Frame rust

[Lateralus]

So my frame rails on each side are rusted through about 3 inches from where the trailing arms connect in the rear, the size of the holes are about two/three inches long. I was wondering if anyone else has ever gotten their frames fixed from rust, and what the estimated cost to fix them would be. I only payed $300 for the car, interior is pretty much mint, no dents on the body etc. and the only problem with the engine is that I need a valve cover gasket, so i really don't want to part it out or junk it :/


(Also wasn't sure where to post this so if it's in the wrong category sorry for that)

[wytbishop]

well it's a unibody car so technically there's no "Frame" to speak of. The outer body of the car, the inner fenders and strut mount pockets, and the floor come together at the rocker panels to work together to make the whole thing strong.

So that hole is probably in the floor pan or inner fender. If you can access it easily with the suspension and stuff removed it's not so bad to fix. The trouble comes when you have to cut out good metal to access the bad parts that it gets really hard to make repairs.

[Ryan]

I'd say that most of us have this problem (the seam back there)...

And I've never seen any structural difference. My rails are bulging with rust back there, but when I jack up the front wheel, the whole car lifts sideways, two tires off the ground.

If I were to repair it, I'd strip it as good as possible, rustolem the s--- out of the inside of the old rail, and find a C channel that fit as good as possible, and either weld/bolt it over the old rail.

[Lateralus]

Thanks for the quick replies. Yeah i'm going to try to find a welder or someone that i know that can do it for cheap, it's still structurally strong but wont pass inspection with any holes in it. I would like to get the whole body underneath coated with rustoleum before winter comes too. The salt will destroy it in it's current condition.

At first I thought it was just a small hole but i poked it with a screwdriver about a half an inch from it and it went right through :/
Getting it put on a lift tomorrow also so i'll be able to see how bad it really is, ill update with pics hopefully.

[Daninski]

I think your only option is to go from body shop to body shop and get estamits. You need to replace the metal in that area and doing that is a difficult job. Safety is also an issue in that the trailing arms could break free.

Welding + Interior trims=Fire

Remove any trim that could catch fire or melt from the areas to be repaired/welded.

[wytbishop]

Once you start looking for rust you will inevitably find a LOT more than you thought there was. I'll pray for you.

Not really...I don't pray. It's a figure of speech.

[Lateralus]

Sad day...

Car is pretty much rotted out, rocker panels, frame rails, trailing arms, fuel/brake lines, exhaust, pretty much the whole body has rust on it. Crazy how much more you can see with a car over your head.

Going to try selling as whole, but if anyone wants any little things i can ship out, let me know :/

[wytbishop]

Breaks my heart to see another MX-3 die of cancer.

[Lateralus]

Breaks my heart to see another MX-3 die of cancer.

Yeah I had so many plans for it too

But I know a guy selling a 93, i think he wants $4k for it, and from what i heard, he has a ze in it already so I'm going to get a hold of him hopefully.

[Inodoro Pereyra]

Lateraius, where do you live?

I may be looking for a project car, soon enough...

[Lateralus]

Pennsylvania. About an hour 1/2 east of Pittsburgh.

[Inodoro Pereyra]

Damn!
Nevermind. Long trip from Miami...

[Lateralus]

To get an idea, here's the right rocker panel. (only pic i got) Was to pissed to worry about pics at the time.

That was all peeled off by hand, i could rip about another 2 inches off if i tried, i can also touch the carpet.

[Josh]

I am glad I live on the west coast where we don't use salt on the roads.... Holly crap

You are going to have to cut all that out and replace with new, or another rocker from a car that's not as bad. just do me a favor and do not fiberglass that Please

[wytbishop]

FYI...I was doing this very same thing on my car last month and after some investigation with the help of my local Mazda dealer I found out that there are no driver's side rocker panels available anywhere in the world, but there are 5 passenger's side ones in a warehouse in Japan. I also found out that there is a right and a left rear quarter panel in a warehouse in Toronto and she thinks that's it. None anywhere else that she could find.

Rockers are about $200ea and the rear quarters are $625ish each. I didn't ask about floor pans but I would say that the chances are extremely slim.