Corrosion and making everything nice

I finally got the Hijet through its MOT, but it recieved advisory notices for corrosion on all wheel arches and the front cross member. I want to tackle this soon as I need to keep this one for, say, at least five years, its not about market value to me, what matters it the emphasis on how much I like it.
As such, I tend to spend quite alot of time to get the job done perfectly, but am limited by not being able spend a big glob of cash at once.

So, I wonder, Is it within my DIY capabilitys of making all the chassis rust free and lasting? What would I need? Has anyone done this kind of thing before?

And after the chassis is done, I will want to tackle the bodywork. One creased sliding door, a small bubbly rust patch under a window, rusted stone chips and worst of all the paint has peeled away from its primer along large sections where I am told someone had put masking tape on during a window transplant.

I have most parts of a compressor ready to put together so spraying is not an impossible prospect, but I have only done a pushbike with aerosol so far.

Please, make your (positive) suggestions.

Brainsparks30 wrote:I finally got the Hijet through its MOT, but it recieved advisory notices for corrosion on all wheel arches and the front cross member. I want to tackle this soon as I need to keep this one for, say, at least five years, its not about market value to me, what matters it the emphasis on how much I like it.
As such, I tend to spend quite alot of time to get the job done perfectly, but am limited by not being able spend a big glob of cash at once.

So, I wonder, Is it within my DIY capabilitys of making all the chassis rust free and lasting? What would I need? Has anyone done this kind of thing before?

And after the chassis is done, I will want to tackle the bodywork. One creased sliding door, a small bubbly rust patch under a window, rusted stone chips and worst of all the paint has peeled away from its primer along large sections where I am told someone had put masking tape on during a window transplant.

I have most parts of a compressor ready to put together so spraying is not an impossible prospect, but I have only done a pushbike with aerosol so far.

Please, make your (positive) suggestions.

I'm not sure anyone has done such major work to a hijet, but why not?
if your willing, go ahead....

as long as you have access to a welder, an angle grinder, and plenty of time, it shouldnt be hard!

as for the body work, thats more about time and effort
rusty stone chips usually can be clean up with a wire brush, some fine emery paper and a bit of paint
the creased door might be a little harder (a replacement door is probably easier to be honest...)

as for the rust around the window, similar approach to the stone chips...



as for the compressor and spraying....
the best thing you can do, is go to Tescos/Asda/Argos/B&Q/etc and get a cheap (sub £20) gazebo.
and a packet of cheap dust sheets.

set the gazebo up over the hijet, and then use the dust sheets to cover the sides.

cheap spray booth is the result


keep us posted

That gazebo idea is excellent, I remember now that there is one in the shed outside. Not strictly mine, but mother wont mind, she likes rainbow colours...

I managed to practice welding quite nicely in a short college course using scrap bits. Nothing fell apart anyway.

That really leaves the location to work at, as housing associations dont seem to want you to pull your car apart outside their flats.
I have one idea, I know some people who live on a horsey stud, its less likely that someone will steal my tools and make off with the car if I leave the doors off overnight there. I will get get some pics done eventually.

Hi what type of Hijet have you got and which door needs changing?

Also depending on what you need to weld and what you played with, with the welder remember that the body work is very thin and you can burn through very easy I only have a 15 year old clarke turbo welder and having done loads of body and chassis welding on old fords which have a thicker skin than the Hijet how easy it is to make a hole loads worse by having the settings a little to high and scraps of metal tend to be fairly clean where as cars need to be cleaned up very well to get a good weld.

I`m going to do the same to mine,

I`m going to put it on 4 drive-up ramps and wirebrush and paint the underside,

Also i buy second hand running gear bits and de-rust/recondition and repaint them then fit them
to the van,Which means i can do it slowly as and when i have the cash and without
the van sitting in bits for ages,

Good luck
Adrian

Its a 1997, 998cc, Injection petrol EFI MPV. The creased door is the left side sliding one.
I have still not decided which paint product to use but I will list my considerations for all you others who might not have heard of them:

POR 15
I found at frost and holden
http://www.holden.co.uk/displayProductsByBrand.asp?brand=POR-15&brandCode=Z7
http://www.frost.co.uk/

KBS
Found at http://www.therustshop.com/shop/

Rust bullet
Found at http://www.rustbulletuk.com/faq/all_faq.php?cat_id=2

And optionally for impossible to paint bits inside hidden sections, Dinitrol
http://www.dinitrol.co.uk/classic_cars.aspx

All these have the advantage that you dont need clean shiny steel to work on, it works best on rust

Please try and clean the surfaces up the best you can before painting.....

then use an etch primer, and then paint it with what you want.....



other wise, the rust will just continue out of sight (behind the paint).....

I have a pair of blue blind van doors if you want to do a little cut and shut on your door.

rich the mechanic wrote:I have a pair of blue blind van doors if you want to do a little cut and shut on your door.

Thats a kind offer, I shall have to wait for now as I must focus on chassis work. If you still have them later on they could be usefull. I might preffer to get a direct swap, the MPV has the biggest winding windows I have ever seen for a passenger car.

When it does come to bodywork, rollering it as shown here is looking more likely due to cost.
http://wiki.club8090.co.uk/index.php/Bodywork_and_Glass_Roller_painting
http://www.rustoleum.co.uk/products/metal-paint

A lot of bodyshops roller on primer and then flat it back with wet and dry as you can put the paint on thicker and you don't gety brush marks or bristles.