I took my car to get my SFC's welded on and the guy called me back an hour later and told me that he looked under the car and found that the floor boards are rotted through in several places. As a result, he could not weld them on. He said that the welder would cut right through to the rug, or that he could poke through the rotted areas with a screwdriver and be hittiing the rug.


I know rust is an issue on thirdgens, but has anyone else had a problem with this or noticed this on their car? What are solutions to fix it? He said he could probably cut the rotted areas out and weld in new, good sheet metal in place. I am sure that will work, but what does everyone else think?


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1989 Chevrolet Camaro IROC-Z
L98 - 350c.i. TPI, rebuilt 700R4 auto w/shift kit, Dual catalyst Monza PaceSetter Cat-Back, SLP 1 5/8 Coated Headers, 3.23 Posi rear, Hypertech Thermomaster chip with 160stat, MSD 6A, March Under-Drive pulleys, AFPR, K&N's, !Air Box w/ Ram Air, moddified MAF, !TB Coolant, Spohn Dual Cat SubFrame Connectors, Alarm, Keyless entry, remote starter, 92 Z28 AeroWing, Brand New Paint (6/21/01)

Future: ZZ4 TPI w/EGR, T56, 3.42 or 3.73, Spohn strut tower brace and LCA's, Accell Universal 24# injectors

More info and pics on my webpage:http://go.to/iroc-z

AOL IMer: GPA 0point0

 

Welding in new sheetmetal is the only way to go. When I purchased my car it came with Ziebart undercoating which was supposed to resist rust and reduce noise.

No probs with rust SO FAR.....

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ORIGINAL OWNER
92 Camaro RS, LO3, 5-spd, T-tops

Performance:
K&N Open Air Filter, Partial TBI mods, Edelbrock performer TBI intake, Fastchip Prom, Timing +4 degrees, Centerforce clutch, Xact 8mm wires, SLP 1 3/4" Headers (coated), Flowmaster Catback Exhaust, Richmond 3:42 gears, Torsen HD Posi
Sights & Sounds:
Alpine 8030 Alarm System, Valentine One Radar Detector (How did I ever drive without one?), Pioneer DEH 7450 Head Unit w/6-pack CD changer, Pioneer DEQ 7600 Sound Processor, 2 Kenwood KAC-846 Amps powering 2 12" Pro Red subs, 2 Pioneer 6x9 and 2 MTX 4x6 speakers. Spectre valve covers and accessories, Z28 grille w/aftermarket lights, MacEwen whiteface gauges
NEXT UP: the rest of the TBI mods & Suspension upgrades

 

You should always put a car up on a lift to check out the underside before purchasing it. When I was looking at my iroc I thought it was way too loud, so I got it up on the lift and found an oil leak and an exhaust leak. Its always a good idea.

 

I had the same thing with mine. Have you taken your spare tire out lately?? You'll most likely find rust in the bottom of the spare tire well. I would never go through the hassle of welding on a floorboard. That's old school. With the sheetmetal epoxies they have out now, which BTW body shops use, the bond is stronger than any weld. (and no warpage). The metal will rip before the epoxy separates. What I ended up doing is finding a donor car at the junkyard, and having the boards fire knifed out. Then cut out your rusty areas on your car, and then cut what is needed from the "donor" boards. Use the epoxy, making sure the mating surfaces are absolutley clean. - Good Luck!

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-1983 L69 Camaro Z28 305 H.O. (Bored .030 over,Teflon oil seals,Melling H.V. oil pump,Hyperetic pistons,chrome-moly rings,T-tops, 3:73 Open rear, BW T-5, Rebuilt E4ME 4 Barrel, Duel Snorkle Air Cleaner w/K&N Filter , Rhino Clutch, Crane 2040 Compu-cam, LS1 valve springs, porting, PST front end kit. Now for paint, interior, etc...etc.... Also:
2000 S10 4.3L 4WD LS
1995 Ford Thunderchicken, 4.6 V-8

 

The sad truth is that if the car is that far gone, the only thing that would save it is an extensive overhaul to the extent of a complete restoration. Needless to say, that is extremely cost prohibitive on something as inexpensive as a thirdgen. As much as it sucks to hear it, vehicle replacement is the most cost effective option. You can spend many hundreds of dollars having floor pans welded in, but if the floor pans are that bad, so is the rest of the undercarrage.

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The IROC Homepage
<A HREF="http://www.rit.edu/~jli4307/camaro" TARGET=_blank>
View the restoration of an 85 IROC</A>
Custom Thirdgen Subwoofer Enclosures
"I didn't know a bored out Ford could go so slow" -Shenandoah

 

I vote for welds, too... have you seen the holes yourself? How large are they? They seem like they're in "key areas" if the guy couldn't weld the SFC's on because of them.

http://www.por-15.com is good stuff for stopping rust if you do the "epoxy" method.


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-Tom P (Hot rodded 1986 Firebird 2.8l)

 

I do not need to replace the whole car, or the entire floor pan. The guy at Wicked Motorsprts said that he will cut the rotted parts out and weld in new metal for like $200. Much better than selling a car that I have over $8000 into.

The rest of the undercarriage is fine... that is what I do not get. The sway bars, exhaust, differential, axels, etc are not rusted out. The guy said that most likely someone was getting in and out of the car with wet feet a lot and was basically just keeping the carpoet wet a lot which caused the floor pan to rot.

Either way, it sux having a used car for over two years and then all of thje sudden you find something new that is and always has been wrong with it. Pukka won't have this problem becuase his signature has the keywords "ORIGINAL OWNER" in it... he knows exatly where his car has been.

[This message has been edited by L98IROCZ89 (edited November 30, 2001).]

 

Not to sound like a smart *** ... but what exactly did you invest 8 thousand dollars in that did NOT require you to at least crawl under the car once ? I dont have anywhere near close to that and I think I know the undercarriage of my car by heart by now.

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1992 Z28 5.7 TPI

ZZ4 longblock
Harland Sharp roller rockers
Accel base and SLP siamesed runners,
52MM SLP Throttle Body
Hooker Headers & Flowmaster catback
MSD6A ignition
aluminum driveshaft
World Class 5-speed

 

That sucks! I havent noticed any rust on the floor boards but both of my cars have rust in the spare tire well (a grinder and $25 hurculiner does wonders) But another spot to watch out for is the window. That rubber molding around the outside of the front window loves to hold moisture and rusts quickly. Take a peek guys I know your gonna find it.
SSC

Edit: Must learn to spell

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85 Camaro Z28, Cowl induction hood, Black-355/TB400,3:42 posi, Tons of goodies but if you ask, "Its stock "
82 Firebird, White, red in six months-355/TB350,3:42 Powertrax posi. Not an insane amount of goodies but it runs like a motha!
76 Chevy C10, Firemist blue, 355/Muncie HD 3speed,3:73 TorqLine posi. Show me another 12sec@4800ft SBC street truck??
91 GMC 1500 Sierra 4x4, Red, Was 4.3 now the proud recipient of the Firebirds LG4. 305/5 speed.
56 Buick Special, OG Blue&White, V8/auto. Maybee one day I'll get it going.

[This message has been edited by SSC (edited November 30, 2001).]

 

I bought the car for $6000 and I have done expensive things to it including new paint and headers... adds up real quick with these things u know? oh well...