And so it starts.....

This morning Mika arrived at her new home. I had to explain to per previous young female owner that while the intention was to restore her and give her a new life as a rally/kahna competition car, the level of hidden rust would be the decider.
I was tipped of about this car by my mechanic(thanks Peter) it used to be owned by one of his staff so we knew a fair bit about the state of the motor and gearbox.
 Pics to follow (once I convince my long suffering wife that we need a cheap digital camera)

Charles.

:cry:
After a morning pulling up carpets and deadening, I have to admit that this may not be the chasis to restore. The rust I found under the passenger seat mount turned out to be far worse than I had hoped. The pics say it all  :cry:  :cry:

C

 http://www.malamovers.com/manage/image.php?output=tag&id=59

 http://www.malamovers.com/manage/image.php?output=tag&id=60

 http://www.malamovers.com/manage/image.php?output=tag&id=61

 http://www.malamovers.com/manage/image.php?output=tag&id=62

 http://www.malamovers.com/manage/image.php?output=tag&id=63

 http://www.malamovers.com/manage/image.php?output=tag&id=64

Hard to tell from the photos what is rust and what is metallic brown paint - so thats why that was a popular colour in the 70's   . Looks like quite a few holes in the floor pan, plus that A post looks a bit scary around the hinges. Has it been welded up around the lower hinge? That shell is going to take a lot of patching and you can bet that ther be plenty rust hidden away in the arches and inner wings. To be honest I'd strip it for spares and look for another shell unless you've got your heart set on using this one.

Cheers

I think you are right. The effort and costs in building the cage etc will far outstrip the price of the basic shell. I have however scored a heap of good bits… all the rubbers seem fine (no cracking in door seals etc) glass is good, and the engine has had "flat-top" high compression pistons fitted. This plus the 5 speed gearbox are all worth the $500 I paid for the car.
I will continue to strip it but without much hope in using the chassis.

C

Looks despite the little pics at first glance good :

But i have seen this before .

            If its terminal here whats the rear sills like ?
And the rear chassis legs ? You have to ask your self , am i going to restore this or look for something better but at the end of the day you will struggle to find a better example for little money . Stick with it , restore it and enjoy it …. Small light examples are becoming rare ….And this nice looking Golf deserves a second chance .

Good luck Chudd…

Looks nice despite the rust - weld it up !!!  I remember replacing the bottom 4 or 5 inches of metalwork all round my old Beetle. Logic said I should have scrapped it, but you'll get a buzz out of having saved it !  The pics you posted don't show anything terminal IMO - as Chudd said, if the rear beam mounts, sill (rocker panel) ends, etc, are falling to bits, then you've got probs. Otherwise stock up on repair panels and crank up the MIG !!!
Good luck with it,
Mark

Save it - If you can weld then take it step by step replacinga section at a time.  Don't cut out the whole lot in one go.

The satisfaction of taking a rusty shell to one that is rust free is very very rewarding - if you've got the time  

Just to depress you even more…..

 8)






mmmmmmmm tasty!

I've seen a lot worse rust on a Mk1 (some of which is on cars that I own!).

As above, if the ends of the sills and the chassis rails that go out to the bumpers are ok, then weld it up, espcially as it's a small rear-light model…

Thanks Carbs… rub it in why dont you      
Seriously I love the jig you made, spotted it before in your full resto post, nice work!!!
I am still undecided but will continue the stripping exercise. If I can find another floorpan to cut up I will grab it.
Anyone seen lower hinge damage like this before? My mechanic does not seem worried "just weld a plate behind it" he sez
I spent some time this afternoon hitting some of the surface rust patches with rust-convert stuff.. cracked up when I saw that most of the "rust" was the original metalic brown that the cheap re-spray had flaked off :roll:

Thanks for all the advice gang

Charles.

Sorry BlueRex couldn't resist!

Seriously though - I never seen hinges like that before - must have had stress damage or something - check the panel gaps etc wings bonnet front panel - may have accident damage??? Just a thought..

Get all the rust areas located and then assess the shell - may be cheaper and less hassle to locate another shell??

Or as said above lot of satisfaction from replacing with new metal and sure whats the rush!

Get all the underseal off the underside and it'll be easier to tackle the problems.

Is there a magic solution for removing underseal?
I am considering contacting my local mobile sandblasting contractor for a quote, especially since I think I want to go back to bare metal where ever possible (still laughing at the brown metalic "rust" spots all over the car).

C

the shot will just embed in the sealer - as is so flexible..

You need either a heat gun and paint scraper or a grinder with a wire brush on it - it did the grinder routine - worked well and was very messy! definatley outside good weather work - as in my pics! did mine in August last year!

The litle brown golf is a work in (slow) progress.



I managed to get the all the windows out with both glass AND rubbers intact WAHOO!!!!



Really glad I did get the glass out as it revealed some potentially nasty rust, easily killed at this stage.


Engine out, old carbie off


Webbery Goodness (with thanks to Mr Peter)


Before…


After  

Looking good - you been working hard!!

I notice the after pic shows a much cleaner engine bay - but lacks an engine.  I good case for fuel saving but not sure if you'll be impressed with the 0-60  

Mind you you could go really "old skool" with it and get a horse to pull it.  

No - seriously - good work  8)

Cool keep at it man - lookin good.

Stick with it buddy, it doesnt alway make sense at first-finish it!
PS is that Curly Watts of Coronation Street fame tinkering with your motor?

Engine……. DOH!!!!
I guess I got carried away with the weight reduction.ops:
As for Curly's help… I''ll  get back to you  

Charles.

That is Curly Watts! 8O

Nice work dude 8)