Rusty Old Door on '88 CRX

Hi All

I love my CRX. It is running great and has low mileage - 112,000. I
plan to keep this car as long as I can. Of course, here in the
Northeast, cars rust. The passenger side door is getting bad. My local
bodyshop specialist recommends replacing it with another door. Is this
an easy thing to find? Any ideas besides checking the local junk yards?

 

I dont think so. With labor rates sky-high you are probably gonna pay 2 or 3
times more for welding a new skin (or a piece of sheet metal), grinding,
priming, painting, etc/
I just got a used door for $150 for my 92 Civic in the junk yard.

 

Depends on how much working space you have, and how much ambition.
If the passenger side door has enough rust that it needs replacing,
there's more lurking elsewhere. Some of it could be dangerous
(suspension mountpoints, gas tank straps etc) If you're restricted to
an apartment house parking lot for workspace it's difficult to do all
the disassembling you need to do. If you have tools and a place to
work, post a reply in the newsgroup and I'll tell you where to look.
I spent two summers restoring the integrity of my 87 CRX after too
many salt laden Ontario winters.

Unless you're quite well off you just can't afford to have a bodyshop
do it.

 

I have a two car garage that I could convert into a body shop for a
time. There is rust at other spots - especially at the rear wheel
wells. Other unseen places are probable as you've stated. I have some
novice body work experience learned from my younger days.

Thanks

 

OK, here's some advice on where to look.

First, open the hood and check the tops of the towers where the
shocks are bolted to the body.

Then find a friendly service station that will put the car on a hoist
and let you look underneath. You're not interested in appearance at
this point, you want to know if the car is structurally sound.
Equipping yourself with a screwdriver, poke at the floorboards near
the doorsills and the rear bulkhead behind the seats. Honda uses a
sealant where the floor meets the doorsills that is not really
waterproof. On my car that's where a lot of the rust started, under
the sealant which was still in place. See how many places you can poke
the screwdriver right through the floor into the carpet above. Along
the doorsills and bulkhead its not too hard to get at and fix. Forward
near where your overshoe-clad feet drop salt in the winter --near the
subframe mountpoints-- it's a bitch to fix.

Next look at the rear suspension mountpoints and the places where the
straps that support the gas tank hook on. Never mind the straps
themselves, they're easily replaced, check where they are attached.
Check the edges of the gas tank for rust and leaks. Gas tanks that
aren't leaking and probably won't for years often start leaking like
sieves when disturbed, but you may have to if suspension mountpoints
are in bad shape.

If the floorboards near the doorsills are rusted out, in your garage
at home pull the passenger seat and roll back the carpet for a look
see. Remove the plastic flashing that covers the outside of the
doorsills. Remember this is STRUCTURAL. If it's rusted, that's what
needs fixing first. Worry about nice fenders later.

If it's practical (I'm not sure about 2nd generation CRXs) lift the
carpet from the bulkhead behind the passenger seat and look there.
A lot of road salt gets trapped up above the gastank in winter,

Report back.

 

<snip Halloweenish-ly scary directives>

All the more reason to get the drippy stuff every year! If you live in the
Rust Belt and do not have access to said rustproofing, I truly do feel
sorry for you.

My '91 Integra has 215,000 miles of Canadian weather on it, and zero rust
on anything structural. Or anywhere else for that matter. The famous Honda
rear wheel well rust is totally absent on my car. The doors are pristine. I
had the panel off to replace the window regulator on the driver's side. Not
a speck of rust. Lots of oily residue, but no rust.

Regular shots of drippy rustproofing and very diligent effort on your part
are what does it. You almost have to make it a hobby, and it should start
on the very day you buy your brand-new Honda.

 

I had a better way. I stored my GSR indoors December to April and
drove a winter 'beater' in the salt.

Unfortunately that 'beater' was the afore-mentioned CRX!

Now I've got a better way. I moved to the southern, desert part of
B.C.'s Okanagan Valley!