Oh Dear - my body's going rusty...

simonineaston · Post by **simonineaston** » Tue Aug 14, 2007 2:54 pm

Because I'm working on the engine's head, I've taken lots of bits off under the bonnet, so I can now see how much rust there is in my nearside inner wing. I don't really know anything much about rusty panels, MOTs, and welding, so I'd appreciate your comments on how this rust issue could affect the long-term prospects for my BX - will it cause an MOT failure? Is this going to be dear to fix? Does it bode ill for the rest of the vehicle? etc. etc.
I've added this link to my space on Picasa - try as I might I can't get the hang of posting pix to this forum - hard to believe I work in IT isn't it...??!!
http://picasaweb.google.com/SimoninEast ... enBXEngine
I'll have another go at uploading pix again, after 5 p.m.

as well as adding a couple of posts to the topic I started on The Bubbles - I've got the head off and... I'd better leave for now, and get some work done before the boss notices that I'm doing something more interesting!

Ian_Fearn · Post by **Ian_Fearn** » Tue Aug 14, 2007 4:32 pm

I suspect an MOT tester would fail that.

BX's are a bit funny with rust. I've had BX's where the A pillar has been completely rotted through but the rest of the car was mint.

My Hurricane was rotten underneath but the A, B, C pillars and inner front wings were fine.

Best get under it and check it out!

DLM · Post by **DLM** » Tue Aug 14, 2007 6:21 pm

This is one of the commonest places for a BX to rust - and to my eyes that rust is about about as bad as it gets. An extensive repair is needed.

As for Ian's suggestion that BX rust is difficult to predict, I do know from experience that different BXs rust in different places, but some spots are almost universal. For example, the boot floor on hatches at the junction with the rear panel, and the l/h wheel arches on estates around the bumper mounting. More and more I'm seeing rust bubbling through in the front of rear wheel arches (open the rear doors), and the last two estates I've owned have suffered sill rust at one time or another.

Also watch out for rust biting into the inner arches around the points where there are metal plates folded over: sometimes it's pretty harmless, at other times it's very much worse than it looks, particularly if the car has suffered a collision at some point.