Discussion
Hi guys,
When out fitting some new disks/yellow stuff pads/braided hoses today (to get it ready for its 1st track day!) and I have noticed major rust in both sils. I jacked with a trolley jack just inboard from the sisscor jacking point and have punched a hole through the rust. I know I know, its the wrong place but I can't reach anything else with my jack as the car is lowered. Anyway, I didn't take much really as I have pulled another few inches of crumbling sill out with my fingers and I'm sure when I get the screw driver out i'll make it a bit bigger. currently about 3-4 inchs long hole in each sil. I jacked the rear from the double skinned part of the frame rail and that crushed a bit too and water started coming out! Looks like the frame needs patch too. I all feels pretty solid apart from a few small area's. There some bubbling on the arches too.
I'm in a bad mood now and want to frag it and move on but the rest of the car inc engine is so good I'm tempted to buy a new welder (mine is tempermental at mo) and have a crack at welding it. I'm happy about making a repair patch for the frame rail but not sure about the sils? I can weld ok (once I have a bit practice as been a while) but have never done car repairs before. Can you get sil replacement pannels still for eunos or shall I just make up repair patches from sheet steel, cut out the bad metal and weld in the new?
Thoughts on if this is even worth it once the rust has got this far?
When out fitting some new disks/yellow stuff pads/braided hoses today (to get it ready for its 1st track day!) and I have noticed major rust in both sils. I jacked with a trolley jack just inboard from the sisscor jacking point and have punched a hole through the rust. I know I know, its the wrong place but I can't reach anything else with my jack as the car is lowered. Anyway, I didn't take much really as I have pulled another few inches of crumbling sill out with my fingers and I'm sure when I get the screw driver out i'll make it a bit bigger. currently about 3-4 inchs long hole in each sil. I jacked the rear from the double skinned part of the frame rail and that crushed a bit too and water started coming out! Looks like the frame needs patch too. I all feels pretty solid apart from a few small area's. There some bubbling on the arches too.
I'm in a bad mood now and want to frag it and move on but the rest of the car inc engine is so good I'm tempted to buy a new welder (mine is tempermental at mo) and have a crack at welding it. I'm happy about making a repair patch for the frame rail but not sure about the sils? I can weld ok (once I have a bit practice as been a while) but have never done car repairs before. Can you get sil replacement pannels still for eunos or shall I just make up repair patches from sheet steel, cut out the bad metal and weld in the new?
Thoughts on if this is even worth it once the rust has got this far?
Edited by slickchange on Sunday 30th October 16:51
You can get repair panels from MX5parts.co.uk, they aren't cheap though. Before I found out that the internal sills had rusted away too, the garage I use had said that you can use the sill from a Micra to repair the outer sill.
I decided that it wasn't worth fixing mine, but I would have been paying for labour too.
I decided that it wasn't worth fixing mine, but I would have been paying for labour too.
Get the genuine sills if available. They will be easier to fit so the labour bill will be slightly lower.
Additionally remember the sills are a significant part of the strength of a tin top. On a convertible they are even more important.
Also keep all receipts including masses of Waxoyl. Future buyers could well work out they've been changed so you can demonstrate it's been done properly; for those who know these cars it would be an asset.
Additionally remember the sills are a significant part of the strength of a tin top. On a convertible they are even more important.
Also keep all receipts including masses of Waxoyl. Future buyers could well work out they've been changed so you can demonstrate it's been done properly; for those who know these cars it would be an asset.
I feel your pain, my seemingly ok sills have also rusted through on one side, what looked like a bubble quickly turned into a hole when prodded, I fear the worst for the other side.
I too have a nice driving car with solid mechanical bits (sweet 70k mile engine), and am considering a balance between a decent repair costing half the value of the car, or something that's less cosmetically perfect but is still roadworthy and safe.
Heart says repair it, head says stop throwing money at something that's not worth much.
Apparently it's approx £700 to get both sides done properly and painted, or spend an extra £300, buy another solid bodied mk.1 in the same colour, perhaps a bit leggy or tattier inside/roofwise, and break the current car and keep in the garage for spares - anybody done this?!
I too have a nice driving car with solid mechanical bits (sweet 70k mile engine), and am considering a balance between a decent repair costing half the value of the car, or something that's less cosmetically perfect but is still roadworthy and safe.
Heart says repair it, head says stop throwing money at something that's not worth much.
Apparently it's approx £700 to get both sides done properly and painted, or spend an extra £300, buy another solid bodied mk.1 in the same colour, perhaps a bit leggy or tattier inside/roofwise, and break the current car and keep in the garage for spares - anybody done this?!
Pete Franklin said:
As far as i'm aware the outer sill is not structural so as long as the inner sill is ok its just a bodywork problem, might be tough persuading the MOT tester that this is the case though.
Doesn't matter if it's structural or not. ANY rust within something like 6" of a seatbelt mounting point is an MoT fail.Pete Franklin said:
As far as i'm aware the outer sill is not structural so as long as the inner sill is ok its just a bodywork problem, might be tough persuading the MOT tester that this is the case though.
Are you sure? I'm pretty certain inner and outer sills were structural and extremely important on an open car.They will make a difference to the strength of the car and I'm sure Mazda would have designed them to make a contribution; it's strength for no extra weight or cost.
CDP said:
Are you sure? I'm pretty certain inner and outer sills were structural and extremely important on an open car.
They will make a difference to the strength of the car and I'm sure Mazda would have designed them to make a contribution; it's strength for no extra weight or cost.
Well its quite a thin piece of metal and the inner sill is pretty substantial. Could be wrong though. just parroting what the garage bloke said to me.They will make a difference to the strength of the car and I'm sure Mazda would have designed them to make a contribution; it's strength for no extra weight or cost.
Pete Franklin said:
Well its quite a thin piece of metal and the inner sill is pretty substantial. Could be wrong though. just parroting what the garage bloke said to me.
Although it's thin the largish diameter and fact that it's spot welded down the entire length of the cockpit means it will have a significant bracing effect.I can't help thinking that it won't be long before really good MX5s with pop-up headlamps start appreciating.
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