defender rust, how big is it?

[landcol]

hey all, been hunting for a defender for a while now, have found one very well priced. its a 99 td5. only thing is there is a fair bit of rust. so much that both footwells have holes in them and the normal bottom of the doors rot. my question is, is it worth going through with, is it a big job and dollars to get it fixed(it will need be blue slipped transferring rego to qld to nsw)or is it a common problem with a common solution. hope to hear back replys. even though it is christmas eve! just dont want to let this one slip the fingers..

[Jonno007]

Where in the northern beaches are you? I'm in frenchs forest, been looking for a defer for a while too! I don't own one yet but in my understanding of them I'd be a bit worried about the outriggers on the chassis and the firewall if its got mega rust issues. Are you aware of the common td5 problems? As I said I'm not an owner yet but this is just what I have learnt.
How are your sheet metal skills? I would be happy to come round and help you with it as it will help my knowledge. I'm a decent enough welder but only have a stick welder which is pretty brutal to sheet metal. Post the ad up on here so we can have a look.

[eddy]

It's not a common problem in Australian defenders unless they have done a lot of beach work.Unlike mechanical repairs it's not just a case of bolting new bits on.Rust repairs can go on and on.Take into account you will undoubtedly have a few mechanical repairs as well in a 1999 model, so the price will have to be in the basement!Or keep looking....they do come up.
Good luck.

[flagg]

Depending on how bad it is you can patch it, but often the firewall (and the doors) will be rusting from the inside out.

I have recently replaced the firewall in my 110 due to rust. All in all, it cost quite a lot and I did the work myself. Unless there is something really special about it, or its going /really/ cheap ($6-7k+ under market assuming you can fix it all yourself) I would keep looking.

Pm me with you want an off the top of my head cost breakdown.

I chose to buy mine with rust as it is a Isuzu powered one which don't come up much, and are at the stage where most that come up for sale have this issue (or other serious problems.. ) there are some great td5's that do come up for sale so keep your eyes pealed.

[dromader driver]

my second hand defender rotted in the drivers footwell from the inside. It is a laminated panel with paint on the outside but appears bare metal on the inside . I had removed the rubber mat and felt with no sign of rot on the paint. Eventually my heals went through and the floor felt a bit soft. Whole lot cut out and a new panel mig'd in. pain in the bum.

[JC Rover]

I have an 01 fender which I'm in the process of painting. It has done a fair amount of beach work, but always well cleaned afterwards and it has rust everywhere. The doors are the worst, chassis and firewall next. I have found rust in places I didn't think were steel! Have a real good look over it. Get under it, lift up mats etc. If it's from SEQ- we have the best beach driving around: Fraser, Moreton, Cooloola!

Cheers,

Jono

[landcol]

Thanks so much for replys so far, thanks johnno ill try post some pics soon and for the offer to help. It is around 8k under these asking prices but I wanted to allow a bit of money for repairs and not be chasing rust continually, so I guess it's a bit of a tough one. My guess is its been in a bit of water of time. It's also from the coast to

[landcol]

And the other side

[dromader driver]

Landcol,
have a close look at the underside as well. If it has gone through that far the outer skin will be stuffed as well. it is a two part laminate with no obvious corrosion prevention between the two. Good push with the gloved fingers is the min but a good poke with a 1/4 flat screwdriver will convince you not to buy it.

If you are costing it I had one quote for $900 incl gst for a side including painting.

[jimr1]

hi, if it's been in salt water it will get rust in the front chasy rail ,it is very hard to see ,the only way is to take the front bar -bumper off .there could be some unforseen costs good luck jimr1 110 extreme .