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So I guess part of my frame was replaced, is this safe?


ians

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I got my car on a lift today to diagnose an oil leak and came across a rail replacement I never noticed. Welds look a bit sketch - I could use some advice on how to handle this. It is a. tube that runs down the length of one side of the car. Is this the normal way to fix a rusted out rail? Welds seems unsafe to me but maybe this is fine? Should I get the welds re-done? Do I need to replace pieces of the frame? The entire frame? 

 

 

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Also see what looks like fiberglass. For piece of mind may want to poke around there more to understand the extent of the repair.

 

Jason

 

1973 2002tii (2764167), Baikal, sunroof, A/C, 5spd OD, 3.91 LSD, etc. Rebuild blog here!

In the past: Verona H&B 1973 2002tii (2762913); Malaga 1975 2002; White 1975 2002

--> Blog: Repro tii cold start relay;   --> If you need an Alpina A4 tuning manual, PM me!

 

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Rust on the driver's side frame rail from about the firewall back to the driver's floorboard isn't uncommon on 2002s, at least in part caused by a leaky master cylinder.  That allows brake fluid to run down inside the frame rail, rusting it out.  That happened on my '69 many years ago; got a section of frame rail from an unrusted '02 parts car (they existed back then), had it welded in and no problems since.  

 

I agree the welding towards the back of the repair is a little sketchy, but nothing a good welder with a lift and a MIG couldn't do up properly.

 

mike

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'69 Nevada sunroof-Wolfgang-bought new
'73 Sahara sunroof-Ludwig-since '78
'91 Brillantrot 318is sunroof-Georg Friederich 
Fiat Topolini (Benito & Luigi), Renault 4CVs (Anatole, Lucky Pierre, Brigette) & Kermit, the Bugeye Sprite

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Sorry to be so direct, but that’s a cob job . You didn’t buy this car from Select Classics did you?. Looks like the bottom half of the rail was gobbed  on by a hack who knows nothing about welding. The gap in the rail at the critical point leads me to believe there is little structural support in the piece. Have you checked the floor and the area below the pedal box? Hard to imagine that the rail would be this far gone with no corrosion in the floor area

Edited by Mike A
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73 Tii stock build, Porsche Macan   , E46 330i Florida driver, 

….and like most of us, way too many (maybe 30 at last count) I wish I hadn't sold ?

 

 

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That's properly shit and certainly compromised your shell in the event of a head-on. As others suggested that's probably10x worse than it appears, and it appears bad. Proper bodge job, if I bought that recently I'd be having words with the seller (and if it was a dealer I'd be taking legal action if they didn't fix it), but caveat emptor and all that. Wouldn't be allowed on the road in Europe.

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It's not a Select Classics car. Given their history I understand associating them with this but it wasn't them. 

 

Thanks for verifying that I was already thinking. Glad it is repairable or seems to be. I'm going to ask a friend with some more 02 exp to take a look at it and hopefully recommend someone in the area. 

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Definitely sketchy, is that fiberglass on the inner fender?

 

My frame rail was bad as well, including sections of the inner rocker, the floorpan, and firewall below the pedal box.  I've got pics in my blog of replacing it all.

 

 

Edited by xr4tic

John Baas

1976 BMW 2002

2001 BMW M5

My Blog!

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To see if you have any movement and how weak that repair is I would jack up the car from front sub frame and see if the door gaps changes and/or if the doors open...That is certainly repairable though by someone who knows how to weld and has more than a piece of pipe to work with ...

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Don’t let the fear of what could happen

make nothing happen…

 

  

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Take a deep breath and relax.....if you live in a big city, chances are there are plenty of renowned welding shops! Take the car to atleast two of them to get an estimate and while they have it on the lift, go over with them on all the spots that may need attention (if they allow you to go under the car with them). Welding metal pieces on rusted out metal is not very expensive. It can be done and with years of experience, some can do a job to make it look as good as new. 

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Oh man... I am sorry to see this - I have to say, this is pretty bad, looks like what everyone says - leak in brake system, probably left bare metal, then rusted out completely - they replaced it with a tube as if it was tube chasis of sort. 

 

To make it "correct" you need to replace the rail, BUT if it was me, I would to what Resra said, take it to a welder, or a custom shop " restoration shop " and they can fix that, it is not insanely complicated since there is plenty of access. but it does need to get addressed correctly. 

 

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On 7/18/2019 at 8:22 AM, BarneyT said:

To see if you have any movement and how weak that repair is I would jack up the car from front sub frame and see if the door gaps changes and/or if the doors open..

 

Even a 'solid' car will bind its doors if you jack it right- these things are very flexible...

 

t

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"I learn best through painful, expensive experience, so I feel like I've gotten my money's worth." MattL

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My neighbor bought a beautiful c3 corvette a couple years ago... Then found out the front sub frame had similar damage but worse. He brought it to a welder and $1,000 later he had his car back and fixed correctly.

 

Sent from my SM-G960U using Tapatalk

 

 

 

 

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