Date: Sat, 25 Sep 2010 13:35:05 -0500
Reply-To: Tom Hargrave <thargrav@HIWAAY.NET>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Tom Hargrave <thargrav@HIWAAY.NET>
Subject: Re: Seem rust restoration, etc
In-Reply-To: <D3D483586F834300AE1B1F877F8D9717@ZoltanPC>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"
Zolly,
The reason body shops don't do this kind of work is a typical Vanagon or any
other vehicle owner won't pay for body PM type maintenance unless it a
"apparent" good deal that's shoved down their throats when they bought the
car new. Ziebart undercoating is a perfect example. The sales pitch goes
something like "if you don't buy this expensive undercoating package your
car body will rot away and the doors will fall off in 3 years and it's NOT
SAFE FOR THE KIDS!!!". While this may have been the case in rust prone
States in the 70s, it's no longer true for any good car made over the past
20 something years.
So it's "drive and forget" until someone is willing to pay a body shop to
cut out rot and weld in new steel or worse, cover it up with Bondo!
But you already know this - maybe some Vanagon owners in your area who are
in it for the long haul will enlist your services. I've replaced enough
rotten steel over the years to know that prevention is always cheaper than
replacing.
Thanks, Tom
www.stir-plate.com
www.towercooler.com
-----Original Message-----
From: Vanagon Mailing List [mailto:vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM] On Behalf Of
Zolly
Sent: Saturday, September 25, 2010 12:05 PM
To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
Subject: Seem rust restoration, etc
I have been busy with restoring Vanagons now for years. Full restorations
and partial body repairs, beside the general repairs I do, or the regular
fuel line renewals.
But some of you only would need seem rust elimination, which I do on all the
vans I do and can be done without painting the whole car, saving the van
from destruction.
The most common rust is long seam under the inlets on the driver side. It
can get out of hand and occasionally would lead to replacement of the rocker
panel. Mostly it is rust coming from the inside from the insulation being
soaked with water and keeping the seem wet all year around. It is not a
problem for the non-camper vans though.
An other common area is the right rear side seam, just above the wheel arch.
Behind the rear wiper bottle. Although not as bad but the constantly wet
insulation does the same from the inside and at times it can be terrible
also.
The Vanagon has about 43 feet of seam on the outside that by now has
hardened and cracked most places.
I cut it out as deep as possible, treat it with anti-rust agent, paint the
inside with POR15, prime and apply new seam sealer, then paint it with the
original color. Insulation is replaced with non water absorbing kind after
the area has been similarly treated.
It is a delicate job, requiring steady hands and experience.
The removal of the camper's kitchen unit and restoring the area behind it is
obviously the most demanding and time consuming work, but it has to be done
to save the vehicle from certain destruction by rust.
This kind of work is not a standard body shop item and would not be received
well. Very unusual and awkward to them.
I have pestered the List members before with my advocacy of fuel line
changes, which I do very often, being also a "Save our Vanagon" item that is
urged by the passing of time that makes the rubber hose hard and cracking
and being under 36psi pressure, the 25 years old hose will start pissing
onto the cables that may jump sparks or the hot exhaust that would start the
fire. Some of you will lose your van to fire this way, others will get the
fuel lines changed.
If anyone is interested in the above items, may call me at 425 773 4646.
Zoltan
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