I found a couple of rust spots under the rear quarter panel on the driver's side. Found the first hole, about the size of a quarter, when I was taking out the trunk liner. Seems the trunk plug was plugged and caused the rust. My Dad did some jazz with some naval jelly, JB Weld, some gutter sealer and a piece of metal. Sandwiched both sides. He swears up and down there won't be any more. He's a 45-yr aviation mechanic so I feel like I have to listen to him but still. Dunno about that.
Found more in the same vicinity, caused by the same plugged up drain. It was hiding under the paint! Damn! Granted, these are small areas, and we had the seats out and the floorboards look brand new, and I crawled around under the car for a week and didn't spot any more. But rust not only eats the car it's eating my sanity. I can't take my mind off of it. I feel like it's eating the sheetmetal right now. I can almost feel it. I can get to both sides, and will temp fix it with some Rust Bullet stuff. I had to order it online; it will arrive next Thursday. My latest rust discovery was achieved by scrutinizing my father's work and playing around with a loose paint chip close to the repair he had made. I picked it off and saw that there was rust underneath.
I am embarrassed that I bought a car with rust when I know to run away from them, for rust is like an iceberg. I got fooled.
I wanted a city beater, and when I first saw this car it exceeded my expectations. It runs well, and it's comfortable and shiny(everywhere but that little spot behind the rear wheel that is). I am starting to get attached to it. I want to make it right. Now, I am determined to get this small amount of rust fixed by a professional, but maybe next year when I can better fit the work into my budget.
I'll post some pics if I can get some that show the rust well enough. It's by the driver's side trunk drain. How much will my car continue to rust until next week when I can get some temp fix on it?
Rust drives me nuts man. I thought this car was free of it. But I am determined to save it! I will not fail.
Oh yeah, the old man told me that cutting out sheetmetal and welding new in place will set up a scenario where the new welds rust out super fast. What is up with that? Is there any way to save a car at all that has a little rust on it? Is it even worth it? Sheesh I'm going out of my mind over here.

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'02 BMW 325i
'85 300D 450k
'93 190E 2.6 170k(killed by tree)
'08 Ducati Hypermotard 1100S 6k
'06 Ducati S2R800 14k(sold)

D.

Believe my your rust isn't as bad as you think.

There is a product called POR 15 (pour on rust)
and it seems that it works fairly well in fixing
holes and preventing the rust from spreading.

If you think yours is bad just look at the pics
of my floor boards on the passenger side.

Louis.

Attached Thumbnails

 

Get a grinder, grind it down to shiny metal. Than fill the hole with a good Marine epoxy/filler, Marine Tex works well and will only run you about $10. After the hole is filled in and all the rust is down to shiny metal, paint with a good oil based paint. After that your set for the next 20 or so years.

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1999 SL500
1969 280SE
2023 Ram 1500
2007 Tiara 3200

Rust kinda puts the zap on my head. I am in the process of executing the repair, as soon as I receive the POR I ordered I'll get right on it. No place convenient in my neighborhood to buy the stuff, had to order it.
I just hope I don't end up having to grind the whole damn rear end off on account of rust under the paint. That would be my luck. I once gave myself a haircut with electric clippers, trouble was I lost the length guides so I had to do it freehand. Did one side at a time. When one side ended up shorter than the other, I compensated by trimming the other side. I ended up with a shaved head. I have a sneaking suspicion this will be a similar situation.

__________________
'02 BMW 325i
'85 300D 450k
'93 190E 2.6 170k(killed by tree)
'08 Ducati Hypermotard 1100S 6k
'06 Ducati S2R800 14k(sold)

hah i got you beat. i bought an extremly rust car. i almost have all of it gone. i replaced 1'x1' pieces of metal in the rear wheel wells. its really easy to do. i used rivets,por-15,bondo,and bailys undercoating. looks really good. the trick is to not remove too much of the rusty metal and you will have plent to attach to. atleast the wheel wells dont have to look that good. i had to do the drivers door on mine. cant even tell anything ws wrong with it. now im in the process of getting the shape back on my passengers door. just takes time. i would post some pics but my pc wont downsize them properly.

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have no worries.....President Obama swears "If you like your gun, you can keep it

First... How old are you ? and is this your first car ? If not, how old were the other cars you have owned ?

It sounds like you have plenty of energy.... and that the rust is messing with your head...

Rust is the bane of my existance... I live in a warm humid climate... thankfully I an not near salt water breezes....

Don't do anything with the POR15 for at least a week after it arrives....

You have some general knowledge you need to acquire before you apply the POR15.... which is wonderful stuff.... and you are in the same boat as everyone else with regards to buying access.... perhaps the limitied shelf life or their marketing decisions make mail order the norm....

Have you read in any books about treating rust ?
Have you read any books about painting automobiles ?
Have you read the instructions on the side of " Navel Jelly" , " metalprep" , " phosphoric acid" ?
There are a couple of concepts which you need to be familiar with.... one is " chemically clean"..... .and the other is " gripping surface"...
Go to the Eastwood Company web site and order their paper catalog... and then read it from front to back... You should also pick up a copy of ' Hemmings Motor News' ..... and look under the ads at least in the services available for restoration... have a magnifying glass when you start.. small print... and addictive reading for old car guys...
What sort of tools do you have available for your use ? Air compressor ? Paint gun ? Organophosphate mask ?
Particularly check out sand blasters which can be directed to a few square inches at a time.... and which have vacuum hookups that take away the sand as it is being shot.....
Will post more if you answer the above questions...

The key to getting rid of rust is you need to expose all of it, so start chipping aways the paint until you find un rusted metal. If you leave any under the paint it will just keep rusting and you will have wasted your time.

I like have had good results using a stiff wire wheel on a 25krpm air grinder, it will take the rust down to good metal really fast and not harm the good metal.

__________________
1999 SL500
1969 280SE
2023 Ram 1500
2007 Tiara 3200

Most paints used on cars have lead in them...
I have posted the EPA site which talks about this... check archives...
so it is MUCH BETTER to get paint off using a stripper and spatula...and dispose of it correctly.... than to make it into air borne particles which will be all over your workshop...

The paint will gone where it is rusted, so grinding can't do much harm? I also was wearing a mask. I usually probe with a screwdrive until all of the rust is exposed.

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1999 SL500
1969 280SE
2023 Ram 1500
2007 Tiara 3200

The grinder was the way to go many years ago (50?) but has been proven time and time again to be less than effective. Chemical rust treatment is far superior. Last I heard no automotive manufacturer had approved the chemical treatment of rust, that may have changed. Sandblasting is the ultimate solution for rust.

You have to get rid of the rust or it will just come back. I rather start with nice shiny fresh metal to paint.

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1999 SL500
1969 280SE
2023 Ram 1500
2007 Tiara 3200

32 yrs old
architect
live in NW DC off Connecticut Ave
not my first car
all the other cars I have owned have been about 15 yrs old on average, save for a Z28 that was new
have used naval jelly, have not necessarily read the label however
I don't exactly have a plethora of tools at my disposal, just a wire brush and a screwdriver. I might go out and buy an inexpensive angle grinder and a wire wheel if nobody here in the office has one I can borrow. I ordered Rust Bullet, which supposedly beat POR 15 in some tests. Probably very similar stuff. The reason I bought it was it dries metallic gray which is close to the color of the car. The rust is thankfully in a very inconspicuous spot, like on the borderline where the undercoating meets the paint behind the driver's rear wheel well.
Anyway all I am looking for is a solution that will freeze rust activity until next year sometime when I can get it to a body shop. The rest of this car is too good to let one little spot take it down. If I lived at home in GA I'd have access to all kinds of tools. But here I don't.

__________________
'02 BMW 325i
'85 300D 450k
'93 190E 2.6 170k(killed by tree)
'08 Ducati Hypermotard 1100S 6k
'06 Ducati S2R800 14k(sold)

I was hoping my Dremel would be sufficient for grinding down the couple of rust spots I have. Is this unlikely to be sufficient? Looking at a few rust problems myself, was thinking about starting to address them this weekend.

OK, that changes everything....
I suggest you get one of the " pin point' sand blasters.... clean the area , shoot it with a rust preventative primer and a normal coat of normal paint...
Once you put something like you have ordered on it.... it is a much larger job to deal with next spring... this is also the case when deciding to use fiberglass on a repair... it takes away some options like cutting the affected area out with a torch....often the best way to do it.... ( if you know what you are doing )...
This method will keep all options open to the guys you pay to fix it in the spring... and stop the rust in the mean time...
I know that POR 15 is good stuff... I don't know about the other substitutes.. I wait a long time... usually a decade when stuff like that comes out... but POR15 has been advertized and talked about for 30 years in Hemmings... and I have not heard any bad things about it... except that to follow directions ( VERY IMPORTANT ON ANY SYSTEM ).... it is sometimes a pain to accomplish the NO MOISTURE before applying condition....

Nice car. That is an odd interior color combination. Maybe it just looks strange bacause my 300D has an all blue interior. The blue dash with tan really throws me. Not bad, just different.

I got rust issues on that car too. Body shop told me that a rear quarter panel was replaced at one point and painted without proper prep work. Lots of rust spots now. I keep waiting for my 17 year old to run into something to see if it is going to be around long enough to fix.

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Alan Hamm
'87 300SDL 277K Miles
'89 560 SL 68K Miles