Project #2...Nissan Figaro

[Pigeon_Droppings2]

rtcosic....that sounds very interesting. I was going to put the figaro on 2 ramps just on one side but then I got worried it might cause the shell more stress and encourage it to twist. Did you have any issues with the door gaps or did the brace hold everything in place?

 

[rtcosic]

rtcosic....that sounds very interesting. I was going to put the figaro on 2 ramps just on one side but then I got worried it might cause the shell more stress and encourage it to twist. Did you have any issues with the door gaps or did the brace hold everything in place?

Did one side at a time.
Door remained fitted to the side that was sat on the floor.
MX-5 sills are near enough straight so the load was spread along the entire sill resting on the floor. Less bending force than when the car is sitting on its wheels. The two 'props' were located inboard of the sill flange but on the reinforced jacking point area, so no more bending than jacking it up.

Bracing was between the two 'props' and from the bottom of the props to floor side sill jacking points just to prevent the props slipping off the car, splaying apart etc, not to stiffen the shell.

The side being worked on only needed the outer sill rear section and rear wheel arch replaced - that is a single repair panel. Inner sill and floor were as it left the factory and left untouched.

The underside was stripped of old underseal and the paint was wire brushed back to bare metal and repainted. Stiffeners and a cross brace were added to the 'chassis rails' - apparently a 'standard' mod done to these cars and copied from commercial offerings from the USA.

We had to remove the door of course, but did not add door gap bracing. Door fitted fine afterwards straight onto the hinge witness marks and without the need for lock striker plate adjustment - but MX-5s challenge Series Land Rovers for panel fit.

Knowing how they rusted from the MkI we had repaired a few years earlier, we attacked the MkII at the first sign of paint bubbling. So the car was structurally sound anyway.

If inner sill and/or floor repairs were needed then bracing would have been used.

I can't 'advise' you on suitability of this approach on your little Fig as I know nothing of the cars in general or the specific condition of yours.

We used to do this to Minis all the time back in my undergraduate days - mattresses borrowed from the rooms of anyone away for the weekend protected the paintwork.

 

[slim_boy_fat]

mattresses borrowed from the rooms of anyone away for the weekend protected the paintwork.

 

[Pigeon_Droppings2]

Cheers rtcosic...I knew someone with the MK1 MX5 many years ago....he fitted a turbo which he "imported" in his suitcase after a holiday in the USA. The thing was frightening fast...and I mean faster than an MR2 Turbo I reckon....especially frightening as the brakes were left as standard!

I'm going to have a think before doing the second Figaro I think....need to make things a bit easier for myself so might be worth investing a little time and/or money. My plan involved some kind of frame made of RSJs maybe and a pivot but will need some design and load calculations etc before I give it a go I think.

 

[slim_boy_fat]

I measure progress by weight of rust removed.

 

[Pigeon_Droppings2]

Managed to get a bit more floor in...this pic gives you an idea of how tight things are. At one point I was having to turn my head side ways just to get in and then turning it upright to weld...reverse to remove head!

 

[Pigeon_Droppings2]

I went with a simpler design for the reinforcer...I've left the end loose for now so I can tweak things when the outer sill is fitted. I think I just need sufficient room to get the sill closer on there.

I even remembered to put the drain in which you can see towards the left of the new bit....the idea is that it drains from the inner reinforcer and out the bottom of the car.

The welder today has been really great...I tweaked the gas and turned it down a little but I also swapped out the shroud for a really heavy duty one. The result was very little splatter and much smoother welding.

 

[Pigeon_Droppings2]

In fact it went so well I needed something to bring me back down to earth...with a bump. Here is the next wonderful reveal!

There is also a patch over the outer sill in exactly the same place as the passenger side. They put so much filler and stone chip on there that it's covered up....but it's there as the underneath is rotted out!

 

[Pigeon_Droppings2]

All in all I'm happy enough with progress....gas is still holding up well but it's nearly on zero now so I might take it in for a refill. I use the guys in Barnet and they usually have them in stock. Best of all....no bottle rental to pay :-)

Managed to get everything cleaned up and ready for the next bit...might be a few days as I'm getting dragged away again :-(

 

[Pigeon_Droppings2]

More bits done on the floor...I haven't flattened the welds...will do it once the body brace is removed.

 

[Pigeon_Droppings2]

Next job is to tackle this mess....gulp

 

[Pigeon_Droppings2]

Been a bit on and off this weekend garage wise. I did manage to get most of the floor done....I still have a small bit of floor to do but decided to put that in a box marked "finishing off". I plan to go over the entire floor repair once the brace is out of the car and fix any pin holes etc so for the moment I'm going to just crack on and get some progress on the sill rather than be slowed down with the fine fettling which will be a lot easier anyway once that brace is out of the car.

There is a second bit of the floor which needs attention...I will be cutting out the rust and sorting that out once I've done the main sill repairs....thats why this patch has a bit of the perimeter left not welded in.

 

[Pigeon_Droppings2]

Made a good start on cleaning out the sill rust...as with the drivers side I have pulled the seatbelt nut so I can sort the inner sill properly. Still a little cleaning up to be done but to be honest it isn't as bad as I thought it was going to be. Not only am I working upside down....but space is also very limited...I don't know what I would have done without a power file. Turns out you can use a power file like a grinder...just much slower going!

It took quite a while to sand through the different layers at the top of the sill....there was a seatbelt reinforcement plate above the inner sill...both had rotted out hence the sheer volume of rust in the earlier pic. I think its quite important to get under the rust...its very easy to clean up a piece of steel so it looks nice and shiny but is actually paper thin and hiding a layer of rust under neath. Then when you start welding it blows and pops everywhere!

 

[Pigeon_Droppings2]

This is the rear of the seatbelt bolt...you can see where the rust had started to creep under the plate. I will save the nut and the little plate by grinding the spot welds off from the rear.

 

[Pigeon_Droppings2]

Going to need a new figgy rusty bits box soon!

 

[Pigeon_Droppings2]

Been trying to work out this bit of the wheel arch...the penny just dropped...this double layer is a patch someone has slapped onto the inner arch. It really looks like they just bunged patches straight over the rust holes..I have no issue with patches (well they aren't great but needs must I guess)....but wouldn't you cut the rust out to minimise the chances of it returning by just allowing say a 10mm overlap?

 

[Pigeon_Droppings2]

Managed to clean up the rear end...looking much better already!

Notice that drain pipe sitting behind the panel....who ever thought of draining the roof into the sills should be taken out and have a good shoeing administered!

 

[Pigeon_Droppings2]

About a dozen finger file belts later we have this. I was really really tempted to just pull the whole of that rear part out and start again. In the interest of time I decided not to but actually given the stress I had with the welding I think it would probably have been a lot quicker to just start again!

 

[Pigeon_Droppings2]

Managed to get most of the inner sill welded in...but then the gas finally ran out. Can't really complain as it's limped on for a few days. Ground the welds back as I will be sticking a thicker reinforcement plate over this stretching from the seatbelt mount back to the rear jacking point....the original had a smaller plate over the belt mounting hole but think it would be better to extend this back to the jacking point. The butt weld was incredibly difficult with a heap of holes appearing....felt like my mig was a plasma cutter at times! I think it was already a very thin panel before I removed the rust from it and made it even thinner.

I've stuck weld thro primer over this area as I will be applying the reinforcer over the top. I've also ordered some zinc rich primer which I will be using before closing up the sill....once it's closed I will be using cavity wax.

As with the other side I put a bend in the panel and spot welded it into the suspension member...this should allow me to get under body wax between the gap behind and all the way to the top (I think this was the main cause of the original rot).

 

[Pigeon_Droppings2]

Decided to cheat on the arches...the one I made came out very nice but there is a detail around the arch rim that would take a bit of time to replicate. These are a very nice fit...at £135 a pair they aren't the cheapest but will save me a heap of time I think....and I need to get some time back after the sills from hell!