Hi All,
I spent the day finally checking out the extent of my rusted floor panel on the driver's side and the below picture link is the combination of pictures taken.

Any advice on the best way to fix this would be greatly appreciated. I don't weld , car is in Monmouth County, NJ, .

Could I run a good gauge-thickness of painted zinc sheet metal the length of damage including under the seat mount and do a combo of things, like on the inside use sheet metal screws, seal it up real good and undercoat underneath? Por 15, anyone? Can I get away with not welding, or must it be welded? I have a bunch of posts on the way to go that I've bookmarked. The seat mount is looking to be rust free, all the welded areas by the rocker panel seem to be fine. But the rear floor pan rust goes pretty far towards the edge of the rocker panel.

Anyway, here's the link and thanks for any advice you can give.

http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2004-9/833956/combotitled.jpg

Thanks everybody.

Michele

'87 245 ,Automatic 200K+

Sorry,this is the link I wanted you to see.



http://www.villagephotos.com/pubbrowse.asp?selected=1013955


After more snipping, here are updated pics. My main concern is that this one picture with the tin snips going thru the car, that that piece isn't part of the frame, but part of the floor pan. I think I found the source of water this past spring when I re-did a really bad bondo job on the rockers and the driver's front quarter-panel. The guy who did it, stuffed the hole with NEWSPAPER!!! of all things. Anyway, I will post these pics. Thanks all for you input.


Another question, where is the plug at the firewall? I want to block that up!!!

I'm going out today to see if I can find a fridge panel,it's recycling day on the jersey shore. are there any Volvo weldin' people on the jersey shore (monmouth county) dying to do some welding?
I swear I'm gonna take a welding class, I'm just not ready to do something dopey like blow my car up, although I've been assured by many on the BB that there's really nothing to it.

Michele

After more snipping, here are updated pics. My main concern is that this one picture with the tin snips going thru the car, that that piece isn't part of the frame, but part of the floor pan. I think I found the source of water this past spring when I re-did a really bad bondo job on the rockers and the driver's front quarter-panel. The guy who did it, stuffed the hole with NEWSPAPER!!! of all things. Anyway, I will post these pics. Thanks all for you input.



http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2004-9/833956/bb10.jpg

Another question, where is the plug at the firewall? I want to block that up!!!

I'm going out today to see if I can find a fridge panel,it's recycling day on the jersey shore. are there any Volvo weldin' people on the jersey shore (monmouth county) dying to do some welding?
I swear I'm gonna take a welding class, I'm just not ready to do something dopey like blow my car up, although I've been assured by many on the BB that there's really nothing to it.

Michele

por-15 works good. but it is messy and expensive. From what I have heard, washing machines are a great source for galvenized metal.

Also, you do need to find the source of the water. do a search on 240 rust and you will come up with a lot of stuff.

As long as the rust hasn't gotten to the frame, you can probably fix this a whole bunch of different ways...

For the most "dependable" fix (in my opinion), I'd probably want to weld several pieces of reinforcing members across the biggest holes, then weld my layer of sheet metal down. Try to cut away as much of the rust as possible, paint anything that can't be cut away. (Autozone has an interesting spray-on product that supposedly turns rust to primer.) Spray plenty of undercoat all over everything.

Don't be intimidated by welding... for example, the learning curve on a MIG/flux welder is ridiculously small... after 10 minutes of practicing on scrap, most people are ready to begin welding (not the greatest looking welds, but structurally sound). You can get a cheap wire-feed welder for around $200 at any Home Depot, Sears, etc. They also have the advantage of being able to plug into an ordinary wall outlet. Some people compare wire-feed welders to using a large glue gun... there honestly isn't much to it. Plus, you can use filler wire thats designed for welding on rusty/flaky steel.

If you do deside to take the welding approach, be aware of anything flammable (fuel lines, etc) within a 20' radius. Plenty of heat and sparks will be generated, so be careful!

The sheet-metal screw approach will also probably work... make sure to seal every gap with silicone sealant (or similiar).

Hope this helps!

12AX7

Had the exact same rust 87 wagon from leaky cargo windows.PO had someone zip screw some sheet metal but it still leaked and really rusted. I had a guy you welded and reinforced all with proper drains for $450. Its alot of money but it will give for more years of the car.Those windows will be sealed forever soon.

I am sorry to see that you have the same problem as my wife's car. 86 240 gl.
unfortunately this kind of corrosion will compromise the safety of the subframe and we have decided to pull the car off the road and use it for parts. Kind of a bummer considering how good the car runs...I would suggest if you have any friends that work at body shops or weld you might want to give them a look and see if they can help you out.
Best of Luck
Ray
--
keep the R's up!

That's a lot of work.

First find the source of the leak that caused that mess. Probably water from the intake grill below windshield got stuck in rocker and rusted through to the interior. I've blocked off my rockers at the area between door seam and fender.
You do have carpet protectors to catch gunk you bring in?

Go for galvanized sheet metal if you can (I got mine from an old pop machine). The Home Depot stuff looks like it will start rusting immediately. But if you lay on the undercoating and rust proofing it should be safe.

I put the car on ramps and worked from below. Gives a better finish, easier to cover jagged edges and holes and easier to cover with undercoating. The carpet will cover unfinished areas and screw intrusions.

I prefer Robertson head sheet metal screws as they don't slip/fall off the driver.

Lot's of work, but it should be worth it.
--
1980 245 Canadian B21A with SU carb and M46 trans

If the rust is not cut out and new steel welded in and painted, the rust will continue to spread. But I assume you're not trying to make this car last 10 more years, but just get you by, keep things dry and go a few more years.

Your idea will work fine. You can get sheet metal at Home Depot or Lowe's in small pieces. You should buy some silicone in a tube that will fit a caulking gun (gun itself is very inexpensive.) It would be nice to bend one edge of the sheet metal up so it will screw to some fairly solid metal under the driver's seat. A vise would help here, but some good pliers may be adequate if you don't get really heavy-gauge sheet metal.

If you have a cordless screwdriver, buy phillips-head sheet-metal screws and you probably won't even have to drill any holes, as the screws will go right through the new piece and the car body. Be sure to caulk with the silicone completely around the edge to seal out water before you screw things down, and again caulk the edge of the metal after you're done. Use plenty of screws, as they'll begin to lose their effectiveness as the floor continues to rust away.

If you had access to a small angle-grinder you could put a cut-off wheel on it and cut the excess rusted metal away. Those pieces peeling away underneath will continue to rust and spread. There are some rust-inhibiting paints that claim to stop rust, and you might use one of those to try and slow the rusting process before you make your repairs. Good luck!

For sealant and strength use polyurethane constructive adhesive instead of silicone.