i was just about to change the shifter in my car when i jump in on the passenger side and look down to see body rot in the doorjam. itsat the bottom aorund the back corner of the door. its kinda bad isrotted through.is that gonna be hard if i have a guy whos good at body work to fix it for me?? will it take long? this really suckks cuz i didnt see it there before. ill try to get some pics today.
doorjam rot
- Thread starter pconway
- Start date
Dean85GT
New Member
if its on the bottom seam, that is a common place for rust to start. Hopefully its repairable and if not, its new doors for you
Dean85GT
New Member
To get rid of that rust your buddy will have to sand/grind it down. Depending on how deep the rot is, he may grind right through the door.
9 times outta 10, it'll be easier to just replace the door with another door.
The bummer is painting the door to match the body.
If the colour of your car is a simple colour like red, black, or white, you're lucky as the colours are universal. However, a newly painted door will stand out from the rest of the car which to me sounds like it may be faded and oxidized.
If your buddy cleans up the rust and bondos it, it should be fine for a while but it could be rotting under the bondo.
9 times outta 10, it'll be easier to just replace the door with another door.
The bummer is painting the door to match the body.
If the colour of your car is a simple colour like red, black, or white, you're lucky as the colours are universal. However, a newly painted door will stand out from the rest of the car which to me sounds like it may be faded and oxidized.
If your buddy cleans up the rust and bondos it, it should be fine for a while but it could be rotting under the bondo.
Zero_chance
Founding Member
Slo 5.0 said:I think you should get some pics up for us.maybe youll get some better answers then?
I agree.
I am cutting up a rusted 87 hatch (GT) so if it is an area that is "good" I can cut you up a piece and send it to you for just the shipping cost. If I recall correctly the rockers and door jamb area on my car are all in good shape.
I would not recommend bondoing it unless this chassis is just a temporary solution and isn't worth repairing it correctly. If you bondo (actually you couldn't, you'd have to use fiberglass mat and bondo) in an area that big, when the rust comes back, you will have a hole much larger than the one you started with. If possible it is always best to fix it correctly the first time.
Brian
At first I thought it may have been the rocker panels in the bottom left corner, but prayed it was really your door you were talking about so that's why I advised you on the door replacement.
Same question as above. How the heck didn't you notice this when you bought the car???????????
This is another problem with the GT's. The skirt package helps retain water in bad places and rots out everything underneith it. Had you car been an LX, the water woulda just run off the panels onto the ground.
You'll have to go see a body expert on this one. For sure the rockers will have to be replaced as well as some of the outside panel underneith the side skirt.
I wouldn't invest any more money into mods for this car until you find out how much restoring the body will cost you.
Right now, and I'm really really really said to say this, but I'd get a 4-banger and transfer everything over to it.
Get photos of the floor pans and open the hatch/trunk and take some picks of the trunk floor and take the spare tire out and photo the well it sits in also. If these parts are solid, it may not be to bad, but from the looks of that door sill, I don't know.
Same question as above. How the heck didn't you notice this when you bought the car???????????
This is another problem with the GT's. The skirt package helps retain water in bad places and rots out everything underneith it. Had you car been an LX, the water woulda just run off the panels onto the ground.
You'll have to go see a body expert on this one. For sure the rockers will have to be replaced as well as some of the outside panel underneith the side skirt.
I wouldn't invest any more money into mods for this car until you find out how much restoring the body will cost you.
Right now, and I'm really really really said to say this, but I'd get a 4-banger and transfer everything over to it.
Get photos of the floor pans and open the hatch/trunk and take some picks of the trunk floor and take the spare tire out and photo the well it sits in also. If these parts are solid, it may not be to bad, but from the looks of that door sill, I don't know.
alright i was just out there and i took the little skirt off that was in front of the rear tire and it goes up about 6-8 inches and all aorund there its pretty bad but my friends dad is gonna hook me up with the body work hes pretty good. i mean is taking a buick skylark and putting a nova front clip and rearend on it good enough? o and to answer your guys' question i poked that hole with a screw driver there was a piece of wood there with bondo over it and i thought i saw bondo so i looked at it closer and there was rust. ill try to get mroe pictures.
and instead of having the gt kit on it would i be able to make it like an lx
and instead of having the gt kit on it would i be able to make it like an lx
pconway said:
Ouch that body rot is pretty bad.... might want to look around the whole car if that spot is that bad. On the GT I'm parting the rear quarters are rusted out, the lower 4 inches or so is just gone, but you'd never know it because the rear skirts just before the rear bumper cover it all up.
I might be able to hook you up but it looks like the rot extends far up and forward of what I was thinking... you may need a complete lower quarter / door jamb section. But first you need to look as others indicated throughout the entire car to see if it's worth saving.... sills... behind each of the GT panels.... front frame rails.... floorpans.... rear quarters..... behind the gas tank... behind the front bumper... everything. If in doubt poke it with a screwdriver.. and post more pics!
Brian
alright i checked the trunk, the spare tire thingy and every where else. it all looks good. its just that spot that really bums me out i paid 1200 $ for the car and i saved up for along time to buy it and not havin a job is gonna be hard to try and fix it. but maybe my pops will hit the lotto. 
pconway said:alright i checked the trunk, the spare tire thingy and every where else. it all looks good. its just that spot that really bums me out i paid 1200 $ for the car and i saved up for along time to buy it and not havin a job is gonna be hard to try and fix it. but maybe my pops will hit the lotto.
Make sure you check all the places that I put in my post above.. it's going to take you a couple hours to do a thorough job. Put it up on jackstands and have at it... poke at anything suspicious.
Don't worry too much about it we all start somewhere. I've seen my worse Mustangs saved. Switching all your stuff to a new body might not be in your realm of possibility right now, is alot of work, and frankly if everything on your car DOES check out, no need to. Just make sure it is straight (checking at a body shop is best) and if you know someone who does this work... swap in a good section. Get ALL of the rust and damage out, and make sure that you use an etching primer on the inside of the panels, or they will rust out again.
If you want to take some more pictures from the side up close to the damage. Are your GT skirts kind of hanging down in the middle? If so the metal strip that is riveted to the rocker panel is probably rusted out (not a huge deal as long as the rocker is OK!
