Ecotec swap, 2wd to Syncro conversion & camper build

[DAV!D]

Well it didn't rain much today, so I did a little work on the van and a lot of work cleaning up the borrowed shop I'm using.

I did however do a bit of exploratory work I guess I could call it on the passenger's side rear inner fender.

Yes that's a hammer & chisel and yes that's a crap load of body filler for some unknown reason... The bulk of the rust seems to be contained to outer corner where the jack lift point/ rear trailing arm attaches..

I hammered and chiseled away, even took the grinder to a bit of it and there must be a gallon of body filler in there or more. I dunno what the purpose is for other than to make someone's life a PITA at this future date.. It varies from about a 1/4" to 1/8" thick. It's very much a hassle to remove.

I'm still on the back and forth of if it's worth it to save this body or not.. I know the other side will be the same and I suspect there is much of the same in each of the front inner fender areas..
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86 Syncro Build - Ecotec Motor Swap - Pop Top Conversion - Camper Build & Syncro Conversion

[snowsyncro]

I know my opinion is biased by my environment, but I would not be scrapping that Syncro.

This will seem like a stupid question to you, because you are there and I am not, but in the last photo that looks like a mastic type undercoating to me. VW did use that back then, and it is very difficult to remove. Fortunately, when the water gets underneath it makes the job a lot easier. Stuff peels right off, revealing mostly thin air and even thinner metal, if you are lucky.

And I know what you mean about the decision thing. It's my life story.

RonC

[DAV!D]

[snowsyncro]

I have not seen the silver tape from the factory, but at Canadian Tire they used to sell silver tape for covering up rust holes, then you could undercoat or paint over that. That is why we call them Crappy Tire.

I'm with you -- it makes no sense to body fill the wheel wells. I have not tried to grind the kind of undercoating I am thinking of, but I can kind of envision it turning to dust also.

In Canadian vehicles at least, VW used a fairly thick mastic type undercoating.This was the prevailing thinking at that time. Encapsulate the metal and seal out the moisture, salt etc. There was a popular aftermarket treatment (Zeibart) that preceded it around here. In theory it was great, and for the first few years it worked great too. The problem was, when it cracked, and it did, the salt/moisture would wick in underneath and rust the steel. It all looked great until you noticed the rust stains. Then you dug it out of there and there was nothing underneath. Where the metal was still protected it looked just like your photos. Very much stuck to the metal like glue and very hard to remove.

I have seen this on late 80s and early 90s VWs.

EDIT: It was also used on the inside on the floors of some A2s I have here.

RonC

[Signalocity]

It just looks to be the stuff they line the fender wells with, all four wheel wells should have it. In the rear, it extends back to the rear panel. Here is a pic of it cleaned up.

[DAV!D]

[insyncro]

That is NOT body filler.
Not all vans received the same amount of sprayed product to them.
Why? I'm not sure, but I can tell you that the later vans have it pretty much everywhere and for good reasons.
The product is sprayable seam sealer.
I carry the Wurth product in rubberized form and urethane form.
I also have the Wurth and Lord applicators that allow for very intricate spot sealing, vertical seam sealing and offer sprayability with many different textures and build thickness.

For anyone looking to match up with the same product and would like to rent the factory tools to apply them, feel free to contact me.

[MarkWard]

A heat gun makes removing it much easier. Get the bulk of it with a scraper and a flat blade screwdriver and then when it cools a small wire brush. That corner is actually boxed more than it appears. There is a diagonal plate that reinforces that corner up to the inner panel. It triangulates it through the floor.
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[DAV!D]

[insyncro]

$yncro

[DAV!D]

[insyncro]

I do not agree and when you take a look inside the frame rail where the front subframe connects, you will have an eye opener

It most certainly will be a Syncro specific fix and if you just plan to swap over parts to a 2wd, you will need this section to properly convert to AWD.

Trust me, I have seen a few rusted Syncros in my day and this one would not pass inspection in my state left in this condition.

Cutting and replacing metal is needed here and structural welding.
Not chewing gum, glue or tack welds.
Cover that area over with goop and the decay process will accelerate.

I have brand new and excellent used plasma cut sections from donor vans available.
Not inexpensive at all as new are imported and used must be cut by someone with experience and the tools....also worth mentioning having parts Syncros around.

[DAV!D]

[insyncro]

Fair enough. just making sure it is understood that the subframe attachment point is structural and very important...especially with added power, torque, lifting, larger wheels/tires....yadda, yadda, yadda.

[MarkWard]

Looking at your earlier pictures, your welds look decent to me. I still believe you can repair much of the damage welding in 1/8" plates. Just don't get carried away. Relieve the loads when possible and concentrate on one area at a time. In other words don't cut out too much. You can also add plates/gussets to triangulate your repairs. I have both lower rockers from a pretty clean one. I only robbed the outer skin from the l/s. I have the r/s for sale here. http://www.thesamba.com/vw/classifieds/detail.php?id=1721719 The shipping is the pain, I am not in the business.

My rockers would have to be in a lot worse shape than yours to cut them out entirely. For yours, I would be cutting out rust and seam welding patches using sheet metal from a good junkyard hood.
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[DAV!D]

[SyncroGhia]

Scrap the Syncro and convert.

The rust will be much worse inside.

MG
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T3 Syncro 16 S6 Westfalia Limey SOLD
T3 Syncro 6x6 SOLD
T3 RS6 Bluestar
T3 Tristar Syncro 16 SOLD
T3 Tristar Syncro RHD SOLD

[DAV!D]

[SyncroGhia]

[DAV!D]