TheSamba.com :: View topic - Paint cracking w/rust sliding door & wheel well: How bad is it?

Mon Nov 10, 2025 11:21 am

First time buyer, looking at a 1985 Westfalia full camper at 137K miles with one big question mark.

The passenger side was repainted at some point, and now has cracking on the sliding door and wheel well, plus some bubbling along the seam. The current seller says there is bondo beneath the cracking paint. Carfax shows no accidents, so I am thinking this is an old rust repair that is failing, maybe with the rocker panel too?

The van has been mechanically well-maintained, and the interior has nice upgrades, so this section of the body is my only concern.

Any guesses for what I am getting myself into for body repairs? ~$5K is manageable, $10-15K is not.

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Mon Nov 10, 2025 11:23 am

Buy a magnet to know where the filler is — though it’s obvious on this van! — magnets won’t be magnetic on body filler.

That is a LOT of Bondo!

You asked… personally I would keep looking.

Unless everything else is stunning and he wants $2 Grand for it. Easy $10K+ to clean up that disaster. Sorry, I know buyer’s enthusiasm runs high but this does not look buyable.

Spend more now, or spend even more later when you’re way too invested to sell.

Edit:
More clues, looking harder at photos, tires are even scuffed from banging onto curbs, it’s a classic Great Lakes rustbucket…..

Mon Nov 10, 2025 11:28 am

Bodywork is always worse than it looks and always costs more than you think.

Mon Nov 10, 2025 11:34 am

Quote- Seller says there is Bondo under the Paint. ""
Anyway, as noted, once you're into it, you're IN to IT. To add to your possible woes if you bought this VW , rusting UNDER the bondo has probably happened as well that is more than what the original job entailed, so the scope to properly repair has grown over the years. :( :(

Mon Nov 10, 2025 12:27 pm

Patience, Grasshopper. That will cost more than you want to spend in order to fix properly. Lots of Westys on the market right now. In my opinion, spending more up front for a well-maintained van is smarter than buying a discounted “project” one. I’d take a pass on this one…

Mon Nov 10, 2025 12:34 pm

I am quickly learning to value a non-rusty body over mechanicals. Thanks all for helping me do so before buying.

Mon Nov 10, 2025 12:41 pm

You’re welcome and to wit, it may be wise to search in no-salt states for your van — or get lucky and find a garaged-for-life one, a rarity where you are.

There’s absolutely no doubt this is all a Pay now, or Pay More later, decision. And as parts get rarer and inflation keeps rocking up, it will only get worse if buying especially major parts later.

The right one’s out there — and you’re searching in the best time of year, too!

Besta Luck, feel free to keep us posted.

Mon Nov 10, 2025 12:59 pm

First off - Welcome to the Samba. Note, there is also a whole forum here dealing with body repair for tons of extra info.
pcridd wrote: .... Carfax shows no accidents, so I am thinking this is an old rust repair that is failing, maybe with the rocker panel too?

....The van has been mechanically well-maintained, and the interior has nice upgrades, so this section of the body is my only concern.

Just because there's no Carfax report does not mean there has not been any damage. Lot's of people will do their own repairs, the failing filler is a clue to amateur auto body workmanship.
While there's most likely rust under the old bondo the rest of the undercarriage looks pretty sound. Without being able to see more photos I would not call this a "rust bucket".
What is your level of DIY skills? Will you be paying somebody to do all the work? You can save thousands by doing most of the grunt work (stripping off the old) and then having a shop do the finish work.
(keep in mind, owning a vintage vehicle requires either deep pockets or a willingness to do your own maintenance and minor repairs)
Maybe scout around for a repair shop willing to work on older vehicles (not all shops will do this kind of work, many only want to work newer cars or insurance work). You could give them an idea of the work needed and get a feel for their rates.

More pics of the engine bay, interior and all four sides will help with evaluation.
You could also seek out a shop with older VW experience for a pre-purchase inspection.

Mon Nov 10, 2025 2:42 pm

Thanks MsTaboo!

Here is the undercarriage

Good suggestion to save some money by doing as much of the grunt work myself. I'm totally up for that, and am just working with the handicap of shopping at a very long arm's length. This van is in Colorado. I had a pre-purchase inspection done today at a place that works on older VWs, and specifically asked them about that area, but they punted and told me to take it to a body shop.

I have a good place lined up here in Cincinnati when I do buy - Vogt Auto. I just need to get over the hump of a very limited selection of rust-free vans nearby or rolling the dice and buying one 1,000+ miles away.

Mon Nov 10, 2025 2:48 pm

You don’t roll the dice, you go see it and inspect it like any other. If you don’t have time to inspect and travel, then stay out of the Bus game.

That Bus will take $20,000 and consume it I a heartbeat and still be a POS

Mon Nov 10, 2025 3:02 pm

MsTaboo wrote: ...Just because there's no Carfax report does not mean there has not been any damage...

Indeed, that specific area often takes a hit from posts, picnic tables, etc when a new owner has not yet learned the geometry of sharp right-handers in a cab-forward vehicle. It's easy to turn sharper and sooner than you expect and catch something (something immovable).

I agree with others that this one's a hard pass. To much unknown in what lies beneath the surface.

Mon Nov 10, 2025 3:18 pm

MsTaboo wrote:
Just because there's no Carfax report does not mean there has not been any damage.

I've never viewed a CarFax report while purchasing vehicles but I did recently have an experience that makes me not trust them at all.

My Suby was at the dealer for service and the sales rep asked if I wanted a complimentary appraisal of what I could get if I were to trade it in. That included a CarFax report.

That report said NOTHING about the engine replacement that was performed under warranty OR the body work I had done under insurance after I hit a frozen snowbank.

Mon Nov 10, 2025 3:30 pm

I live in a part of the world where it rains 400 plus days outta the year.
I've experienced a similar bubbling around the seam in that exact same place.
I also would have a soaked floor around the passenger rear tire. Not damp, SOAKED!
Over the years, I've seen other vanagons around here with the same issue. As is with classic car owners, A few of these other van owners and I would talk as we're filling up or whateva. At least 2 of them asked me if I had issues with the floor getting soaked. I told them I had, and went and popped out the little rubber plug inside the rear wheel well, near the bottom of the van. As had happened with my van, their vans pissed out a quart or more of water.
For whatever reason, the issue seems to only be on the passenger side? To me, it seems the driver side would be more of a prob, what with passing vehicles on the driverside?

Anyhoo,, I can't say what exactly I did to fix the leak, cuz I spent SO MUCH F*&king time trying different fixes. The last thing I did, was to take an old fillet knife and sharpen both sides of the point, and spent a buncha time scraping out the seam just above the rear tire, and filling it with an expensive automotive body seam sealer.
No idea how that fixed the issue, but, I still pop out that plug occasionally, and no water comes out. Also, one of the other owners I'd talked to about my fix, contacted me later and thanked me, cuz my fix, fixed his problem.
YMMV!!

Mon Nov 10, 2025 3:35 pm

Abscate wrote: You don’t roll the dice, you go see it and inspect it like any other. If you don’t have time to inspect and travel, then stay out of the Bus game.

That Bus will take $20,000 and consume it I a heartbeat and still be a POS
I don't see how you can make such a blanket statement without seeing it for yourself!

I do understand someone from the rust belt willing to look elsewhere for a new ride. We don't know how much it's being sold for or what the buyer is looking for in a Westy; just a nice solid camper or a garage queen?
If it's solid except for this damage it may be worth the money.

pcridd - have you seen it yourself or are these pictures provided by seller? What did the PPI report say?
It's not surprising the VW shop punted on the bodywork portion, it's not their field. Maybe take the pictures to a local bodyshop and ask them. Look for a shop with older cars in the lot.

If you haven't seen it in person and depending on how much your willing to spend on a Westy, a bit of travel is worth the effort. I've bought Vanagons sight-unseen (only pictures), but I've been owning and working on VW buses for almost 50 years so knew what to ask the seller - even so twice I got to the vehicle and walked away. Traveling to see and buy can put pressure on a buyer to overlook flaws - don't travel unless you're willing to leave empty handed.

pcridd, if you want you can send me a PM with sellers detail if you're not willing to reveal the for sale ad. (I only buy Syncros and only interested in finding a good Doka or Tristar 8) )

Mon Nov 10, 2025 4:04 pm

I have not seen the van in person, and all of the detailed pictures were provided by the seller without me even asking, so he at least seems to be making an effort to be transparent about the old/repaired damage.

Major items flagged by the PPI are the non-functional AC (already known), front wheel bearings, and inner tie rods.

I am definitely not looking for a show van, and just a nice solid weekender or full camper to enjoy with the family. So dings and scratches don't bother me at all. Major rust repairs do :D

Good idea on the body shop. I do have a local one we trust, so I'll definitely do that

I'll PM you now :D

Mon Nov 10, 2025 7:43 pm

On my phone, the chassis looks solid from underneath. The sliding door takes about 5 mins to replace with a good used one. Seam rust is just one of those Vanagon things. The area above the r/r tire is one of those areas. You can access it from inside the van and slow the rust down without getting carried away. I’ve seen a lot worse rust buckets still be driven daily.

Certainly a pristine one may come along, but if it passes a mechanical and you aren’t looking for a trailer queen, based on price I wouldn’t walk away. I’m tripping over a solid side door from an 87 every day. There must be others closer to you.

Mon Nov 10, 2025 8:23 pm

Yeah, I don't know what people are freaking out about. What do you want the van for? If USE, the problem area pictured is no big deal. Take a weekend to dig out the bondo, remove the rust, re-apply bondo and spray with a rattle can. The seam is ugly but also reparable -- to the extent necessary to use and enjoy the van!

Mon Nov 10, 2025 8:26 pm

MsTaboo wrote: Abscate wrote: You don’t roll the dice, you go see it and inspect it like any other. If you don’t have time to inspect and travel, then stay out of the Bus game.

That Bus will take $20,000 and consume it I a heartbeat and still be a POS
I don't see how you can make such a blanket statement without seeing it for yourself!

I have to agree. Seam rust does not in any way make a Vanagon a POS. Not one single camping trip was ever harmed by seam rust. Now if the van is intended to be a car show star then it's a different story.

pcridd wrote: First time buyer...

The van has been mechanically well-maintained, and the interior has nice upgrades, so this section of the body is my only concern.

It's difficult to understand where you're at w/out knowing your budget for the purchase plus post-purchase fixes. Unless the van is perfect expect $5K - $10K in corrections to deferred maintenance (fuel lines, brakes, motor, transmission, tires, etc. etc.) for just about any Vanagon. $10K or more for plenty of other Vanagons.

As for the van being well maintained, dozens of receipts won't reveal what a PPI will. At the least, you'll need a compression test, coolant system leak down test, etc. Check out the FAQs for pre-purchase checklists if you haven't already.

Happy shopping!

Mon Nov 10, 2025 9:44 pm

Much of what I see is fairly good, looks to me the van was in a fender bender, and he bondo and paint repair is failing . As other suggested, do a magnet test. I am pretty certain they is bondo in the area mentioned, you needto do the magnet test on the rest of the body, if rest of body is bondo free, then this is not an issue of massive salt induced rust, as that problem will be all around the van.
You may remove the interior panel to see the extent of the denting from the inside to gage how much bondo there is

If price is right, this maybe good for you. If you is handy with basic bondo and spray pint, you maybe able to make this area nice for your needs.

The key is that you know if the rest of the body has damage or not, hence the magnet test. a rubberized fridge magnet works well for this test, slide it over the body all around, it should stick uniformily over the body, where it stick poorly, that is a sign of bondo. pay attention to the seams, not only with magnet, but also by close vision inspection, are seams uniform, not wavey, and such?

Good luck

Tue Nov 11, 2025 5:31 am

jimf909 wrote: Check out the FAQs for pre-purchase checklists if you haven't already.

Reading through
https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=568164
and
https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=347453

Thanks jimf909!