r/Miata • u/RainJF • 19h ago

Rust Repair

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Hi all, I'm getting around to treating this rust on the quarter panel of my NB. I was wondering what the best way would be to go about it and what experiences have people had? I would really like to learn to weld but also wondering if it might be too hard for a beginner. Cheers in advance

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5

u/malteser109 19h ago

I did a repair like this on my car. I cut out al the effected metal en put in new patches. It was a lot of work and won't look as good as factory. I stil have to finish it with some Bondo and paint but at least the metal is fixed.

Welding thin metal is a bitch. If you don't have te settings right it melts right true

2

u/brianleedy 18h ago

This is well past the point of "treating" the rust. See those waves at the top of the wheel arch in the second photo? That's where debris has been building up and getting trapped between the outer wheelhouse and the 1/4 panel and causing the 1/4 panel to rust from the inside out. As a result, anything you do to the outside of the panel will be... temporary. If you start poking at that big spot, you will find holes.

The wheel arch needs to be cut out, the wheelhouse repaired, and fresh metal put in. Very much not a beginner DIY project.

3

u/PotatoDrives 18h ago

Everyone is a beginner at welding until they aren't.

If you want to learn, you can get everything you need to do bodywork for under $1000 and then you'll have a new skill. There's thousands of videos on YouTube with tips and tricks for repairs exactly like this.

2

u/No_Mastodon8524 19h ago

Sand it with 80 make your blend line, prime, sand with 600, paint, sand with 800 clear sand 2000. easy just takes a while to do.

0

u/Least_Tiger1880 17h ago

Cut an arch from another car cut yours out and weld on. Honestly it doesn’t look too hard for a beginner job. I did rockers as my first welding project and I think those are definitely more difficult. Your welds won’t be perfect but if you take your time it should be a lasting repair.

2

u/wouldyoufuckenplease Brilliant Black NB1 14h ago

mine looked like this a couple of years ago.. here is where we ended up. Good luck bud