Removing rust

[Newjack]

When I opened up my passenger side rear door today, I noticed a bubbly patch of paint. Looks like some rust started forming under the paint causing it to bubble. What can I do about this? Is this something I can fix myself or do I have to have it removed by a professional to keep it from spreading?

I also noticed that there was a significant amount of moisture in that area. It has rained fairly hard here lately. But the last rainfall was over 24 hours ago, and it has been hot outside. I wouldn't expect there to be that much water to gather and sit in that location.

https://dl.dropbox.com/u/45065965/Car/0723121727.jpg

https://dl.dropbox.com/u/45065965/Car/0723121728.jpg

[danewilson77]

Damn.

Sent from Williamsburg, VA USA

[static667]

Go to a reputable body shop and have them check it out. It isn't the cheapest way to do it but, your best bet at getting it done right. The problem with rust is, it will come back. Its not a matter of "if" but "when".

[aurelius]

You might also check for the presence and condition of the vapor barrier behind the interior door panel. If the window regulator in that door was replaced in anything but warm weather, the vapor barrier could easily be torn.

[Newjack]

I'm pretty sure that water drains from above the door to the bottom, right in that area. But it was still pretty wet well after it had rained. I was thinking I need to check my vapor barrier as well.

[aurelius]

On the E30, for drainage and evaporation, I open the rear "pop-out" windows, hood, trunk, and doors to air out after washing or significant rain.

On E46, there is a black plastic disk you can remove on the bottom of the door, facing the ground. That'll let the door air out if it's wet inside. Just remember to pop it back into place afterward.

[Newjack]

On the E30, for drainage and evaporation, I open the rear "pop-out" windows, hood, trunk, and doors to air out after washing or significant rain.

On E46, there is a black plastic disk you can remove on the bottom of the door, facing the ground. That'll let the door air out if it's wet inside. Just remember to pop it back into place afterward.

I'll have to look into that.


On another note, I found an auto body shop right down the street that has some decent reviews on google. I'm gonna check it out sometime soon and see what they say.


Does anyone know the process of removing rust of this size? I asked my stepdad and he said something along the lines of filing it down to remove what is rusted. Treating it with something to prevent further rust, then filling it with something like lead to make it look right, then repainting it.

I just want to learn the basic procedure so I can ask the body shop and act like I know a thing or two.

[danewilson77]

Does anyone know the process of removing rust of this size? I asked my stepdad and he said something along the lines of filing it down to remove what is rusted. Treating it with something to prevent further rust, then filling it with something like lead to make it look right, then repainting it.

I just want to learn the basic procedure so I can ask the body shop and act like I know a thing or two.

Sounds about right.

Sent from Williamsburg, VA USA

[Hornung418]

This thread makes me a sad panda :(

[Newjack]

This thread makes me a sad panda :(

You have no idea. Hopefully this doesn't cost too much.

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[Newjack]

UPDATE

I found a local body shop, less than a mile away from my house. They had 3 solid reviews on Google so I checked them out. I set up an appointment for next Monday. They quoted me at $150 to remove the rust in that area as well as paint the whole section to make it look new again. The guy there told me that none of the shops in the area guarantee rust removal because it will always come back, it just depends on when. He did say that it didn't look that bad.

If this place treats me right and does a good job, I would be happy to write them a solid review and refer folks in the MD area to them.

[danewilson77]

UPDATE

I found a local body shop, less than a mile away from my house. They had 3 solid reviews on Google so I checked them out. I set up an appointment for next Monday. They quoted me at $150 to remove the rust in that area as well as paint the whole section to make it look new again. The guy there told me that none of the shops in the area guarantee rust removal because it will always come back, it just depends on when. He did say that it didn't look that bad.

If this place treats me right and does a good job, I would be happy to write them a solid review and refer folks in the MD area to them.

Great news. Look for fish eye/orange peel when you pick it up though.

Sent from Williamsburg, VA USA

[Newjack]

Great news. Look for fish eye/orange peel when you pick it up though.

Sent from Williamsburg, VA USA

What do you mean by fish eye/orange peel Dane?


Also I meant to add that the shop I found is called Kelley's Auto Body in Kensington (http://www.yelp.com/biz/kelleys-auto-body-kensington).

[Hornung418]

Orange peel happens when they don't use the right painting setup or spray at a perpendicular angle to the surface. Gives it the effect of the outside skin of an orange. Can be fixed with a super fine wet-sand, but it's just something to watch for.

[Newjack]

Got the car back today. First impressions were really good. No orange peel feel. Paint was very smooth and looks brand freaking new. There is a line where he taped off the area, so it isn't perfect. But A) it is inside the door, so I never even look at it. B) I can imagine that unless you respray everything, it wont be 100%. C) It was $150 to have it removed and resprayed, which is a pretty good deal.

https://dl.dropbox.com/u/45065965/Car/0807121632.jpg

https://dl.dropbox.com/u/45065965/Car/0807121633.jpg



So I got home and noticed some scratches that I hadn't seen before.

https://dl.dropbox.com/u/45065965/Car/0807121639.jpg

https://dl.dropbox.com/u/45065965/Car/0807121641.jpg

https://dl.dropbox.com/u/45065965/Car/0807121640.jpg

These were all small scratches and since I couldn't remember them being there, and didn't want to feel like I got ripped off, I called up Raffi (The shop owner) who told me to come over to look at it.

He told me that he couldn't imagine those scratches were from him because the door was open the entire time that the car was being worked on. He even tried to buff some of it out with a microfiber cloth and noticed touch up paint on the lower scratch. At that point I felt like a bit of an ass because it was clearly there before I took it into his shop. No hard feelings were had and he told me he would give me a good deal if I decided to respray that door panel.

Overall I am very satisfied with Kelley's Autobody and I will definitely take my car back to Raffi. He seems like a really good guy and he does good work. Not to mention it is less than 5 minutes from my house.

[Hornung418]

Yay! No more cancer. When the paint cures, I'm sure you can hit it with some compound and sealant to give it some shine back there.

[Newjack]

Oh it's already shiny. I might seal it just because, but it looks really good. Brand new black paint really makes a difference.

Also, I asked Raffi about how to remove buffing compound from the rock chips on my front end. He gave me a really good idea that I'm gonna try out.

He said to boil a pot of water, and dip a rag in the water, then wipe down those spots. Essentially melting the compound away. Not just pouring the pot of water on the car, but dabbing it with a boiling rag might work. I'm gonna give that a try.

Again, I am very pleased with Raffi's work, and will definitely take my car back to his shop.

[Hornung418]

Great! I'll have to try that when I get my car back.

Horney...via TT.

[az3579]

I dunno man, tape lines? That sounds like the work of an amateur...
But if you're happy, then that's what matters. No more rust for sure!


I never understood why rust would come back in the same spot if it was repaired correctly. Does anyone have an explanation for this?

[Newjack]

I dunno man, tape lines? That sounds like the work of an amateur...
But if you're happy, then that's what matters. No more rust for sure!


I never understood why rust would come back in the same spot if it was repaired correctly. Does anyone have an explanation for this?

The tape line runs along the contour of the doorsill. So you can't see it, you can only feel it with your hand. He really did a nice job.

Rust is just one of those things that once it starts, you can't ever kill it. But you can slow it down significantly by treating it.

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[Ryans323i]

Looks great and that was good price. Glad it was taken care of easily. Kinda weird about the scratches though. The one closest to the door jam looks like it was it with a DA sander, which would be used to get the paint and rust off.

[Newjack]

Looks great and that was good price. Glad it was taken care of easily. Kinda weird about the scratches though. The one closest to the door jam looks like it was it with a DA sander, which would be used to get the paint and rust off.

Yeah that's why I called him and brought it back because it looked new, and it was in the same general area of the work that was being done. But when he wiped it down, there was touch up paint there that the PO had obviously used on it.


Either way, I am happy and rust free.

[CERF04ZHP]

What is the factory BMW warranty for corrosion on the body? I thought it was 10 yrs. / unlimited miles... Anyone know the details of that? I just noticed a spot on my righr rear quarter, right on the lip, about the size of an almond.

Sent from my PDA with a 1.5 GHz brain.

[danewilson77]

What is the factory BMW warranty for corrosion on the body? I thought it was 10 yrs. / unlimited miles... Anyone know the details of that? I just noticed a spot on my righr rear quarter, right on the lip, about the size of an almond.

Sent from my PDA with a 1.5 GHz brain.

Seems like a fairly common location as well.

Sent from Williamsburg, VA USA

[Newjack]

Seems like a fairly common location as well.

Sent from Williamsburg, VA USA

I had a super small spot there. Maybe about the size of a grain of salt. Painted it with Dr color chip and said a prayer.

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[danewilson77]

I'm telling you...something is up with that area...on e46. This is the 4th reported instance on this site...in nearly that identical location.

Did anyone roger up on the paint/rust warranty?

[llll1l1ll]

I have a small rust spot on my driver's side door. I might get that taken care of...

[CERF04ZHP]

I lifted this quote from one of the forums:....

"Paintwork Warranty
The paintwork warranty covers your vehicle against defects such as blistering, discolouration or staining of the visible surface of all painted body panels occurring as a result of faulty manufacture or workmanship for a period of 36 months on vehicles registered from 1st Janaury 2004 without any mileage limitation.

All paintwork repaired under warranty must be carried out by an Authorised BMW Dealer or Authorised Repairer.

Guidelines
Although modern paints are durable and resistant to many external hazards, they cannot reasonably be expected to be totally resistant to all. You should therefore take particular care with your paintwork if you live in or near an area where industrial fallout is prevalent. Please read the relevant section in your handbook on paintwork for more details.
Bird lime can have an extremely corrosive effect on your paintwork and should be removed as quickly as possible.
Since damage caused by industrial fallout or bird lime is not a fault of manufacture, this cannot be claimed under warranty

Anti-Corrosion Warranty
All new BMW cars registered from 1st Janaury 2004 are covered by a 12-year anti-corrosion warranty against perforation by rust.

All repair work carried out under the anti-corrosion warranty must be carried out by an Authorised BMW Dealer or Authorised Repairer. The warranty covers corrosion which occurs from inside the metal panels or box sections of the car.

The warranty does not cover corrosion caused by neglect, accident damage, stone chips or other external influences.

Maintaining Your Anti-Corrosion Warranty
To ensure that any warranty claims are processed quickly and efficiently, please observe the following guidelines.
Your vehicle should be inspected at normal service intervals as recommended by your BMW service book.
Paint or body damage identified by the dealer during these inspections, including any to the underside or under body protection of the vehicle, must be properly repaired to BMW standards.
Claims cannot be accepted for perforation that occurs as a result of unrepaired or improperly repaired paint or body damage.
Vehicles which undergo major accident repair work during their anti corrosion warranty period are still covered by the warranty provided:
a. The correct BMW corrosion prevention methods are used.
b. The repair work is carried out by a competent repairer to BMW repair standards.
The warranty does not apply to parts, panels or materials that have not been approved by BMW and the BMW Dealer or Authorised Repairer reserves the right to refuse claims where defects have occurred as a result of using them.
Where your vehicle has been involved in an accident and requires bodywork repair this should ideally be carried out by a BMW Approved Bodyshop. In this way you can be certain that your vehicle will be rebuilt to original standards of safety and quality. You can then feel confident that the integrity of your
anti-corrosion warranty will remain intact."

[llll1l1ll]

Sounds like we could take the car to the stealership to have the rust repaired. However, it does indicate they don't cover rust from "external influences." I wonder if this would include rain.

[danewilson77]

I wonder is a 2/2004 build date would be covered?

Sent from Williamsburg, VA USA

[MrMaico]

When they say "warranty against perforation by rust." That means rusted all the way through.....a hole. I am pretty sure they won't do anything about surface rust.