Addressing rust spots/ patches on Honda ACCORD 1987.

[Car Enthousiast]

Hello,



I recently purchased my Honda Accord (my first car) and there is a few rust spots and cosmetic parts that I would like to address or at least take care. I went to general stores selling car accessories one upon after another and they all tell me either "drive the car to the ground" or "if you touch that rust it`ll get even bigger... just leave it alone its not worth it". I have pictures attached so you can see what kind of cosmetic damage I`m dealing with.



Anyways, I want this to be an interesting DIY project, and I have my car pictures attached with red circles addressing the areas of interest. The biggest concern is that rust spot on my upper part of my back wheel arch on the right side of the car where it is an awful tan rust color, with the original paint chipping and away and unfortunately no metal left in that area.



The second biggest concern is that rust on the right side of my car below the front door, where the whole length is dark brown rust. The metal is still there thankfully :)!



The third biggest concern is the rust on the left back wheel arch where the color is the same with the overall car but it is bubbling. I believe the metal is eaten away there too and the paint is chipping away.



The final concern is just the cosmetic anomalies with my front bumper and back, do I just paint over that with black bumper color?



All in all, I am a student who is looking to address the cosmetic issues with his first car and I am willing to purchase any car cosmetic care products like sandpaper, paint, rust converter etc.



What would I need to address the rust areas where the metal is eaten away? Should I use spray rust removal or sandpaper or should I not touch the area at all like the others recommended? What should I do with the rust areas where the metal is still there? Can I just paint over the rust to cover up the eye sores for the ones the metal eaten away? What do I do with the paint marks on my bumper? Also, is my car color beige or indigo?



Thanks,

Car Enthousiast

[todd@bsaw]

I went to general stores selling car accessories one upon after another and they all tell me either "drive the car to the ground" or "if you touch that rust it`ll get even bigger... just leave it alone its not worth it".



Sorry but I`m going to have to go along with what you`ve already been told.



You`re talking about getting body work done on most of those damaged areas, which is far beyond the realm of just picking up a few things at a NAPA and working in your parents garage over the weekend. That is only the rust that you can see... I can only imagine what it looks like underneath and in parts you can`t see.

[Car Enthousiast]

Hello,



Thanks for the quick response! Alright, can I do just a touch up on it then? What happens if I paint it over aka a quick inexpensive fix?

[Setec Astronomy]

Well, of course you can sand, convert, fill, and prime those spots, and even do some touchup to them, but they won`t look perfect, and they will come back in a couple of years. I understand where Todd is coming from, but I would never dissuade you from a project like that which you want to tackle, just don`t expect it to look like a body shop repair, or last like one. You will likely need to remove some of that trim adjacent to the rust because the rust will be under there, too. You`re going to need to grind the edges of the defect until you get back to clean metal, and as you`ve been told, that will likely be a significantly larger spot than you currently see.



If you want to see how a pro would do it, try and catch an episode or two of Overhaulin`, they will grind and weld in new metal for a repair like that, undercoat on the inside, etc.

[RaskyR1]

Typical Honda rust areas. ;)



I`m guessing the reason most people are telling you to leave it alone is that the cost of the materials and time you will invest into fixing those areas will likely exceed the price you paid for the car. If the work is not done properly it will still come back in a short period of time too.



If you really want to do it your best bet would be to join some auto body forums as most the advice you get here is going to be second hand info.



Cheers,

Rasky

[todd@bsaw]

If you really want to do it your best bet would be to join some auto body forums as most the advice you get here is going to be second hand info.



This would be your best bet since typical body work is beyond anything a detailer would normally do. Sure, it could be a fun project if you have the time and resources for it and just like Setec said we`re not trying to dissuade you from trying it out. It`s just that a lot of people don`t really see how much rust there really is when they start a fix on a "small" rust spot.

[David Fermani]

There`s no way of fixing those rust holes unless you replace the panel it`s within. I.E. Quarters & Rocker Panels. That`s a huge job that would cost 2-3 times what the car is probably worth. Not to mention that there`s probably rust in many other areas that you can`t see. I`d leave it alone and drive the thing into the ground.

[Setec Astronomy]

I swear some of you guys have forgotten what it`s like to be a kid. You guys never bondo`d your first car? Well, actually, neither did I, I fiberglassed.

[David Fermani]

Didn`t they use lead back then?

[Setec Astronomy]

Didn`t they use lead back then?



Well, the apparent Earl Scheib job I was repairing was Bondo backed by steel wool stuffed in the hole, so I thought my fiberglass over chicken wire with body glaze on top was quite the improvement, especially since I shot the whole car after.



Just think, our newb here might be so motivated by the crap repair he wants to do, that he becomes interested in how to do it the right way, and becomes a body technician, and maybe owns his own shop or a chain of shops...or we could discourage him and he could wind up being something like, I dunno, an insurance adjuster. After all, did every detailer here start out with Menzerna, a rotary, and Zaino? No, most of us started out with Kit, RainDance and TurtleWax. If we had someone giving us advice that it wasn`t worth waxing our car unless we bought a whole bunch of products and machines we couldn`t afford, perhaps we never would have gotten the detailing bug and never come here later to learn from "leaders".

[David Fermani]

Or he could just wind up thinking he knows how to detail like some do....

[todd@bsaw]

Actually, it was NuFinish for me.

[Setec Astronomy]

Or he could just wind up thinking he knows how to detail like some do....



We all bow down to you, Mr. Fermani :bow:bow:bow:bow:bow:bow

[David Fermani]

You should after spending as much time as you do reading my threads.

[Setec Astronomy]

You should after spending as much time as you do reading my threads.



Is this your thread?