Sills and lower wing fettling

[appletonn]

I've had a quote for fettling the lower front wings (stone chip paint part) and the lower sills (also stone chip part) together with fettling a stone chip derived rust spot on the lower drivers door and then repainting the lower part of the door. To include treating the beginning of a rust scab on the lower front wings inside the wheel arch.

I've been quoted £650 inc VAT, but unsure if that is reasonable or not![8|]

I've decided to bite the bullet and get the car as sorted as i can - I'm keeping it for the forseeable future.

That said, the owner of RS-911 the Porsche restoration specialists, was at Unit 11 the other morning when i dropped in to see Jonny about my broken exhaust stud ( yes, i know, leave it...[8|]) and asked me if I wanted to sell it as he had been looking for one for a while....[]

Ta very much

 

[edh]

It's not too bad I'd have thought - but prices vary tremendously

I paid £350 (cash) for the my sills / lower front wings to be repainted + a small repair to the bottom of the osf wing - this was a small bodyshop attached to a porsche breakers, & did a reasonable job. the car look smuch better now. (Selbys, the Porsche Approved bodyshop in Nottm wanted to almost re-spray the car!)

Make sure they also do the paint just behind the rear wheels - this is likely to have been blasted off by all the debris from the rear tyres

 

[appletonn]

Bump! [][]

 

[Wigeon Incognito]

Nick - where did you manage to get your quote of £650 from?

You already know the details of the work I'm having done to mine but judging by the work it sounds like you're having done (difficult to judge without seeing it of course) £650 sounds reasonable to me.

 

[appletonn]

WI, I'd hoped you be along in aminute as i have lost the details that you kindly gave me for the bodyshop you used for your S2!![8|]

The name has escaped me for the minute, but was recommended by Jonny @ Unit 11 as being good, but not too expensive.

They are on Manchester Road in Warrington.

 

[Wigeon Incognito]

Ahh, using not used yet - it's going in in a couple of weeks. It's Surface & Design on Wakefield Road, Blackpool on 01253 595 800.

Good guys to talk to, they regularly have some amazing cars in the workshop for bodywork (e.g. Jaguar XK150, Aston Martin DB4, TVR Sagaris), and they have a great design department too (working on a new front end for the Ultima GTR at the moment that looks superb). The quote they gave was very reasonable too compared to other places.

As I've said previously, I just hope the work lives up to the impression they give! Their reputation on PH is certainly very commendable.

 

[appletonn]

You're a gentleman - I will give them a ring today.

Are they having to do any metalwork cutting etc or are they just fitting whole new wings?

 

[Wigeon Incognito]

Metalwork cutting, I'd love new wings but can't afford them plus it doesn't look like the damage is extensive enough to warrant them.

The metalwork guy showed me the panels he'd fabricated from scratch for the XK150 which gave me confidence - the shapes and curves he'd created from bare metal really were impressive and seemed to my (admittedly untrained) eye to be immaculately finished.

 

[sawood12]

I think £650 isn't too bad - i've been quoted about £350 per side before. Obviously if you can find someone that would do a cash job then all's the better.

With me staring down the barrel of a potential re-spray I've been thinking about the ultimate treatment for the sills as an alternative. Assuming the rust inside the sills isn't too bad (i'm trying to borrow a boroscope kit from work to see if I can have a good look into mine) I've thought about getting the inside of the sills flushed through with some solvent stuff that will get rid of any waxoil and other rubbish that may have accumilated over the years, spraying some rust treatment stuff in there, then spraying in liberal amounts of some form of paint with an active ingredient e.g. Smoothrite or Red Lead (can you still get that?). The idea is that the inside of the sill is not painted and is relying totally on the zinc coating. As the zinc coating corrodes it exposes naked Steel. However the paint would protect the zinc coating. That way no rust will re-form. For added protection and to purge out any moisture that collects in the future spray liberal amounts of Waxoil or Dinitrol. I think that should stave off the rust for many years to come.

In terms of protecting the outside of the sill I think it would be best to get rid of the mottled Wruth and just have the surface sprayed smooth like the rest of the car, then use that clear plastic sheeting that is becoming quite popular now. You could even extend it all the way upto the mid-height rub strip that runs along the length of the car. I think the car would look so much nicer without the wruth sill.

Another ideal i've been toying with is to connect a hose/duct to that bung that has been mentioned that gives you access to the inside of the sill. Connect the duct to a fan so when the engine is running air is being pumped into the sill cavity. That way you have air flowing out of the small drainage slots that run along the sill that will prevent rubbish entering the sill and actively blow out anything that does get in there.

Regarding the wings - i'm out of ideas. I really don't think weld repairs will last that long, maybe 18 months to 2 yrs. I think the only way to go is to replace the wing or go the GRP route.

 

[appletonn]

Scott, I would have said that aslong as all evidence of local corrosion has been cut away prior to any new metal being let in, and the right paint processes and rustproofing treatments applied, then there should be no reason why that type of repair should last a long time. For a fudgeit & bodgeit type of repair, then I'd agree.

I guess the main advantage of brand new wings is the fact that they'd be galvanised, unlike any new sheet metal let into a repair area.

Unfortunately the cost of new wings versus a proper metal repair panel would lead most people to the repair approach.

 

[Diver944]

ORIGINAL: appletonn

I've been quoted £650 inc VAT, but unsure if that is reasonable or not![8|]

I would imagine at that price it will only include rubbing down and then respraying the required areas. If they find any proper corrosion under there then new bits of metal will be required and the price will start going up

Any rust that is more than the faintest smattering of surface corroison and will not come off with a bit of 400 wet/dry by hand will likely come back at some point. It may take a while but it will be back. Rust is a chemical process, if you leave just one spec of it behind it will grow and reappear []

 

[Peter Empson]

ORIGINAL: sawood12
In terms of protecting the outside of the sill I think it would be best to get rid of the mottled Wruth and just have the surface sprayed smooth like the rest of the car, then use that clear plastic sheeting that is becoming quite popular now.

I thought about that too, in the end I decided the original look was what I wanted (particularly as it would probably yellow on a white car) but I'd be very keen to see someone do this []

 

[sawood12]

ORIGINAL: appletonn

Scott, I would have said that aslong as all evidence of local corrosion has been cut away prior to any new metal being let in, and the right paint processes and rustproofing treatments applied, then there should be no reason why that type of repair should last a long time. For a fudgeit & bodgeit type of repair, then I'd agree.

I guess the main advantage of brand new wings is the fact that they'd be galvanised, unlike any new sheet metal let into a repair area.

Unfortunately the cost of new wings versus a proper metal repair panel would lead most people to the repair approach.

Your probably right especially since i've been lead to believe that the latest acid etch primers that you can get these days are pretty good.

I had my car in at a bodyshop today and all is not as bad as I feared - in fact just the opposite. Even though the chap didn't have x-ray vision and couldn't look into the innards of my sills he was very confident that the small signs of corrosion on my n/s sill are not serious and he complimented the condition of the car. I got a sub £500 quote (cash of course) to sort out the sills ( bit of a weld patch required at the rear corner of the sill where the wheel arch starts), the area behind the rear wheels, a stone chip that has gone a bit nasty on the drivers door and to weld brackets onto the wings to re-attach the under wing plastic trims. So pretty chuffed that a full respray is not required.

 

[appletonn]

Scott that sounds spookily similar to mine - must be these faster red ones...

Have you bought some new fasteners for the plastic sill and wing trims and where did you get them from?

Cheers

 

[Wigeon Incognito]

Nick - mine is booked in to begin its transformation at Surface & Design on the 19th of April.

I'll take some before and after pics and try to get them to take a few photos as they progress so us North West owners can get a good overview of the work in case a bodyshop is needed.

 

[Hilux]

i'm trying to borrow a boroscope kit from work to see if I can have a good look into mine)

Feed a small digital camera into the rear sill vent and click off a load of shots with flash, you`ll get the right one eventually all along the sill............swot I did, worked fine.

 

[edh]

ORIGINAL: sawood12

ORIGINAL: appletonn

Scott, I would have said that aslong as all evidence of local corrosion has been cut away prior to any new metal being let in, and the right paint processes and rustproofing treatments applied, then there should be no reason why that type of repair should last a long time. For a fudgeit & bodgeit type of repair, then I'd agree.

I guess the main advantage of brand new wings is the fact that they'd be galvanised, unlike any new sheet metal let into a repair area.

Unfortunately the cost of new wings versus a proper metal repair panel would lead most people to the repair approach.

Your probably right especially since i've been lead to believe that the latest acid etch primers that you can get these days are pretty good.

I had my car in at a bodyshop today and all is not as bad as I feared - in fact just the opposite. Even though the chap didn't have x-ray vision and couldn't look into the innards of my sills he was very confident that the small signs of corrosion on my n/s sill are not serious and he complimented the condition of the car. I got a sub £500 quote (cash of course) to sort out the sills ( bit of a weld patch required at the rear corner of the sill where the wheel arch starts), the area behind the rear wheels, a stone chip that has gone a bit nasty on the drivers door and to weld brackets onto the wings to re-attach the under wing plastic trims. So pretty chuffed that a full respray is not required.

That's good news Scott - I guess that Tony's doing the job for you? Lets hope it still looks good when he cuts into the sill [].

 

[appletonn]

ORIGINAL: Wigeon Incognito

Nick - mine is booked in to begin its transformation at Surface & Design on the 19th of April.

I'll take some before and after pics and try to get them to take a few photos as they progress so us North West owners can get a good overview of the work in case a bodyshop is needed.

Matt, I will be interested to see the results as I have to get mine sorted, just as soon as I filled up the piggy bank again after my head work - the cars head that is, though now I mention it....[8|][]

 

[sawood12]

ORIGINAL: edh

That's good news Scott - I guess that Tony's doing the job for you? Lets hope it still looks good when he cuts into the sill [].

Yeah it was Tony, but I think i'll get a 2nd opinion from Zentrum - not that I don't trust Tony but I'd just like a 2nd opinion. Having said that Zentrum sorted the rear end out when someone decided I wasn't going to stop at that T-junction and decided to go anyway!! and they reckoned the car was in pretty good nick.

Thankfully he doesn't have to cut into the sill - just the very lower corner of the front edge of the rear wheel arch.

Nick - i've not bought any fasteners for the plastic trim but know that the plastic nuts are 56p each from the OPC and they attach onto a threaded stud that is welded to the chassis. Could these be the cheapest Porsche part you can buy from an OPC??

Paul - I thought about that idea but it is pretty simple and easy for me to get someone at work to use the proper boroscope equipment - just need to find the right person to talk to. These boroscopes are pretty good peices of kit and can get round some pretty tight bends and give good quality hi res images.