Minor rust problem

[tusker]

My '87 (pre facelift) 318i is immaculate apart from a rust bubble on the nearside rear wheel arch. My local body shop say that it's not worth patching up because once the rust is in between the outer and inner skin there's no stopping it and the only solution would be to replace the panels. They recommend treating it with waxoyl to slow down the spread.

Because of the value of the car (even showroom, 80k miles and fbmwsh it can't be worth more than Ԛ£1000) and it's only a small spot I can't really justify spending so much money.

I trust thier advice because it's clearly not motivated by self-interest but the rust spot is like a wart on the face of a beautiful woman - I want it gone.

Any advice?

[bullitt]

Can you post up a pic of the rust bubble to see if it is possible to repair it ??

Im in the bodywork trade..

[tusker]

Cheers, have a look at these:







thanks

[bullitt]

Ok Tusker..

In the second pic there will be is a hole hiding behind that bubble.. If you are on a tight budget grind out as much rust as possible and treat it with rust inhibitor (Krust or Loctite rust remedy) use P40 fiberfill to repair the hole, brush some sikaflex underseal onto the inside of the arch, a skilled paint sprayer should be able to blow in the wheelarch lips.. Then plenty of waxoyl on the inner/outer arch..

Hope this helps...

[Jos]

If you take the carpet out of the boot, the side bits that is, you will be able to get to the inside of the inner arches, on my '85 e30 these were much much worse than they looked from the outside and were worse than the outer arches too. Get loads of rust inhibitor in there 1st, then Waxoyl the life out of it.

Even with all that, expect to have to do something about it again sometime in the future, the only way to cure the rusty arch problem is to remove the rusty arch

[tusker]

Thanks Guys

[Davenotouring]

What do you recommend grinding down with chaps?

Wire brush on a drill?

[bullitt]

Wire brush on a drill?

Use a 4" grinder for heavier rust with a 60 grit flexidisk and a selection of wire brush type drill attachments for the harder to reach places..

I use an MBX which is a industrial air powered rotary type wire brush..

[tusker]

Isn't metallic paint diffcult to blend in? Had some repairs done on the other wheel arch ('cos some idiot hit it in a car park) and the body shop said that they needed to paint the whole panel to ensure that it matched properly.

[bullitt]

A paint supplier should have a scanner to get a colour match of a panel on your car or a bodyshop should take the time to spray a few test cards to make a match..