Need opinions on rust status

[grampswrx]

All-

I am looking at a van that I want to prep for some baja surf trips. I plan to add a lift, wheels and tires and maybe some bumpers. Maybe 4x4 down the road, but not right away. So many of the suspension components will be replaced. However, I live in SoCal and have no experience with rust. All rust freaks me out because I see it so rarely. This van has been in coastal wet weather all its life, so it has rust. What are your opinions? Is it something that can be salvaged with Por-15 or should I run far away from it because it's a deadly cancer?

Thanks!

 

[ujoint]

I'd pass on that for sure.

 

[grampswrx]

Thanks! That's my gut instinct as well, but i have little experience with it.

 

[eporter]

If it's cheap...you'll still have a ton of headaches working on it.

 

[Mat Mobile]

It would be a great find... if it wasn't for the rust. The body is affected, the frame is affected, all the threads are affected, the gas tank straps are rusted, brake lines, etc... Pass...

For instructional purposes, if you look at the picture below (forget the brand new leaf springs) of my 20 year old Canadian van. You will see that it's black and has that "dust" coating. That's because mine was treated with anti-rust every other year and that grease coating protects the paint... and also attracts dust. It's awful to work on just because it's dirty but everything is solid.

 

[86scotty]

I'd pass more because of the body rust than the frame rust. Also, I would try to find one without big holes cut in it from that generator and old style propane fridge.

 

[Numbchux]

Meh, looks pretty par for the course for MN. If it were priced accordingly, I'd go for it. A weekend with a wire wheel on a grinder, and some POR15 in a HVLP gun would preserve that very nicely.


But, I live in MN, and am too cheap to buy anything rust free, so I'm pretty used to working on stuff that looks like that or worse.

 

[grampswrx]

The price was good, but not great. I'm just worried about the rust I can't see.

 

[Bbasso]

I'd run away.

 

[DaveInDenver]

The price was good, but not great. I'm just worried about the rust I can't see.

I'd be enough worried about the rust you can see to say nothing of the rust that might be hiding. Wondering if they actually parked that thing in the ocean.

 

[Deshet]

That looks very bad. Are you sure that wasn't in NY, NJ, or Canada? I haven't seen a California truck with rust that bad.
If it was extremely cheap it may be worth running as is but it isn't worth the effort of converting to 4x4.

Thanks

 

[grampswrx]

It was probably parked along the northern ca coast where they get salty fog every morning. It just corrodes everything. The generator box was pretty rusty too because of the vent into it.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Choff]

No way to take care of such a nice Camper Van!!!
I live in salt climate in Wisconsin and have had mine for 11 years of driving in ******** weather and mine does not look like that !!!
The previous owner did not care to wash it ??
I would walk away also.

 

[rontaki]

As Neil Young said, Rust Never Sleeps. I restored an old VW Van that had severe rust problems, although not as bad looking as this one.
Everything was fine until the body got so flexy due to the rust, that the transaxle case cracked as it had become the load bearing structure.
Frankly, I'd be worried about structure failure with something as rusty as this, most likely while using it off of the pavement.

Even the thought of wrenching on severely rusted nuts and bolts makes me shudder.

 

[Nesquik]

If you Lived in a salty rusty state where vehicles are disposable, sure.

No way in hell I’d bother bringing a rusty car to SoCal.....doesn’t make much sense