Discussion
Hi, i was washing and claying my car yesterday when i noticed that the bottom edge of the drivers side rear door, felt very rough. Upon closer inspection it looks like the drain holes in the skin of the door were blocked, and the bottom of the door is rusty!
It is a 2004 (Mk 1.5) Ford Focus. I'm looking to change it soon, so am not too worried, but if i was keeping it, what is the best course of action? New door, body shop?? Any comments welcome.
It is a 2004 (Mk 1.5) Ford Focus. I'm looking to change it soon, so am not too worried, but if i was keeping it, what is the best course of action? New door, body shop?? Any comments welcome.
If you can, take a picture. It all depends how bad it is.
If you wanted a quick repair to tidy it up, you could always do it yourself. The process (in very simple terms of course.) usually consists of...
1. Grinding the rust patch back to bare metal
2. Apply a rust killer, like K-Rust.
3. Let K-Rust do it's thing, then clean the panel as best as you can.
4. Apply filler and then let it go hard, then sand back to make as smooth as possible.
5. Clean the panel again, then apply primer.
6. Once the primer has hardened, wet sand and then clean again.
7. Apply the paint. Again, once that has hardened, clean the panel.
8. Last part, is the lacquer. Once this has been applied and hardened, you may need to wetsand it to get rid of any dirt in the paint. After wet sanding it, polish it up with a Rotary/Orbital buffer.
Bare in mind, that doing it this way does not mean it will last forever. Once the rot has started, the only way to stop it happening again is to either cut out the rust and weld in fresh metal, or buy a new panel/good condition second hand panel.
If you are getting rid of the car soon, I would just keep an eye on it. It's doubtful that it will get any worst if you are planning on selling it within the next 6 months or so. Just reflect the rust in the price (i.e, £300 off the normal prices should be sufficient.).
EDIT: Just to add, I would only do it yourself if your car is either an old shed that doesn't look that great cosmetically anyway or if the rust was in a spot that isn't noticeable, like behind the engine for example. If the rust is on one of the main panels, I would recommend taking it to a professional. Despite what most people say, it is almost impossible to match the quality of a professional sprayer by using masking tape and spray cans, especially if it is on a large area.
If you wanted a quick repair to tidy it up, you could always do it yourself. The process (in very simple terms of course.) usually consists of...
1. Grinding the rust patch back to bare metal
2. Apply a rust killer, like K-Rust.
3. Let K-Rust do it's thing, then clean the panel as best as you can.
4. Apply filler and then let it go hard, then sand back to make as smooth as possible.
5. Clean the panel again, then apply primer.
6. Once the primer has hardened, wet sand and then clean again.
7. Apply the paint. Again, once that has hardened, clean the panel.
8. Last part, is the lacquer. Once this has been applied and hardened, you may need to wetsand it to get rid of any dirt in the paint. After wet sanding it, polish it up with a Rotary/Orbital buffer.
Bare in mind, that doing it this way does not mean it will last forever. Once the rot has started, the only way to stop it happening again is to either cut out the rust and weld in fresh metal, or buy a new panel/good condition second hand panel.
If you are getting rid of the car soon, I would just keep an eye on it. It's doubtful that it will get any worst if you are planning on selling it within the next 6 months or so. Just reflect the rust in the price (i.e, £300 off the normal prices should be sufficient.).
EDIT: Just to add, I would only do it yourself if your car is either an old shed that doesn't look that great cosmetically anyway or if the rust was in a spot that isn't noticeable, like behind the engine for example. If the rust is on one of the main panels, I would recommend taking it to a professional. Despite what most people say, it is almost impossible to match the quality of a professional sprayer by using masking tape and spray cans, especially if it is on a large area.
Edited by NateWM on Monday 4th April 06:36
AndyT77 said:
Hi, i was washing and claying my car yesterday when i noticed that the bottom edge of the drivers side rear door, felt very rough. Upon closer inspection it looks like the drain holes in the skin of the door were blocked, and the bottom of the door is rusty!
It is a 2004 (Mk 1.5) Ford Focus. I'm looking to change it soon, so am not too worried, but if i was keeping it, what is the best course of action? New door, body shop?? Any comments welcome.
Its a known issue & Ford released a bulletin regarding it try you local dealer they may well do it Foc as anti corrosion is 12 years, if the car has full history it should be no problem but if it doesnt then they may refuse it. Certainly worth a try It is a 2004 (Mk 1.5) Ford Focus. I'm looking to change it soon, so am not too worried, but if i was keeping it, what is the best course of action? New door, body shop?? Any comments welcome.
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