mikeg75

Hey all. Need some help on prioritizing next bit of work to do on the '95 Max SE that I've taken great care of the last 15 years owning it. I just hand washed and waxed it and found a bit of new rust after this past winter: Trying to decide whether to take it to my neighbor who is my mechanic and has a body shop, do anything myself, or ask an independent body shop since my neighbor doesn't tend to make a big deal of things as much as I would like sometimes (doesn't fix anything until it breaks off) . How bad does this look and should I address quickly? It's on both rocker panels. The car runs terrific and I mainly use it for short trips on weekends (not a daily driver).

Maximeltman

iTrader: (11)

Looks like it starting to get pretty bad, ponly way to really tell is to strip the paint to bare metal and see the damage.

maxfever1987

iTrader: (93)

Cut and replace with new metal, don't try to just sand and bondo it, cut the rust from point to point, if u don't it will continue to grow therefore use new piece of metal

Quickywd01

iTrader: (16)

Did you guys see that thread where the guy used fiberglass and he replaced a lot of rot and did an amazing job? He had pics, I'll try to look it up.

Maximeltman

iTrader: (11)

Theres videos all over youtube. I'm getting ready to take care of some rust myself soon. I'd like to save the metal but cutting is what it looks like I will have to do. I've been practicing my welding skills on 20ga sheet metal.

Frank Fontaine

I have a '98 Artic white and once that started because of the power antenna t rusting out, the panel never stopped no matter how much sanding and rust reformer I used. You are totally right about the growth.

Interestingly a place where someone scraped my car 13 yrs ago and the paint cracked, zero rust. So those bubbles are from the inside out and like cancer....

Maximeltman

iTrader: (11)

13 years ago. Dammmm...that goes to show a proud Maxima owner

max ride 41

iTrader: (4)

as we all know

Frank Fontaine

Lol I call my 98 SE my beater (got a 335i in 2007), but I just got all this done on her, and suddenly I want to drive my Max everywhere: valve cover gaskets (4 yrs of grime on the motor gone!), knock sensor, egr and iacv clean out, bank one sensor two oxygen, cam pos, pcv, plugs. She does NOT necessarily run any better (was always smooth), but she can pass emissions legit!!

Finkle

That looks good compared to what I see on the roads by me. Cars as young as 2007 with that much rust on them. Sand it down and see what you have. If you you can get down to bare metal, I don't see why you would have to cut it out. Just be sure to have it sandblasted, or it will come back. You might be able to get away good with the trunk, as it is hidden by the spoiler, sand down and touch up.

JvG

Learn to think outside the box. Cars in your part of the country have rust issues. Cars that live on the West coast, the South and in desert areas do not. Find a car in one of those areas, treat your self to a vacation, and drive it back to the Rust Belt. No point in spending money on a car that is not worth much, only to have it rust again. Buy a rust free car. Then use your for a parts car. Ever work on a car from a rust-free area? They look pretty and are solid after 15-20 years. all the bolts still turn, and they are easy to work on. Hate life? Work on a rusty car. I used to have them in Salt Lake City. I have a rust-free one in Portland.

mikeg75

Thank you for all of the feedback guys. Have not had a chance to talk to my mechanic or anyone else yet about these rust spots but I know I need to do it soon.

Been so damn busy at work lately and now I deal with London-based colleagues so my day starts sooner and still ends at my normal time; I've been dog-tired and not focusing on the car enough.

dwapenyi

iTrader: (3)

Your car is one year short of being 2 decades old. You fought the good battle. Rust will always win, especially in the northeast.

Frank Fontaine

Rosebud.....

Do you think German cars fare better, just the way they are built? One RARELY sees a VW/BMW/Audi/Porsche with rust unless from an accident....a neighbor has like a 1982 300TD mint!

I remember the brochure for my car in 1998 and it would show the Maxima covered with ice and in a storm and being dipped. But when one looks under, things are really bad (such as the entire lower rad support breaking)....all the stuff around the license plate and holding the rear bumper cover are gone....

dwapenyi

iTrader: (3)

I know what you mean. Last summer I came across a guy who had a 1970s S class benz. Perrrfect shape. He told me he doesn't drive it in winter, period. German cars being more expensive and more rare, people tend to coddle them more. Not to mention that they are less reliable (well, the newer ones) so they tend to spend more downtime in a garage.

Compare that to this Maxima. It has been, for the vast majority of its 20 years, on the road. In the Northeast. Dense traffic and highly salted winter roads. They get no respect, No respect I tell ya!

Frank Fontaine

LOL they are not fast cars by today's standards...I remember M3's doing 5.9 0-60 at best way back when, and Nissan advertised 6.6 0-60 (although I think 7.1 was more realistic)...a couple years ago I got smoked by a Sonata V6, not even the newer one (like a 2006 V6)....I'm still lovin' my car now that she's fixed up a little--it was my first new car! (have gotten 2 more and still have all 3)

dwapenyi

iTrader: (3)

I beleive it was the 95-96 Max SE 5 speed that had a 0-60 of 6.5 seconds. The 97-99 5 speed SE had 7.1 seconds. The difference? IMO it was 95% the rims. The 97-99 SE upgraded to 16" rims. Heavier, more rotational mass etc.

Compared to today's cars I think the 4th gen still holds it own very well......assuming top notch maintenance. Not only do you do oil and spark plug changes, but all the little, somewhat neglected things, like fuel filter, primary O2s, fuel pressure regulator, cat converter, knock sensor etc.

Keep in mind also, that newer cars may be more powerful, but they are also considerably heavier, too. I find it rather amazing that a newer Cadillac CTS with the standard 3.6 V6 weighs in at a lofty 4000 pounds. That's 700 pounds more than a fully loaded (sunroof, 16"rims etc) 4th gen Maxima

Granted, that may be mostly due to being more crashworthy, but damn, 4000 pounds for a 5 passenger sedan. That weight class used to be minivan territory.

mikeg75

OK - so I took the Maxima to a local body shop and got a quote of $600 for both left and right rocker panels, and the truck lid. I asked him to put that amount in writing. I mentioned that I was concerned that the rust would bubble back through if it was just sanded down and repainted but he said it should hold for a couple years.

I'm considering it but only because I've never down anything like this myself, have no tools for this job, and not much free time to learn it. I have done a lot of engine work to this car myself and had a lot of maintenance work done preventatively, by my mechanic, so to me, the car is worth more than its book value.

If I do decide to get it done, I will post pics of the work.

The only problem is that my leather seats are in sh!ty condition so even if I get the rust off the outside, I'll still have ripped leather in both front seats, esp. the driver's side.

It really is triage at this point...

Frank Fontaine

I have been frustrated with my car because I got those paint bubbles on my wheel arches, and again, I think it's rusting from the inside out, i.e. why people say to cut it out. I have ground it off and had it come back.

Anyway, I was up in Toronto last week, and now I don't feel so bad. Nearly every 4th gen I saw had really bad cancerous rust showing....

Frank Fontaine

It's time for a BMW....seriously, I like my Maxima which is why I got the mechanicals updated (valve cover gaskets blah blah blah), but the body is a losing battle. Everything has been destroyed underneath, I mean to include the subframe dropping off the lower rad support (welded back), so why bother with cosmetics at this point....

Zach-R

iTrader: (3)

My buddy has a 97 318i with zero rust while my maxima and I have been fighting with rust for a few years. We both live in West Virginia right on the Ohio border. Both rockers have been patched along with inner fender wells, the lower quarters(gotta watch those mudflaps) and of course radiator support. If I didn't love this car it'd be a huge pile of rust by now.

Anyways you have to cut it out and patch it. From experiance once he goes grinding on they rocker it's going to start caving in. There is no metal left to grind on under the rust. Just patch it before it has to suffer trough another winter lol.

adroitcaptor

Assuming the rockers do not need to be replaced, you could do this yourself for less than $200 (including the purchase of tools. It will not look professionally done, but with color matched paint should not be obvious. Anyone with a basic motivation could do this and I am more than willing to help.

I offer this as an alternative since you mentioned your seats. I personally would not trade a working Nissan for a BMW... ever. It is easier to fix your known issues than take on what has been ignored by others (they definitely will not tell you).

$200 paint/body fix
$200 seats
$200 other improvements

It sounds like you are short on time so buying a junk yard trunk with same paint color might be another option. In addition you could camp Craigslist/Ebay for Altima SE-R seats. $600 can go a long way and I am full of ideas. Most require you to do some work yourself. (You mentioned engine work so I am throwing out other ideas.) Let us know what you think man... lots of ideas for $600!

If it was me, I would rather get more value out of my $600, learn something new (it is easy; honest!), and have something I will continue to enjoy. That said, do not let others make the choice for you. Honestly decide what you have time and money for. Just know, as stated above, the rust will not go away.

ac max 92

iTrader: (13)

If he's not welding in new metal you could also sand and bondo. There's different types of bondo depending on your application. In your case short strand bondo should be fine. You can get yourself the tools for the job for less than the $600 you were quoted which you then at least obtained some tools you now own. Have you worked on drywall or used drywall compound? Same principal but much less time to work with. Give it a go. Worst case if your not happy then take it to the shop that quoted you and by then it would probably be less being you've done a good chunk of his prep work already. If your interested in body work you need to start somewhere and get in a little practice. By the way even if you wanted to weld in a set of new rockers you could get the rockers for probably under 250 for both sides but just stick with the repair and with what you saved hit the scrapyard and find yourself another set of seats if you wanted to replace em.