The following is probably obvious, but I'll write it assuming that some
reader might have ZERO experience with rust and TR's.... --Justin
Looking for rust:
Along the top edges of the wings... particularly the rear quarter
panels just behind the taillights along the top leading edge. If you
see some bubbling of paint, you can assume it's 500% worse under the paint.
Around the Battery Box
Under the floorboard carpets... foot wells, and behind the seats.
Open the boot lid and look at the backside of the boot lid, near the
lowest leading edge..around the welded in structural steel, etc.
Sometimes there is very terminal rust there that is easily hidden by a
good bondo job on the outside of the boot.
The rocker panels tend to rust badly. Look for bubbling or holes there.
Frame - just inspect carefully with an emphasis on where suspension
parts bolt to the frame. Look for deep pitting, thin metal. The very
bottom of the box frame, particularly toward the rear of the car, is
where you'll often find the most obvious signs of severe "rust from the
inside out of the frame".. If there's any suspicious areas, tap it,
reasonably gently, with hammer/wrench, etc.. to see if it's
brittle-thin... etc. I've seen holes in the bottom and inside flats
of the frame on TR's that you could stick your hand into. This sort of
rust is serious, as it's from the inside out. It's not something you
can just wire brush and throw some paint on.
MY ADVICE... If the car has spent time in rust-belt state (salted
roads) or is otherwise showing serious signs of rust, PASS on it.
These cars are not so rare that, with a little patience, you can't find
a perfectly fine car, with minimal rust, from a sun-belt state, and have
it shipped. $1000 in shipping fees, for example, is FAR FAR FAR less
than the cost of repairing serious rust. It blows my mind when I see
articles about ground up restorations of TR4/4A's in Britain, and they
show entire sub-panel areas being fabricated from scratch, etc... all
over the car... when I know... TR4 cars, with practically no
rust, are sitting around California, just waiting for a buyer. Some are
even hard for the owners to sell, because despite the lack of rust, the
rest of the car is a basket case, so fellow Californian's aren't
interested. It's noble that they put so much into repairing those old
rust buckets in England, etc., but really... why not save that level of
restoration for cars that are extremely rare? "No child left behind"
makes sense for kids, but I think the world will survive if a
rusted/clapped out TR4, without any particular history that makes it
extraordinary, is allowed a dignified demise, in order that their parts
can be harvested and passed along to other restorations.
I sold a rust free, California TR4A IRS frame to a guy in Penn... The
rest of his TR4A was fine, but his frame was riddled with rust. He
saved a lot of time and effort, just buying that frame from me.
Sometimes combining a rust-belt car with a sun-belt former-parts car,
etc., is a way to go.
--Justin
Scott Janzen wrote:
>sorry to bomb the list with a non-racing thread, but I'm going to inspect a
>1961 TR4, supposedly very pristine, unrestored body, with well maintained
>mechanicals that I hope to buy and use weekend fun. Where are the typical
>spots to look for rust on the body/frame?
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