How much rust does your K-car have?

How much rust does your K-car have?

Postby 89ARIES » Tue Aug 04, 2009 2:02 am

Here is the 86 Reliant for sale. As you can see, it has some MAJOR cancer underneath:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/86-FWD-w ... 06.c0.m245

It looks like I could take a chisel or my bare hand and start breaking off pieces of rustflakes. Correct if I am wrong, but the death of the K-car tends to be the rust
in those areas, right? What is that area called. I am talking about where the sheet metal goes underneath the side of the car and is welding into like pinch welds or sheets
along the bottom of the car. The annoying thing about them is that they get terribly damaged. For example, my pinch welds are squished in a few places under my car. I am surprised
they haven't rusted, except for a tiny bit of surface rust I found where the metal was really distorted. Mine were caused by some idiot using a jack to jack up the car and the full weight of
the car was on the jack and thus creased the metal. Also, the car went over a curb once and the curb smacked the welds behind the wheel. Also, all the rust tends to attack those areas the most. By a show
of hand (lets tbe honest :roll: ), how many of you have:

1. A little rust on those welds (surface)
2. A lot, no perforation, but you can scrape off dust with your nails.
3. Rustflakes. The welds might as well not exist.

How do you fix that? Isn't the K a unibody and those welds keep the car from coming apart. What happens without the welds? Lets make a funny vid about K-car welds and how to protect them. We could make
it really funny with cartoon characters putting jacks under them, or running over curbs, or doing donuts in snow. Just a thought for our K-car general knowledge and entertainment.
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Re: How much rust does your K-car have?

Postby dodgeariesguy » Tue Aug 04, 2009 2:30 am

I call it a body lip. And that K-Car has hardly any rust by comparison. That is actually a safe place to put a hoist in the front or rear if its strong enough, but for a floor jack no always use the uni-frame rail. The lip it really just the point at which the rocker panels and floor pans are put together. I have rust flakes and floor holes but all of that is an easy fix. That is not major cancer at all. Anyway its not that bad, we in the rust belt see 20 times that amount of rust in cars half the age so we learn to fix it. Without those welds you will most likely have a large gap between those two pieces and have a good welder put those pieces back together.
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Re: How much rust does your K-car have?

Postby 88 aries » Tue Aug 04, 2009 3:49 am

1988 Dodge aries, From florida only rust blisters before the repaint

1986 Plymouth Reliant (before resto) Holes in the front floor, rear rockers both sides.


1985 Aries, Rear rockers and bottom of drivers door.


so the 86 and 88 have no rust.

the 85 has very little.
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Re: How much rust does your K-car have?

Postby davio » Wed Aug 05, 2009 1:53 am

Rust holes under floor, bottom of doors and supposedly in rear spring area. 1982 Dodge 400 coupe 4 speed. 2.2 litre. The car is in good running condition. I was hoping to keep it on the road for awhile longer, but the rust is the problem. It's not worth doing anymore mechanical repairs because if the police pull it over it will be grounded till rust is fixed. Does anyone know the most reasonable way to fix the rust? See my car at: http://www.cardomain.com/ride/717714. Is it worth keeping?
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Re: How much rust does your K-car have?

Postby Webmaster » Wed Aug 19, 2009 11:55 pm

Your car is one of the rarest K-cars ever made. Most of us have not seen a Dodge 400 Coupe in years. Send us some pics of the rust so we can think of a plan.
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Re: How much rust does your K-car have?

Postby MoparDan » Wed Nov 04, 2009 12:21 am

almost have the trunk floor was rotted off when I first got the 600 and the lower rear quater panals had suface rust that was an easy fix fix though.as for the floor we sanded down the trunk and rivited in some sheet metal from Home Depot them primed it on both sides bondoed around it then under coated the entire underside so far its held fine
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Re: How much rust does your K-car have?

Postby Arthur Dent » Mon Nov 16, 2009 9:45 pm

Some surface rust out by the rear - that is it. Very odd rusting pattern but the underside is quite clean. Got the usual flaking clear coat on the hood too.
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Re: How much rust does your K-car have?

Postby Chief » Fri Nov 20, 2009 3:56 am

I'm lucky that I have a Southern California car so I've never had any rust. But listening to the different stories I've heard here, I definitely see that these cars were not built for winter application. So I'm very happy that I won't ever have to experience the rust program.
Link to view my web-page:
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Re: How much rust does your K-car have?

Postby Baron » Fri Nov 20, 2009 6:29 am

I had my doubts about my 68 Plymouth Fury being an original California car, but after installing new carpet last weekend, I'm convinced it's spent its whole 42 years, if not in California, then at least in a kind climate. The front seat is mounted by four bolts going through the floor board and secured with a nut on each one. When I saw I was going to have to go under the car to remove the seats I was afraid I was in for a real job trying to break some old nuts loose after so many years. But it was so clean and nice under there I only had to give each nut a slight tug with a wrench and they were loose. In fact, I could almost literally turn and remove them with my fingers. I soaked the nuts overnight in some PB Blaster and did reinstall them by hand. Only needed a wrench to do the final tightening. NICE!

But judging by some of the pictures I see of cars for sale on ebay, it looks like the harsh winters in other parts of the country are EVERY car's worst enemy- doesn't look like the K car comes even close to any kind of monopoly on rust.
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Re: How much rust does your K-car have?

Postby carp8ntnman » Sat Nov 28, 2009 1:26 am

well i have to tell you guys i have a 1983 dodge 400 convertable ,the car is pretty sweet ,original interior and only 49 k on the speedometer, a few weeks ago i had my mecanic putting on a steering rack ,he calls me to come look underneth my car while he had it on the rack,boy what a shock...most of the passanger side floor pan was totally gone!!!!! well ive been doing body work since 1981 so im pulling all the interior and replaceing the metal in the floorpans ,this job isnt terrable defficult, and in my openionl is worth fixing ,the cost of materials under 100.00 and if you know someone with a small mig welder ,you might get it done total under 300.00 ..... ill send you guys some pictures and show you how easy a fix this is and be done right at the same time
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