my new s13: problems under the spoiler (pics!)

Post by **fiznat** » Sun May 25, 2003 10:59 am

So it finally stopped raining today and I notice that there's a decent amount of water in the trunk/spare area. uh oh. I knew there was at least a little bit of rust under the spoiler cause I could see it if I pulled it up a little bit, but... well, check out the pics:

The day started with a nice washing down, and I have to say- the car looked beautiful sittin there drying off:

Post by **fiznat** » Sun May 25, 2003 10:59 am

...but when we pulled the spoiler up, I seriously almost cried. look at this mess. The guy who I bought it from definetly pulled it off at one time and layed down a TON of this caulk/glue stuff. It was stuck EVERYWHERE (as you can see), and it looks like he drilled new holes to hold the spoiler down.

Post by **lessthanjakejohn** » Sun May 25, 2003 10:59 am

ouch

looks like ya car needs a little help from the bodyshopman

you should be worrying though, you got an awesome deal on the car anyway... you didn't like the color any did ya?

Post by **fiznat** » Sun May 25, 2003 10:59 am

the spoiler itself didnt look any better... safe to say this one aint goin back on...

Post by **fiznat** » Sun May 25, 2003 10:59 am

we were able to clean it up a little with some rubber scrapers and (beleive it or not) wheel cleaner- that stuff worked great getting that rust stain off! soo yeah John you're right- I think I'm gonna take it to the body shop and get an estimate. I might just sand it down myself, bondo the holes, primer it, and have the whole car painted. I was thinking about doing that anyways so eh... What do you guys think it'll cost to get that done professionally (not the paint, just the sand/fill/acid+base/primer)?

Post by **lessthanjakejohn** » Sun May 25, 2003 10:59 am

Why bondo it when you could use metal. I would cut out the old rust and then weld in some new stuff.

Post by **WingsNThangs** » Sun May 25, 2003 10:59 am

I'm not even going to attempt to pull off my spoiler unless i have a new clean hatch. Why oh why must the spoiler be foam/rubber, attached through so many holes???

Post by **fiznat** » Sun May 25, 2003 10:59 am

lessthanjakejohn wrote:Why bondo it when you could use metal. I would cut out the old rust and then weld in some new stuff.

yeah that's true. I've never done that before, but if the body shop is REAL expensive I might as well try. doesnt sound too hard, and I do have a nice little arc welder sitting in my garage just waiting to be put to use.

...or do you have to use a different kind of weld?

Post by **lessthanjakejohn** » Sun May 25, 2003 10:59 am

you might try to run a search i think its been discussed before but all I can remember are k-cars posts which are gone now

Edit: I found that some guy got a quote of 200 for welding in the holes. And some guy got a quote of 350 for repaing rust and welding in the wholes.

Do you have a rusted trunk too?

Post by **lessthanjakejohn** » Sun May 25, 2003 10:59 am

even better... Do you think you could get a spoiler free hatch?

Post by **fiznat** » Sun May 25, 2003 10:59 am

nah the trunk is okay. the wheel well is a little stained, but it doesnt look like enough water got in there (or for long enough) to do any serious damage. hmmm thanks for the price quotes-- that's do-able.. I might even be able to get some free bodywork if I spend bucks on a new paint job... who knows? this car would look so much sexier in a nice glossy black with no spoiler. listen to me. I'm excited about the rust I found today. sheesh!

Post by **stretch240sx** » Sun May 25, 2003 10:59 am

i got a rust spot patch paneled in the windshield area and it cost me 550 but that is becuase it was in the windshield area...

Post by **Rockenreno** » Sun May 25, 2003 10:59 am

you could always just buy a new hatch if worse comes to worse... For the deal you got on that car, I wouldn't be too worried

Post by **aznromeox** » Sun May 25, 2003 10:59 am

Thats not too bad.. .here are mine

took these pics a few days ago... took off my spoiler like 2 months ago

Of course I cleaned it... The paint looked new underneith but I used rubbing compound and juss didn't want to go through the hassle of fixing it. Its cheaper to replace it at a junkyard. They're about $100-150 bucks for a hatch.

Post by **aznromeox** » Sun May 25, 2003 10:59 am

Post by **slw240sx** » Sun May 25, 2003 10:59 am

those are nothing compared to my hatch! i dont even have the third brake light anymore! the owner before me bondoed right over it.. at night when you hit the brakes the bondo glows.

Post by **nissanrcer240** » Sun May 25, 2003 10:59 am

Quote »So it finally stopped raining today and I notice that there's a decent amount of water in the trunk/spare area. uh oh.[/quote]

my 240 does the same thing, i find water where my spare tire is, and stuff thats sittin in the back of the hatch gets wet. I dont know how the helll water gets in, but if you find out let me know

Post by **aznromeox** » Sun May 25, 2003 10:59 am

take it off and duct tape it......... Join the crew...

Duct Tape CREW...

Rules:Have to run no spoilerHave to have tape over holes.Have to have it for a minimal of 30 Days

I've had mine for 2 months or so

Post by **LaureltheQueen** » Sun May 25, 2003 10:59 am

It could also be a sunroof tube if yours isnt sufficiently rusted.

$.02

but by the looks of fiznat's, i'd say its the hatch. lol

Post by **corn322** » Sun May 25, 2003 10:59 am

aznromeox wrote:take it off and duct tape it......... Join the crew...

Duct Tape CREW...

Rules:Have to run no spoilerHave to have tape over holes.Have to have it for a minimal of 30 Days

I've had mine for 2 months or so

I couldn't find any duct tape when I removed my spoiler. I had to use this red, plastic, tape stuff. it works pretty well. and the red tape on my black paint looks cool.

but yeah, the stupid sponge spoilers suck. everything I've heard about them is they make rust, and that's about it. I read somewhere that the don't have that much of an effect on performance or fuel milage.

Post by **fiznat** » Sun May 25, 2003 10:59 am

are all you guys who had similar problems planning on just going spoiler-less? anybody look into options for a conservative spoiler replacement that might cover up the marks and cheapen the bodywork costs?

hahaha duct tape crew- looks like I'm gonna be a card carrying member, since I have so many other things to pay for before this gets its turn...

Post by **240 Trainee** » Sun May 25, 2003 10:59 am

Same on My car. What I did was take the spoiler off, then put some black duck tape on the inside of the hole and the outside. I also coverd the outside holes for the plastic things cuz mine broke when I took the wing off. Then I bolted the Wing back on with the 4 screws. So, no more leak, but most of the nasty stuff is coverd by the wing. Only temporary, but it helps.

Post by **Meantime** » Sun May 25, 2003 10:59 am

Water doesn't just leak into the hatch from the spoiler. Most of the time, it comes in through the tail-lamp seals, which are butyl rubber and go bad after a while.

That was the problem on my fastback - I checked the whole spoiler area, no rust, no leaks. Kept getting a tire well full of water every time it rained. Finally, I took off the tail-lamps and resealed both units with fresh butyl rubber. Messy job, but no more leaks!

Post by **Smurf6x6** » Sun May 25, 2003 10:59 am

Don't bondo it. It won't last if u bondo it.

Post by **SilGuy** » Sun May 25, 2003 10:59 am

how about bondo, then fiberglass? Or straight up fiberglass jelly? I don't have a pix, but mine is jus as bad or even worse. Previous owner had like 3 wings on, put 20 holes in there. As of now...i bondoed the whole thing and primed it. The bondo is starting to chip and crack already. The fiberglass jelly seem to hold up pretty good. Im thinking of the wangun wing to cover that up.....:thinker

Post by **Eklectrick** » Sun May 25, 2003 10:59 am

As has been stated already, water in the trunk comes from the tail lights most of the time. you can go get some new butyl rubber seals and solve the problem yourself for cheap. I'd vote for getting a new spoilerless hatch to solve the rust problem, you'll prolly have to paint the car for sure then, but I see that as the best solution.

slw240sx wrote:those are nothing compared to my hatch! i dont even have the third brake light anymore! the owner before me bondoed right over it.. at night when you hit the brakes the bondo glows.

OOOoooh. ghetto as hell. he coulda at least disconnected the wires for the light. doh!

Post by **Queamore** » Sun May 25, 2003 10:59 am

There is this stuff called tigerclaw or something like that. That my friend uses at his job (bodyman) It's supposed to prevent rust and cracking. I'm eventually gonna take it off and put one of those aluminum wings on the back to keep the down force.

Post by **krazy skwerel** » Sun May 25, 2003 10:59 am

It would be hard for him to get a nbew hatch though because he has one of those sweet rear spoilers. I'm pretty sure all those hatches are w/spoiler. I know id want to keep the wiper. :batman

Post by **lok** » Sun May 25, 2003 10:59 am

I got a rear hatch for my GF's car from the salvage yard. She has a 92 f/b SE, so the one we got did not have the wiper but oh well 100 dollars for the hatch. When I repaired mine it was 300, at the time I was having the whole car repainted.

Post by **elvis240sx** » Sun May 25, 2003 10:59 am

I bought a hatch at the local junkyard for $175. The hatch came with wiper motor, arm, and harness and it all worked! Was in mint condition, even the rear defog worked. We primed it and painted it ourselves. Alot easier than bondo-ing it, each time you close the hatch the bondo will get shaken and eventually break loose or crack

my new s13: problems under the spoiler (pics!)

my new s13: problems under the spoiler (pics!)

Re: my new s13: problems under the spoiler (pics!)

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