Rusty floor panels

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Severin
Posts: 18
Joined: 04 May 2020, 09:55

Rusty floor panels

Unread post by Severin »

Hello,

i had a look at this Fulvia today, and i am wondering what you think of these images. I am really unhappy about this.

Have a nice week,
-s
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Huib
Site Admin
Posts: 1778
Joined: 17 Dec 2008, 10:12

Re: Rusty floor panels

Unread post by Huib »

Very good reason to make new friends. Be happy. We do a perfect job.
Note that there will be more. You need very good new friends.
Severin
Posts: 18
Joined: 04 May 2020, 09:55

Re: Rusty floor panels

Unread post by Severin »

Hello Huib,

thanks for cheering me up. The rest of the body seems fine, maybe some surface rust in the engine bay. I suspect more as well.

It sounds like you can help and want to be my friend :) Assuming only the rusty floor and rocker panels have to be welded: what would it approximately cost to get rid of the old paint and rust and put on a fresh coat?

Best,
Severin
Huib
Site Admin
Posts: 1778
Joined: 17 Dec 2008, 10:12

Re: Rusty floor panels

Unread post by Huib »

Hello Severin

It is impossible to say what the cost is going to be. There usually is a lot more going on than you can see from the outside. The sill structure is complicated and different from any other car with a lot going on behind the wings. Some cavities have no hole to let water out. Lots of rust guaranteed.

On average there are two earlier repairs which were done badly. If they were done rightly you would not have a problem now. We use the Mercedes system with lots of zinc between the welds. If the customer agrees we glue new wheel arches with 3 component kit to prevent rust.

Usually the car has had at least one and likely two accidents which were camouflaged and not repaired correctly.

Because of running too long with bad sills the car is most likely warped and bent.

There are some imitation parts available but none of them is entirely correct. It takes time to correct them and add the small nicks and bends to ensure over all strength of the car. Many parts have to be hand made which takes a lot of time.

In all likelihood there will be more rust. There also will be deformation, usually very well camouflaged. We cannot see it before we start a job. It becomes visible when the job proceeds.

All in all, many hours if the job has to be done so that you cannot see welding has been done on the car and all the dimensions are correct within 1 mm. Today complete restoration easily exceeds 100.000 euro. I am not saying repair of your car will exceeds hundred thousand euro but I not saying it will be below five thousand euro either.

When we start, the first thing we do is to repair the hinges of the doors so there is no play on the hinges. That already needs special tooling.
Huib
Site Admin
Posts: 1778
Joined: 17 Dec 2008, 10:12

Re: Rusty floor panels

Unread post by Huib »

One of my customers has been using his Fulvia as daily driver around his house in southern France.

I restored the car (body as well as technical) 20 years ago. 2 years ago we had the car in the workshop again. A new problem caused by the gearbox was fixed and an old accident I missed 20 years ago.

Car is in good condition. Owners is forced to go to smaller car with power steering and automatic gearbox. Fulvia is for sale.
Severin
Posts: 18
Joined: 04 May 2020, 09:55

Re: Rusty floor panels

Unread post by Severin »

Thank you Huib for your detailed descriptions. I am fascinated by the restoration process, of course only as a bystander. I am sure nobody can estimate the restoration cost from two images of the floor, i just needed some sort of estimate, which i received from you. 5 to 100 k€ is of course difficult to substract from an asking price of around 25 k€ :D

Answering my original ask of an estimation including the assumption of only welding new floors and sills would be great (functional Huib quality, not museum Huib quality ;) ). Of course i dont want to strain your good will!

Maybe it does not make sense to buy any unrestored car, as i would like to experience a Fulvia before experiencing the restoration process of a Fulvia.

You mentioned the car on offer, it would be nice to have some more information. Maybe you can put something in a PM?

Best,
Severin
Huib
Site Admin
Posts: 1778
Joined: 17 Dec 2008, 10:12

Re: Rusty floor panels

Unread post by Huib »

The answer I gave is based on my experience in restoring Fulvia's. I have no experience in knocking an amount off an asking price the way you have in mind.

It is not realistic to expect that a 50 year old car is without work when you buy it. No way that you can look at it like you look at the purchase of a 5 year old car.

If I read "Fulvia for sale. Restored. 20.000 euro" my conclusion is that seller and I attach a different meaning to restored.
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