put side back on and good to go. Just my opinion. I’m not a body at all. Just started working on mine. Replaced part of both shock towers on mine. It looked ok after I was done but not perfect .

 

[motomattx]

Thats typical on the 1g, I would not be jacking it up in that area anymore either if I were you, use a real jack under the control arms or rear diff etc.

 

[benspilk09]

Cut the rust out, paint the inside of the rockers, and put the side skirts back on.

 

[Kai Hefner]

Im doing that job on my 240 right now.
It’s a pain in the ass, definitely a project that requires a welder and some decent experience. Burning holes through the 16 gauge is not fun. Basically cut the shit out, tac weld the new piece in, and I keep tac welding along the edges to eventually make one long ugly bead. Anyone is a welder if you own a grinder. I use that weld-thru zinc primer stuff and I weld in galvanized steel so hopefully it won’t rust again. I’ve only done a bit on one side so far and I can assure you it’s a pain in the ass. Probably won’t be done for another week.
My advice for you... cut all of the metal pieces that you need, and bring the car and the pieces to a buddy with a welder. Cut out the affected areas and get your buddy to weld in your new pieces. If you guys crank it out early, you might be able to fix everything in a day. FYI might have to take off the doors to access all of the rockers. It’s a lot of work and your car doesn’t reward you much for doing it but it’s definitely the right thing to do.

 

[spyderdrifter]

If you don't want to fix the cancer, the only other option is replacing the shell.