14 replies to this topic

[jimmyH]

Ok so this morning i did a routine check of my mini, looking at the sills i saw a small amount of bulging under the stone chip sealant. I peel it away and Shock Horror! nice rust hole around the size of a 50p piece, although rusted around the hole too.
Same story on the other side.
I got a quote to have it plated, both sides, inside and out. £150 a side.
Too me this seems quite pricey, especially as it is just plating, granted he is removing the old sill, and in effect fabricating a new one, but just half of it.
The garage seem good, have just done a good looking full resto on a TR 6. But are they asking too much ?
If anyone knows anywhere in the Hertfordshire area or anyone who would do this work i would be hugely grateful.

[lrostoke]

No idea on the price, but for how much sills costs be better just replacing the whole lot. They aren't that big a job.

[alicetheauto]

Many garages charge £70-80 an hour for welding, so you are getting about 90mins welding there at those rates. Ask around at small garages, I have a guy that charges £25/hour for "tinkering with old cars", which he includes welding!

[jimmyH]

I will continue to look around, thanks guys. Anyone else ?

[benno1275]

for 70 quid i will come to you and weld them up

[jimmyH]

If i am replacing my cills, due to small rust holes on both sides. What parts do i need. I am very new to the mini scene.
Its a 1997 MPI

Thanks

[Bungle]

if your a mini owner you really need to teach your self to weld

it's not difficult and will save you ££££ in the future

[robtheplod]

if your a mini owner you really need to teach your self to weld

it's not difficult and will save you ££££ in the future

Amen!

[jimmyH]

if your a mini owner you really need to teach your self to weld

it's not difficult and will save you ££££ in the future

I am hoping to learn to soon. But student at moment and dont really have the money to afford a welder or the means to practice.
But working on it

[robtheplod]

If i am replacing my cills, due to small rust holes on both sides. What parts do i need. I am very new to the mini scene.
Its a 1997 MPI

Thanks

Just the sills themselves, plus a sheet of steel might come in handy to fill the holes you'll need to repair before you can put the sills on!
Are you doing these yourself?

[Bungle]

if your a mini owner you really need to teach your self to weld

it's not difficult and will save you ££££ in the future

I am hoping to learn to soon. But student at moment and dont really have the money to afford a welder or the means to practice.
But working on it

I got a quote to have it plated, both sides, inside and out. £150 a side.

£300 it looks like the buy a welder option is cheaper already

[jimmyH]

if your a mini owner you really need to teach your self to weld

it's not difficult and will save you ££££ in the future

I am hoping to learn to soon. But student at moment and dont really have the money to afford a welder or the means to practice.
But working on it

I got a quote to have it plated, both sides, inside and out. £150 a side.

£300 it looks like the buy a welder option is cheaper already

It does seem that way. But would rather not learn to weld whilst trying to fix my sills.
What sills will i need to purchase for my mini, are these correct ?http://www.minispares.com/Product.aspx?ty=pb&pid=33643
I am hoping to have someone come and do the work. From which i hope to learn a little.

[robtheplod]

They are over sills, get the smaller ones if you can : http://www.minispare...ty=pb&pid=33203

You can get up to speed with welding quite quick - get some scrap practice metal and a basic welder and go for it!!
If you're not sure, what about asking about your local mini club? You're bound to find someone who does their own car and is more likely to do a much better job for much less money as they take more care....

Edited by robtheplod, 10 November 2009 - 07:23 PM.

[jimmyH]

I would join a club, but i leave the country for Africa for 10 months in 12 days. Another reason why i cant spill as much as i would like on my mini.
Once im back i hope that i will be able to take a course at uni, and will invest in a welder.
Sadly I am the only person in my family (in the UK) who are even slightly interested in minis, mechanics and bodywork.
The last thing i want to do is have all the work on my mini done in garages where i have no involvement whatsoever.

So i would remove the old sills, patch the holes in the floor then weld on the new sills..?
Hope to get someone over to help me, show me how its all done,.

[maddogmcg]

hi

bear in mind that once you start to cut away the rust and clean up to prepare to weld ,you will most likely find a lot of very thin metal that also needs replacing ,so to save more trips to the panel suppliers ,remove the old sill and see whats behind it before you buy the panels ,you may need inner sills also !

once you have patched up behind the sill try to get some rust preventative on the inner sill ,newly welded steel will rust very quickly once it gets damp , i have some weld thro primer (hi zinc paint ) that i use to provide some protection and it wont set on fire when you weld the sill over it !

You can get a spray guy system to inject rust proofing inside box sections which i recommend as water gets into sills very easily .


maddog