Help & Advice on repair panels / paint

[Claire]

Hello - I am Ian and will be doing some of the posting here for Claire (my wife)

Having now had time to drive a few hundred miles and give the car a good looking over, there are two immediate rust areas that need attention, and whilst we are at it we want to get a small amount of paintwork smartened up.

The objective is to keep the car as original as possible, whilst ensuring it is solid, safe and reliable to drive - so no rotisserie restoration and glass out paint job :-)

I have started a new photo gallery on photobucket, pictured along side my (now sold) 1973 911 Carrera Lightweight build I did and my current 964 Carrera RS homage. Please note that whilst I am more than happy to get my hands dirty mechanically, I am not a welder or painter, so leave that to the pros.

The photobucket gallery (with one album added) can be found here :-

http://s124.photobucket.com/albums/p33/Highfield_Photos/1-Renault 4/

The a few rust areas :-

1. A hole in the chassis just below the drivers heel area shown here :-

2. A hole at the lower right edge of the tailgate shown here :-

3. Surface rust around the seat belt mounts shown here :-

I am looking for advice on whether there are repair panels available for these sections or whether we need repair patches to be made up.

I will need to have the welding and repairs carried out professionally, and so am happy to take the car to a recommended repairer for Renault 4 - such as Renospeed, but would welcome your view on others that may be closer to home.

Whilst the car is having the welding done, there are a few areas of the external bodywork that need some attention to remove small rust areas and to paint a section, but not necessarily the whole panel - e.g the top of the right hand wing.

Here is an example of the lower right hand front wing :-

I will be posting lots more pictures and updates as the work progresses to be sure we are in good shape for the run to Thenay in 2011 :-)

All help and advise much appreciated as I am new to the R4 but look forward to getting my hands dirty.

Ian Highfield (Claire's husband)

 

[Steve Hennessey]

Ian, these jobs really need to be tackled by a professional restorer such as Derek. The seat belt mounting is so dangerous that it would fail in an accident. That is the number one priority job to get done before anything else. If you can source a good second-hand tailgate that would be easier than repairing your one. The lower front wing section is actually an 'A' panel and this could be repaired as can the holes in the floor. It should always be noted that the areas that need rust repairs will always be larger than what you think they are!

 

[alewis]

Hi, probably worth checking the rear suspension mounts as well.

I saw a few boot lids on eBay recently which didnt sell - might be worth contacting the seller to see if they are still going.
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Renault-4-boot-lid-/280589977861

+Which seat belt mount is that, I cant tell from the picture ?

I am assuming the front wing is the one I think it is - you can probably clean that up (with a wire brush) and give it a coat of paint (any paint to protect it and prevent further rust) Then if you do get a second hand bootlid could paint or get painted all those bits painted at the same time.

I would also recommend giving the bottom corners of the boot a good clean up (with a wire brush) and paint as this is a right pain if it rusts thu.

My view is any rust you can see - clean it off and paint it to at least try and protect it a bit

Looks like a nice car Keep posting as it goes ! I failed miserably when I did mine and only posted before and after photos !

 

[Claire]

Thanks for the replies.

My plan is to have someone like Derek at Renospeed give the body and chassis a good look over so we can identify and then fix up any issues in a single go, and do any paint touch up or single panels requiring paint at the same time.

I am more than happy to then maintain the car and look after the mechanical bits, but want any rust and paint jobs done first.

As for which seat belt mount, I think it is the one to the right and behind the drivers seat - looks more like a harness belt mount than a seat belt anchor, but it looks as though it has it's original belts etc.

I will post lots of pictures as we go along.

Ian

 

[pepper]

The thing is with these older cars that have been subjected to the ravages of British winters is that the "little" bits of rust that you've found can tend to be a tip of an iceberg, I'd be budgeting for their to be a few more surprises along the way.