Just how rusty can a late Corrado be...this rusty!!

[Purple Tom 0]

Hi everyone,

 

Bit of a sad one this really, it signals the end of another Corrado unfortunately. At the start of September I bought a 1996 'N' Corrado VR6 from a lad local to me on this forum. I didn't pay a lot for it, considering its spec (twilight violet, 117k, full black heated leather, decent wheels, stainless exhaust, uprated discs etc), but it had quite a few dents and knocks, scratches, and a fair amount of rust around the N/S/R wheelarch. I bought it with the intention of putting it on the road, but I pretty soon came to the realisation that it needed a LOT of bodywork, probably too much to make it a viable project, so I decided that breaking it might be a better alternative.

 

Here's a couple of pictures of how it looked until about 3 hours ago:

 

 

 

Here's the rust around the N/S/R arch:

 

 

It doesn't look that bad really. A bit of bubbling and a couple of scrapes but nothing particularly major you wouldn't have thought. This afternoon Ian (B4ILEY on here) came round and helped me do a few bits and bobs, including figuring out how to remove the door window exterior rubber trim. It was while doing that job that I noticed a small hole right on the underside of the N/S sill towards the rear of the car. Closer investigation with a screwdriver and then a small knockometer produced this:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

There's plenty of rust around the top of the windscreen too, not to mention the rear hatch which is pretty manky. As you can probably see, the rear sill was pretty much full of filler, as was the rear arch, all the way round to the rear bumper and rear panel. There's also a fairly sizable hole on the N/S doorstep which was also filled and painted. It's obviously had a quick 'bodge it and scarper' repair within the last 2 or 3 years, funny that there's nothing in the history. I just can't believe that someone would do such a bodgey repair and then spend a fair amount having the entire side resprayed, its good paint too! Such a shame because mechanically the car is 100% perfect! The interior is pretty good and if it wasn't for its tinworm issues it'd make a great project.

 

I think its safe to say I am justified in breaking this car, as coupled with its numerous dents and scrapes on other panels it's just not worth putting back on the road! What I do have however is a great donor for the widetrack conversion on my 8V, along with lots of bits and pieces to keep many other C's alive and kicking. I'll start a for sale thread soon.

 

Has anyone else seen one quite that bad? It seems to be the late Corrado's that suffer with corrosion more - something to do with the quality of paint/steelwork?

 

Tom

[KIPVW 0]

Jesus I know when we spoke at the pub meet you said it wasn't good but that is almost unreal :shock: No way could that have been saved so defo done the right thing breaking and keeping others going :? Still sad though.

[BadBoyHiggins 0]

thats pretty bad i do have a full rear quarter with the sill all ready removed from a corrado if you wana keep it on the road mate

[Peebee 0]

Blimey mate, major sergery required there!

[Jon_vr6 1]

Nasty that mate sad as its Twilight Violet one of my favourite flavours but thats going to be pretty costly to fix so definitely justified in breaking it mate

[easypops 8]

Hate being a vulture.........and this is only if you do break it..........i'd really like the passenger wing if its not rusted away.......i'd also love the bonnet and the passenger door, but know they would maybe have transport issues ( which i'd look into if all were ok and not too dear :lol: ).........its only that as you'll know its very rare a breaker comes along in the correct colour.........i could even swap panels as i've been hoarding a few :lol:

[V-Dubstar 0]

:shock: That is shocking!!

 

I just can't believe that someone would do such a bodgey repair and then spend a fair amount having the entire side resprayed, its good paint too!

 

Completely agree, wtf?! That's all killa AND filla!!

[dukest 0]

Not sure I'd want to buy anything metal from that! Good job you'd already made the decision to break it.

[Pat_McCrotch 0]

Just goes to show what happens when you skimp on bodywork repairs. Think twice before you go to Fred in a Shed to save £150 on bodywork...

[MarkFoster 0]

Are you absolutely sure it won't polish out though?

[huggy 0]

OUCH! I feel for ya. I hope that when mine eventualy goes in for its rub down respray dinks taken out that noting this bad crops up! Just how much would it cost for something that bad to be repaired properly?

[dukest 0]

more than buying another better car..

[Yandards 0]

Nasty, good demonstration of what can be lurking under some benign looking corrosion though.

 

Get the damn wax oil spray down behind the rear quarter door cards, that should help prevent that sort of spread in the rear sill area.

[huggy 0]

more than buying another better car..

Ok but tbh anyone who owns a corrado will most likely spend more on the car than the car is worth I know its not good econmics but kinda goes with owning a c. In this case thoe I can completly see why its better to cut your losses now.

[dukest 0]

more than buying another better car..

Ok but tbh anyone who owns a corrado will most likely spend more on the car than the car is worth I know its not good econmics but kinda goes with owning a c. In this case thoe I can completly see why its better to cut your losses now.

oh for sure, i'd spend what a corrado was worth on a good respray if i had the money, but i'd never fix that kind of rust damage unless it had some kind of distinctive history to it or i got it for free. i say that having spent a lot of money fixing mine from just crash damage which I shouldnt really have bothered doing.

[quicky1980 0]

I had something on mine, not as severe but still a nasty surprise

 

Same wheel arch as yours.

 

Someone had tried fixing the damage, but didnt do a very good job

 

[Purple Tom 0]

Ouch, the corrosion looks to be of a similar severity! I still can't understand the logic of putting filler over rust as a long-term solution. I think its OK if you only expect the car to live another year or two but for something like a Corrado I think the only option is to replace the steelwork with new steel.

 

How long did the repair take?

 

Tom

[boost monkey 0]

this makes me very scared for the Plum... :pale:

[tony_ack 0]

Salvageable - maybe with a new arch and sill (providing there is no more damage which it sounds like there is), viable - no, not when you have a decent shell lying around.

 

Is this the one advertised on here last summer? I enquired about it, so looks like I dodged a bullet...

 

Going to get mine checked over and repaired if needed in the summer as there is a tiny rust spot in the same area on the opposite side..

[rado2 0]

some bespoke company needs to start making alumimium body parts and sills to keep rados going for ever . hate seeing things like this makes you worry about whats underneath your paint :pale:

[quicky1980 0]

Tbh mine was down to a poor repair job. The rust was completely cut and a replaced by new panels. Not sure how long it took as it was part of a full respray

[Kevin Bacon 5]

this makes me very scared for the Plum... :pale:

 

Yeah likewise! I would just buy an 8v and reshell mine if it ever gets that bad!

[leeeeshad 0]

some bespoke company needs to start making alumimium body parts and sills to keep rados going for ever .

 

I'd do it, except you cant weld ally to steel.

[jimpy66 0]

This would scare the crap out of anyone. I've got a bubble on same arch and when I checked it out few weeks ago, discovered it a bit nasty behind. Found a big wodge of sealer behind rim coming loose so cleaned it out and left open meantime. It'll get fixed in the spring- it'll be cut out and a section welded back in, shaped and painted. Also do all the little bits here and there- number plate light recess has a fleck or two, seam at drivers doorcheck. As these photos show, you just can't mess around with these bits- cover them up and the next thing you know it's a wreck!

Sorry to see this on a late car though. Probably been poorly repaired or maintained in the past.

As Corrados all approach the twenty year mark, only those with owners giving serious maintenance will last to the 25-year mark. They'll rapidly deplete in numbers unless most find a seriously good home. I'll be welling up in a minute.

What we need is a third world country (UK shortly :grin: ) to buy the dies and start making Corrados again. They could make an electric one for shopping, a hybrid one for the grass-huggers and a W8 for the rest of us. Just as long as they don't limit the supply of window rollers, heater controls, headlamp switches and dash cover caps :dance:

[boost monkey 0]

*mentions something about the old car dipping thread before running away to avoid the flames*