Cracked Floor

[cheapthrills 0]

i pulled the carpet out of the car today, which was sodden in parts but the floor is surprisingly sound. the bad news is that its been bent out of shape around the rear of the handrake. theres a depression running between the seat mounting points and the metal has cracked

i remember reading a post about this a while ago but cant find it now

whats the best way to deal with it? bend it back into shape and weld a plate/bar underneath??

any pointers would be great

 

andy

 

 

[toddydal 1]

weld it back up and then weld a plate over the top to strenthen it

[DamirGTI 342]

I have just the same problem over here ... anyway i can't help cos i didn't try to repair/weld this yet ..

 

Me thinks that a little bit of hammering form underneath (to leaver the surrounding metal back up) and then but welding will do the trick .. that's how i was thinking to fix that ..

 

Rgs !

Damir

[maxi 36 1 Cars]

Mine was exactly the same as this when I had the interior out a few months ago. Jacked up from underneath with a block of timber to straighten the floor and then welded it up. Good as gold now.

 

 

Maxi

[cheapthrills 0]

weld it back up and then weld a plate over the top to strenthen it

 

thing is i have zero welding skills, maybe nows the time to learn. you reckon plate over it? what about a plate formed to follow the curve of the tunnel welded underneath for better support.

thought on top might get in the way of the seat runners etc

 

I have just the same problem over here ... anyway i can't help cos i didn't try to repair/weld this yet ..

 

Me thinks that a little bit of hammering form underneath (to leaver the surrounding metal back up) and then but welding will do the trick .. that's how i was thinking to fix that ..

 

Rgs !

Damir

 

welding i cant do.... hammering on the other hand

if i get it sorted before you i'll post a few pics for inspiration

[cheapthrills 0]

Mine was exactly the same as this when I had the interior out a few months ago. Jacked up from underneath with a block of timber to straighten the floor and then welded it up. Good as gold now.

Maxi

 

what way did you weld it?

[DamirGTI 342]

thing is i have zero welding skills, maybe nows the time to learn.

 

if i get it sorted before you i'll post a few pics for inspiration

 

Do you have a MIG welder ? or can you borrow/buy one ?

I've bought MIG welding machine few weeks ago and after few hours of practice i've been welding like a pro , well almost like a pro .. (anyway i've been welding before but not with a MIG welder ..)

 

It's the most easiest type of welder for beginner , seriously one day (maybe two days) of practice will be enough and you'll be ready to fix that crack just pick some scrap metal of the same thickness as the floor panel for practice first , so that you can see which wire speed and power settings works for that metal thickness ..

 

Yes , post some pics please when you fix that

 

Rgs !

Damir

[cheapthrills 0]

no i dont have a welder but have been meaning to buy one for ages, but i didnt really have a reason to til now. i've heard its not that hard to get the basics.

i could pay someone to do it but what would i learn from that

which welder did you buy, what ampage etc?

[Tom Fenton 1,541]

Bash it straight and then weld the crack up will be sufficient, no need to plate it IMO.

[toddydal 1]

i would weld up the split 1st then put a plate over the top to add strenth ,its easier to plate from the top rarther than underneath,its a easy job really,just have a pratice with the mig welder 1st or get some one to weld it for you,

Edited April 22, 2008 by toddydal

[Miles 331 1 Cars]

Quite a common issue, Worth checking the front seat mounting too as these crack, If used as a road car welding it up should be fine, But if used with some abuse I would add some strength into them or the seat can go AWOL

[cheapthrills 0]

Quite a common issue, Worth checking the front seat mounting too as these crack, If used as a road car welding it up should be fine, But if used with some abuse I would add some strength into them or the seat can go AWOL

 

thats what worrys me, it is a road car but the idea of the seat collapsing mid corner doesnt appeal to me. i've only had a look at the damage topside so far, i need to get under and see how extensive it is. the front one looks fine. i'm thinking some kind of reinforcement would be better for piece of mind

[boombang 2]

As for what welder?

 

Clarke PRO 90 - on lowest setting is ideal for Pug metal (thin!) and is cheap enough.

[toddydal 1]

youve got the seats out,so for what its going to take to put a plate over the top for piece of mind i would do it,it a week point and need strenthning

[cheapthrills 0]

a clarke pro 90 eh, i think i'll be shopping for a welder tomorrow

thanks for all the replies fellas, keep an eye out for a 'rookie welder needs help' post in the coming days

cheers

andy

[DamirGTI 342]

Well i've bought 165Amp MIG welder (30 to 165Amp rating) and with gas bottle (Argon/Co2 mix. , 75% Argon 25%Co2 , also called C25 in your country i believe ) , not with a flux cored wires , don't buy machine which uses just a flux cored wires you need gas equipped MIG welding machine for these jobs ..

Regarding the gas Argon/Co2 mix is better option than Co2 .

 

Any "cheap" (but don't buy the most cheapest low amp rating base welder ! find some middle class welder like 140 , 150 or 160amp one) , low amp MIG welder will do for a thin metal , but it wont be suitable for welding thicker metal (from 3mm up to say 5mm) but for body repair 140amp MIG welder with a bottle of shielding gas will be just fine no need for expensive machines unless your planing to do some thicker metal works .. if so then 160amp machine will be border line , you'll need 180 -200-250amp welder for thicker metal ..

 

I can recommend you 160amp welder with a bottle of Argon/Co2 mix , as it's middle class machine and still for reasonable price .

 

Have fun !

Damir

Edited April 22, 2008 by DamirGTI

[cheapthrills 0]

thanks for the info Damir

i knew a bit about the ampage but the stuff about the gas and wire is news to me.

i'd like to get a machine that can weld more than pug tinfoil, might even try my hand at some metal sculpture, maybe i could build a robot out of old car parts

 

 

behold the mighty scrapbot

[DamirGTI 342]

I've seen this kind of metal sculptures welded with various scrap car parts hanging at scrapyard gates robots , rockets , cars and other interesting figures , some of them where really good - metal art

 

Anyway this is very interesting and useful site for MIG welders , all that you need to know - read trough :

http://www.mig-welding.co.uk/

 

Rgs !

Damir

[cheapthrills 0]

Anyway this is very interesting and useful site for MIG welders , all that you need to know - read trough :

http://www.mig-welding.co.uk/

i've just spent the last 3 hours reading through that site when i should have been asleep , its excellent, explains the basics really well. definitely worth a read for anyone interested in how to weld. thanks for that

[jeremy 70]

I asked mp local motor car parts place if they could recommend a mobbile welder for exastly this. For one seat mount and handbrake mounting point cost £25 about a year ago. Not worth trying myself for that.

[Hardgraf 0]

I discovered a puddle of water on the floor behind the passenger seat this morning which is quite worrying!