240sx frame rust problem, help

[Dtuner91]

I recently bought my dream project car, a 91 240sx fastback skipping all the other pros and cons of the car i noticed the some rust in the front wheel wells, dident think too much of it and the price was to good to pass up for a 240, but after getting some friends to look at it for me, the rust problem was worse than i thought, theres a decent amount in the wells but for about a foot of the frame behind the wells is allso got some rust. now its a couple months later i have a 1000$ project 240 that im really proud of, but before i start throwing money into finishing up my exhaust and all the other bells and whistles i would like to do i need to figure out what to do about the rust, ive had some friends who work in gagrages look at it and they say theres no way it will pass inspection, they all gave me 3 options 1. sell it 2.buy a rolling shell and swap everything 3. find a junk 240 and cut the frame and weld it into mine. i dont really want to sell the car because if i do ill just buy another s13 240. my inspections good for another 5 months but i dont want to keep putting it off till i dont have enough time to do anything about it. so before i make any major decisions i figured id try throwing out the situation on here and get some feedback from some 240 pro's. im open to all suggestions and opinions, just trying to figure out what the best solution is.

[S13_RB25]

if you don't want to sell i'd say but a shell swap everything and then part out the rusted one.

[zachattack_5491]

1. sell it 2.buy a rolling shell and swap everything 3. find a junk 240 and cut the frame and weld it into mine

I would take option 2. Option 3 just is just illogical. You can get a shell for 200-700 bucks.

[moso]

i had the same problem and i decided to just cut and weld over the bad spots. about a month later i got into a "not so bad accident" and the frame rails got bent to sh**. now im doing a shell swap, its what i should have done in the first place. take it as you like it.

[konjiki7]

option 4

Buy Rustoleum (rust converter) or Eastwood rust solutions. (4 cans did about 3 coats on my engine bay) ($20)

Rent a angle grinder($20)
Eastwood rust wheel for the angle grinder (13.99)

1.Remover or tape things that may be in the way
2.Remove surface rust
3.wipe with damp cloth and dry
4.Paint
5. Allow paint to cure 1hour to possible a week depending on type of paint. If you don't want to wait you can simple just wait until the paint drys.

6. reassemble car and enjoy. : )

FYI: Eastwood does have rust killer/frame protector not sure if rustoleum makes any. I used it in my frame and sub-frame.

[Dtuner91]

I thought about doing that, but in the wheel wells there are some small rusted holes, i dont think there are any in the frame though.

[zachattack_5491]

option 4

Buy Rustoleum (rust converter) or Eastwood rust solutions. (4 cans did about 3 coats on my engine bay) ($20)

Rent a angle grinder($20)
Eastwood rust wheel for the angle grinder (13.99)

1.Remover or tape things that may be in the way
2.Remove surface rust
3.wipe with damp cloth and dry
4.Paint
5. Allow paint to cure 1hour to possible a week depending on type of paint. If you don't want to wait you can simple just wait until the paint drys.

6. reassemble car and enjoy. : )

FYI: Eastwood does have rust killer/frame protector not sure if rustoleum makes any. I used it in my frame and sub-frame.

Well are we talking desert surface rust or cancerous next to the ocean rust? If the guy could wire wheel the rust off I don't think he'd be worrying about swapping his parts to a donor car. Rust converter does not convert fully oxidized metal back into it's original form.

[zachattack_5491]

Sorry, double post.

[Dtuner91]

well i live in pa and the previous past 2 owners did as well, its not just surface rust there are some parts where it looks nasty, and like i said there are holes in the wheel well from rust. My only concern is getting to to pass inspection though, the rust on the frame doesent seem bad enough to cause any kind of catastrophic failure, so even if i can just clean it up nice and patch things so it passes and doesent get any worse. My only problem with buying a shell is i dont have the equipment, knowledge or time to do it.

[moso]

if you live in pa than your rust is very likely too bad, i know i lived in ohio. take a screwdriver and run it forcefully down the frame rail, especially on the transmission side, it will likely go threw! you will likely have rust on the inside as well as the outside of the rail, especially on the rail below the brake booster. when people fill the brake fluid they usually spill a bit and that eats away the paint and adhesive, after that its salt and water so rust, rust, rust. it sux but i have been there. in the end the frame on a 240 is sheet steel bent into position, spot welded, and glued into place. it will rust like the wheel wells on a civic and you know how bad that looks, thats your frame on rust! oh and those "wheel wells" are actually your strut towers, and are quite important to the structure of your car.

[konjiki7]

option 4

Buy Rustoleum (rust converter) or Eastwood rust solutions. (4 cans did about 3 coats on my engine bay) ($20)

Rent a angle grinder($20)
Eastwood rust wheel for the angle grinder (13.99)

1.Remover or tape things that may be in the way
2.Remove surface rust
3.wipe with damp cloth and dry
4.Paint
5. Allow paint to cure 1hour to possible a week depending on type of paint. If you don't want to wait you can simple just wait until the paint drys.

6. reassemble car and enjoy. : )

FYI: Eastwood does have rust killer/frame protector not sure if rustoleum makes any. I used it in my frame and sub-frame.

Well are we talking desert surface rust or cancerous next to the ocean rust? If the guy could wire wheel the rust off I don't think he'd be worrying about swapping his parts to a donor car. Rust converter does not convert fully oxidized metal back into it's original form.

I think we both know thats why I said Eastwood rust solutions. If your not familiar with it give them a call. The guys there are pretty knowledgeable and didn't transform into a salesman when i probed for some advice. Based on how Dtuner91 describe the situation it doesn't sound to bad to me.

You may need to take look at your self.. maybe put it through the screw driver test to test its integrity. If it seems pretty solid its worth saving. Theres always encapsulators and rust dissolvers. Which I used to combat rust under brake booster on my car... I didn't know there was legitimate chem solutions out there... I guess i had 1950's cut and weld attitude. (sorry for the novel like post i hope someone finds this useful.)

[liquid_cool]

im a more cut and weld type of guy my self...if you have access to a mig welder, some angle iron and a junk yard with a shell in it..you definitly can save this car...if not..then i recomend buying a car from out of state...prefribly a desert car..as there will be only minor surface rust..id clean that up and re-coat the whole underside of the car...if you do have access to the above mentiond tools...then email me on the team site and ill give you a few pointers on how to replace whole panels if needed and some good books for you to read up on the subject..good luck.

[OutToWinPAHC]

My shall had this too. This was very common on the 89-92 models. 90+ models had the treated frame rail. The cause of this is the exhaust heat, brake fluid over flow, and water resting in there. Turns to rust in no time.

You wan cut and weld it.... and someone makes them.

http://www.xcessivemanufacturing.com/me ... 175&step=4

[liquid_cool]

one good way to stop the rust on the inside of that fraim rail is to foam fill it...they may have coated the outside of the metal..but not the inside of the frame rail...just a thought.