Body rust; H*E*L*P* !

[Tommy2000]

So I am really pissed- I bought my fiance a 92 EB, and I thought I got a really fair deal...it had a little crinkle in the passanger fender, and a rust spot in front of each real wheel....

So I went to a body shop this weekend, and got an estimate on having it painted...the guy told me that he wouldn't even bother doing it, because the rust was all the way through, and it would need 2 new panels, new rear doors, or doorskins, and blah blah blah, and that this is a really common problem, and the total was to be just shy of 3 grand.

Does anyone have any ideas, of should I just get rid of this thing before something like the tranny or motor goes?

Any input appreciated.

Pissed T

 

[Goober]

Tommy, I have heard this is a fairly common problem with trucks(Explorers) up north. The area in front of the rear wheel wells rust as do the rocker panels. You could put new skins on, or simply cut out the rusted area and patch. Depends on which is least expensive. Others have expressed their irritation over this same thing and if you search around, you'll see. It all boils down to this, if your gonna keep it for a while, get it done right. If not, get rid of it NOW. Don't do anything to it, just sell it.

 

[Tommy2000]

You tell me...

It is a 92 eb, 165k mi, seems to be in decent shape other than that, needs a power steering pump, I think, and a battery, and I paid $3500 for it...worth getting it fixed or not?

 

[rpenner54]

Don't repair body damage. Drive it till it dies doing the normal maintence. Why bother spending a bunch on a paint job unless you plan on keeping it? It seems to me that your 3 grand would be better vested in a savings account and save up for a newer vehicle that does not have as many cosmetic problems.

 

[Tommy2000]

The Problem...

That is the problem, though...I don't wanna just 'drive it till it dies doing normal maintainance'; half the fun of owning one of these things is doing stupid stuff to it that costs a lot. I bought it with doing mild stuff to it in mind, b/c it was supposed to be for my fiance, (who now won't drive it-she has my Sport ;( ) ...stuff like shocks, small lift, blah blah...

So, I guess the reason I didn't shy away from it is b/c I know a lot of guys have a TON of miles on thier rigs here, and they just keep going...My damn sport has like 170k on it, and runs like a champ...

I babble.

Anyone else have any insight?

 

[Goober]

I was close to the same. The truck had 125,000 miles on it and the paint was getting severely crappy(faded, peeling,...etc). All the maintenance was done, but would it be worth it to fix it up, or just sell it and get another? Everything worked on her, interior was still in very good shape and ran really good. I decided to keep it and get it repainted and do the lift,..etc. I love how it looks now and it has actually saved me money from not having to pay for a newer truck + interest and higher insurance and taxes every year. In a couple years, it will only run me $15/year (renew tags)to keep her versus the 400+ for a new one.
My point being, is it worth it to YOU? You seem to have gotten a good deal and if you sold it, you'd more than likely get your $$$ back plus some. If you kept it, put the money in it to fix it right, you'd have a solid truck that looks great, but you wouldn't necessarily get your money back out of it if/when you planned to sell it. I plan on keeping Sloth(my truck) around for quite a while. So it was worth it to me to get it like it is.