Author Topic: Rust nightmare :( (Read 4877 times)

VW Scully · « **on:** April 29, 2008, 09:42:33 pm »

My poor BioBunny has been diagnosed with cancer of the windshield frame :roll:
This car is virtually rust-free everywhere else and we didn't even know how bad it was under the windshield and A pillar until we took the old windshield out......then....... Ay carumba!!! :shock:

HUGE hole and the bottom of the A pillar on the Drivers' side is completely rotted. Now at least I know where the water was coming from under my fresh air fan! :roll:

Anyway, does anyone have any parts from a rust-free (or at least LESS rusty Rabbit!?). I have been trying to source out aftermarket panels, but nobody seems to make THAT part any more! :x
I'd also like to not have to travel to the UK or California for my parts either! :roll:
(I'm in SW Ontario Canada :wink: ).
Any help is appreciated.
Thanks!

blkboostedtruck · « **Reply #1 on:** April 29, 2008, 10:08:01 pm »

try rabbitparts.com they have the cowl peices!
thanks Duane

lord_verminaard · « **Reply #2 on:** May 02, 2008, 09:41:08 am »

Yikes! Well, look at it this way, I'd rather have rust on top than underneath!

Good luck, I've seen people fix cowl rust that was much worse than that. I'm just hoping that my Rocco won't have the same issue.

Brendan

TOW'D · « **Reply #3 on:** May 02, 2008, 09:58:58 pm »

I sent you a PM
hank

VW Scully · « **Reply #4 on:** May 02, 2008, 11:39:01 pm »

Guys thanks for the offers but a local buddy came through for me and found me the parts!

We're gonna break out the old welder next week! I'll post progress

.

And yeah, that is really the only rusty spot on the car. Just sucks that it had to be so damn BIG! :shock:

burn_your_money · « **Reply #5 on:** May 03, 2008, 08:54:26 am »

Glad to hear you found the pieces. Best of luck with the surgery.

demolition dave · « **Reply #6 on:** May 03, 2008, 01:10:20 pm »

turns out i need to perform an almost identical repair.... you have access to more repair sections?

VW Scully · « **Reply #7 on:** May 04, 2008, 10:48:44 pm »

Actually we found the part on a donor Rabbit.

Good luck with your search! I still got a lot of work to do!
Prepping and cutting and welding and Bondoing and sanding and more sanding and painting and then I gotta put the new windshield in! :shock:

Dr. Diesel · « **Reply #8 on:** May 08, 2008, 03:45:32 am »

glad to see someone willing to save an old rabbit! I know of a fellow who stumbled across a MINT >150,000km turbodiesel rabbit. but then promptly drove it all winter (total saltfest here in ontario!) and now it's all rusty. The car had been owned by a crazy old german guy and stored the last 9 years. So frustrating to see an old diesel classic like that just getting bent over.

I've been working on a guy's syncro lately, long list of work including changing the supercharger. (the replacement volksport overhauled unit failed within a minute of running, and now it's a normally aspirated G60. Don't buy from them!) The day after returning the car to him, he called saying he could see some sort of hole in the body. He brought it back and popped the hood.
this can't be good, I thought.

The top of the driver side strut tower had sneakily rusted where the undercoating hadn't been properly sprayed. (that vw factory worker must have had too much beer and oom pa pa the night before) Most of the spot welds had torn away. It was quite a mess. The poor guy was quite distraught, having had already commit and spent $$$ to fix up the old syncro before this happened.
Anyway, with 8 hours, a heat gun and a scraper, 1/3 bag of blasting sand, some sheet metal, and a really irritating-to-use-upside-down welder, it's good to go again.

pics!
strut removed, looking up/aft

up/fwd

underhood

End result, properly sealed with rubberized undercoating

It's usually not as bad as it looks. Fix em, don't scrap em!

Nice job Scully. Looking forward to the finished pics!

VW Scully · « **Reply #9 on:** July 11, 2008, 10:53:23 pm »

Ok so she's all better now!

Here's some pics of the progress!

getting prepped; all the rot is cut out and new cowl will be welded in.

trimming it to fit the donor piece!

welding in the new piece!

ta-da!!

All better and at June Jitter Bug this year!

See you at BugOut on Sunday!

Kudagra · « **Reply #10 on:** July 12, 2008, 10:52:28 am »

Good deal...back on the road where she belongs.

BlackTieTD · « **Reply #11 on:** July 23, 2008, 12:40:34 pm »

repair looks good scully, checked it out at jjb. :mrgreen:

rallydiesel · « **Reply #12 on:** July 23, 2008, 01:55:54 pm »

Awesome job. That's one of the few good things about living in Saskatchewan, they don't salt the roads (except the highways but only as a last resort). Makes for interesting driving if you don't have winter tires whcih most people don't :roll: .