I have noticed that on my Formula, on the DS shock tower, there is an area with bubbling paint and what I assume underneath to be surface rust. I can take pics tomorrow, but I am talking about an area approximately the size of a piece of pizza. What is the best course of action to deal with this? I want to kill the rust, of course, because it is my greatest enemy! But, do I go through the hassle of having some red paint custom mixed so that I can sand down the area and then spray it myself, like with one of those Pre-Val sprayer things? I don't have a spray gun or compressor, so I can't spray it like a pro. Should I just take it to a body shop and see what they'd charge?

Any advice appreciated.

Dave

 

Simple course of action is cut the rust out and weld in new metal. As for paint, that's 100% up to you. Some people have had good experiences with rattle can paints and others are a bit more skeptical. It should be fine for an under hood application though. The only problem is color matching.

If I were you I would just fix the rust and then cover the new metal in a sealer and then do the whole engine bay at once if/when you have the engine out. Masking/painting with everything installed, depending on where the rust is, would me a major pita.

I fixed some wheel well rust a few months ago. The new metal is coated in por15. I will be stripping down the whole bay in the spring and then painting everything with por15. I don’t mind the flat black and it protects my car.

 

POR-15 comes in flat black? But regardless, be sure to sand the metal first before applying, or it'll fall right off!

 

Thanks for the ideas. I don't think the rust is anywhere near the stage of requiring the metal to be cut out and new metal welded in. Pressing down hard with my thumb, the metal does not yield.

If I try to match the paint, where can I get my paint code from? If it's the sticker on the DS door jamb, I'm in trouble because it is illegible.

 

Try this...

http://www.sherwin-automotive.com/fo...form_vcn=&dm=1

 

Also, these people will put your paint in a rattle can for you. They also have primer and clear. It won't be as good as doing it right, but I don't know what your car looks like, it might be good enough.

http://www.automotivetouchup.com/spray_paint.asp

 

Both of those links are very helpful, thank you.

My Formula is a driver, not a show car, so perfection is not currently required.