Rust Under Rear Seats

[Guest hammer,n,tongs]

hi guys anyone ever replaced the panel underneath the rear seats got a price for a new panel £579 if i make up a panel and do away with the rear seats is this legal at mot time

[hengti 2]

mine's got a small hole here too - can't be rs'd to fix it though (petrol tank has to come out) - it's just come through the mot ok though - and i had the rear seats out at the time it was tested

[Guest hammer,n,tongs]

mine's got a small hole here too - can't be rs'd to fix it though (petrol tank has to come out) - it's just come through the mot ok though - and i had the rear seats out at the time it was tested

[/quotm

yeah big fire if you melt the tank boom!!! think im going to fit a new panel just to keep it right keep another 205 on the road its already stripped down so shouldnt be 2 bad a job?

[Banjo 1]

Can't you just weld a patch in flush rarther than replacing the whole panel?

[Leon 24]

My C plater went here, at the time we bodged it with aluminium foil tape, but I can't see why it can't simply be patched - isn't doing the whole panel a bit excessive?

[mattmk1 0]

It depends how bad the rot is and how long your going to keep your car. The problem with patching it is the rot will come back through in two or three years time, and if youve welded plates all over it youll have a nightmare replacing the panel in the future.

 

The most cost efffective way would be to find a scrap 205 and go down and chop the panel you need out, then weld it into your car, at least you wont have worries about the rot coming back.

[Leon 24]

Depends what you mean by "patching" really....

 

This isn't exactly aimed at you mattmk1, it's more of a general observation.

 

You could just bodge a plate over the hole, sure, that will only last a couple of years. Or you could "patch" it properly by cutting the rotten area back and welding in a repair plate or panel. It isn't major surgery, but yes it is more involved than just patching a hole.

I've read posts on here where people have been advised scrap shells because of some rust on the inner wings..... I mean, really - get it in perspective, it's a 15 year old French budget hatchback - plate the hole and get on with your life. People get a bit carried away IMO

 

I just can't see the sense in cutting the entire underseat area from a 205 and welding in a totally new panel and the warping/distortion issues that go along with the process. Nor can I see the sense in throwing away a shell because the inner wings have rusty seams, but maybe that's just me because going through old posts it seems to be all the rage!

 

Personal choice at the end of the day!

[hengti 2]

don't disagree

 

all i'm proposing doing with mine (if i ever get round to it!) is plating it from underneath - it'll last for years if you do it properly

 

these cars barely rust (i cut my welding teeth on minis ) - can't imagine hammer'n'tongs' car needs a whole new seat base panel - just some patchwork

[Paintguy 0]

The most cost efffective way would be to find a scrap 205 and go down and chop the panel you need out, then weld it into your car, at least you wont have worries about the rot coming back.

A good idea, but finding one that hasn't started rusting in that area might be a problem.

 

As already mentioned, there's nothing wrong with 'patching' and area if done properly, and in some cases it's very much preferable to replacing a whole panel IMO.

[Guest hammer,n,tongs]

A good idea, but finding one that hasn't started rusting in that area might be a problem.

 

As already mentioned, there's nothing wrong with 'patching' and area if done properly, and in some cases it's very much preferable to replacing a whole panel IMO.

iv been to see a couple of 205s to get the panel out of and as you say there are rusting here as well. I dont think it worth patching the panel in my car is really bad cut out all the rot and there aint much left to weld to(should have been repaired a long time ago) i keep an eye out for a second hand panel!

[Paintguy 0]

I dont think it worth patching the panel in my car is really bad cut out all the rot and there aint much left to weld to

Well, that could cause a bit of a problem!

 

Any chance of getting pics up so we can see how bad it is?

[Guest hammer,n,tongs]

Well, that could cause a bit of a problem!

 

Any chance of getting pics up so we can see how bad it is?

sorry dont have a camera

[hengti 2]

if you've got a 4' by 1.5' hole under the rear seats, i'd have thought it'd be time to say goodbye to the shell!! if it really is that bad, the rest of the shell will be very rotten in all sorts of places that you won't be able to see!

 

has it been living on the coast? salt water in the air isn't good for steel

 

 

you could try places like 'panel on' to see if they do pattern panels - but i wouldn't have thought many panel manufacturers would do structural panels for the 205

 

worth a go though

[mattmk1 0]

Depends what you mean by "patching" really....

 

This isn't exactly aimed at you mattmk1, it's more of a general observation.

 

You could just bodge a plate over the hole, sure, that will only last a couple of years. Or you could "patch" it properly by cutting the rotten area back and welding in a repair plate or panel. It isn't major surgery, but yes it is more involved than just patching a hole.

 

True but in my experience -we restore classic cars, is that hardly anybody actually patches properly - by this i mean cutting out the rot and hand fabricating a repair panel. Most people tend to just cover everything in sight in a nice shiny piece of steel - and i was just trying to advise against it, because we get cars in which have been plated and they are a nightmare to put right!

[Paintguy 0]

I think that's exactly what Leon was driving at, and I'd totally agree too. There's a huge difference between banging an oversized plate over a rusty hole, and actually cutting out the affected areas, and butt welding in a new piece.

 

Occasionally I still find an overlapping plate to be the most practical solution, but I find as long as care is taken to remove all the rust, and extra care is taken to prevent rust reforming in the overlapped sections, that such a repair is quite acceptable. Clearly not to the standards required in restoring classics, and it'd probably send a shiver down Beastie's spine, but good enough for a 205 IMHO

 

Nice to have someone else 'in the trade' about the place too

[Guest hammer,n,tongs]

if you've got a 4' by 1.5' hole under the rear seats, i'd have thought it'd be time to say goodbye to the shell!! if it really is that bad, the rest of the shell will be very rotten in all sorts of places that you won't be able to see!

 

has it been living on the coast? salt water in the air isn't good for steel

you could try places like 'panel on' to see if they do pattern panels - but i wouldn't have thought many panel manufacturers would do structural panels for the 205

 

worth a go though

yeah the car came from the coast up in peterhead salty air and salted roads up there. there doesnt seem to have been alot of sealer on this panel maybe thats why its rotted so bad? the rest of the car looks ok iv sorted the lh inner wing it had a small hole along the inner edge just cut out piece and welded in new metal. il try panel on if no luck have a go at repairing whats left could get a second hand one and just cut out the bits from it and weld them in fitting a complete new panel is a bit ott when you think about it and a tad pricey

[Beastie 1]

it'd probably send a shiver down Beastie's spine, but good enough for a 205 IMHO

 

Nice to have someone else 'in the trade' about the place too

 

I thought my ears were burning I must admit that I have recently made up new outer scuttle sections for my XJ6 and (for the first time ever) I have used a joddler to create an overlap on the welded section because I can't get behind it to planish out any welding distortion. Broke my heart to do it and cost me a load of weld thru primer too

 

Agreed with Mattmk1 though -- you hardly ever see metal let in properly: I have a DB4 in the workshop at the moment which has got overlapping patches welded in. If people will bodge that sort of thing then they will bodge anything I guess. I have always understood the term "patch" to refer to an overlapping plate and not a butt welded repair section but I know that not everyone makes that distinction!