How bad is this rust? (Page 1/3)
dizzie MAY 13, 05:58 PM
I'm curious to know owners' thoughts on how severe the rust is in the first set of images below and what kind of maintenance I'd be in for if I purchased a car like this. I'm also wondering if there was a rust treatment done in the second set of images and if it could be covering up problems?

I'll mention that I'm not a mechanic, though I have a good one that I have a great relationship with - I'd probably be paying him to do any work. I wouldn't be planning to do any heavy work myself. The most involved thing I've ever done on a car before is pulling a door apart in order to install new armrest leather.

I've been looking at some various sales and seeing a wide range of underbody conditions. When I actually get to see one in person, I'll be sure to lift up the corners of the trunk carpet and slide under the car myself. I don't have any kind of a camera scope, but I figure it could be worth poking my phone around to make a video to look at, too.

Thanks for taking a look!

1) rusty car:











2) clean(er) car?:





[This message has been edited by dizzie (edited 05-13-2024).]

cartercarbaficionado MAY 13, 06:01 PM

quote
Originally posted by dizzie:

I'm curious to know owners' thoughts on how severe the rust is in the first set of images below and what kind of maintenance I'd be in for if I purchased a car like this. I'm also wondering if there was a rust treatment done in the second set of images and if it could be covering up problems?

I'll mention that I'm not a mechanic, though I have a good one that I have a great relationship with - I'd probably be paying him to do any work. I wouldn't be planning to do anything heavy. The most involved thing I've ever done on a car before is pulling a door apart in order to install new armrest leather.

I've been looking at some various sales and seeing a wide range of underbody conditions. When I actually get to see one in person, I'll be sure to lift up the corners of the trunk carpet and slide under the car myself. I don't have any kind of a camera scope, but I figure it could be worth poking my phone around to make a video to look at, too.

Thanks for taking a look!

1) rusty car:



I sincerely hope that you are a real person this time.
Patrick MAY 13, 06:04 PM
The location we tell everyone to check is the rear upper frame rails.

Recent thread... Frame rust???

[This message has been edited by Patrick (edited 05-13-2024).]

dizzie MAY 13, 06:10 PM

quote
Originally posted by cartercarbaficionado:

I sincerely hope that you are a real person this time.



I am! I'm not coffeegirl or whatever - I just saw that post after I did this one. I understand the skepticism since this is my first post, though. I just got interested in Fieros recently. Hopefully this will develop into a long-standing journey that doesn't send me to the poor house!

dizzie MAY 13, 06:12 PM

quote
Originally posted by Patrick:

The location we tell everyone to check is the rear upper frame rails.

Recent thread... Frame rust???




Thanks! I did take a look at that thread.

I should probably realize this, but is there any easy way to check that when I go out to look at one? I'm assuming the trunk carpet trick doesn't really cover looking at those upper frame rails.
Patrick MAY 13, 06:30 PM

quote
Originally posted by dizzie:

I should probably realize this, but is there any easy way to check that when I go out to look at one? I'm assuming the trunk carpet trick doesn't really cover looking at those upper frame rails.



Just looking under the trunk carpet is IMO a lazy way of checking for upper frame rail rust. Better than not looking at all perhaps, but not by much. The plastic wheel well liners need to be at least loosened and pulled down a bit in order to properly check the rear upper frame rails for rust and lack of structural integrity.


quote
Originally posted by Patrick Here:

I was at a friend's place looking over his recently purchased SBC '86 Fiero. I removed the inner fenders to have a look at the "hidden" areas. The driver's side was fine. The passenger side looked like this...



That's looking up towards the back of the car.


[This message has been edited by Patrick (edited 05-13-2024).]

dizzie MAY 13, 06:56 PM

quote
Originally posted by Patrick:





Hmm, ok - hopefully the owner will allow me to do that! Thanks for the tip there, Patrick.
Patrick MAY 13, 07:30 PM

quote
Originally posted by dizzie:

Hmm, ok - hopefully the owner will allow me to do that!



Well, if you're possibly paying the current owner thousands of dollars for the car, then either he should let you do it... or he can loosen the plastic wheel well liners himself to let you have a look.
dizzie MAY 13, 07:41 PM

quote
Originally posted by Patrick:

Well, if you're possibly paying the current owner thousands of dollars for the car, then either he should let you do it... or he can loosen the plastic wheel well liners himself to let you have a look.



Point taken!
82-T/A [At Work] MAY 13, 07:45 PM
Other than the upper frame rails... neither car looks bad. The more black looking one has clearly been sprayed with rubberized undercoating, while the top one has surface rust on extraneous parts... but nothing that I see as an "issue."

Personally, for a private seller, they're probably not going to allow you to take down the wheel well liner... but that's what I would look at it they did. I always start in the trunk because if there's rust in there, there will definitely be rust in the frame rails.