Rust appearing along door sills.

[PeteB]

Yesterday, I took a Chimaera 500 out for a test drive. It drove perfectly, right colour combination, right price. (Even had a bit of fun with a new M3 on the test drive ) After reluctantly giving the keys back when I returned to the dealership. I had a quick look underneath. The car has had its front wishbones replaced, last November but there is some flaking underneath the sills towards the rear wheel arches. It's nothing major but I was wondering whether or not this may be a problem. Is this the beginning of the end or can it be cleaned up quite easily? The car is a 98 S, with 26K on the clock. Any advice greatly appreciated, before I take the plunge.

[wolosp]

If it's just the paint flaking, then a session under the car with a wire brush to remove any more loose paint followed by a coat or two of Finnigan's No1 and a coat of Hammerite should do the job. If you're friendly with a local garage, they might allow you to use their pit or ramp - makes life much easier.
I did this on my 96 car...it too had flaking along the chassis side tubes, particularly behind the front wheels where grit and stones get picked up. Good luck!

[beljames]

From what I've seen, if you're looking at slightly older cars, you'll be lucky to find one that is perfect underneath. certainly from what i've seen at dealers (main and independent) a certain amount of rust is normal, but don't let it get out of hand.

And yes, the metal under the sills (called outriggers) go first (apart from the wishbones, which appear to be consumables!), but its different with each car.