Is this too bad to continue? MK1 floorpan...

[Valver.]

There's too much rust in the substructure (i.e. between the panel layers) - you can even see it in the photos beneath the firewall, meaning you need to access these areas to fix them... in effect cutting most of the panels away! Despite what people say, you do need to be a skilled sheetmetal worker and welder to do a proper job of this sort of stuff. Rust spreads so quickly that it couldn't possibly be contained in that one location.

Mk1s are still not a rare thing and 90% of them are in better nick than that one, so I'd consider it a pretty easy decision - especially given that there's a few thousand dollars worth of repairs before you can even begin 'bodywork' as such.

It's also not possible to weld new floor sections to already weak sections of bodywork: they'll only end up buckling and peeling away. What I mean is, you'd be welding new floors to those chassis rails, which would already be rusting away internally and this is both a waste of time, and not safe.

Anything made of metal is repairable, but only some metal things are worth repairing!!

Have a look at this:

http://forums.vwvortex.com/zerothread?id=2728723

[Preen59]

I've gotta agree with valver. ANYTHING can be fixed, but in this case it isn't worth jerking around.

Pull the good parts off it and scrap it. It will cost you too much to repair and Mk1s aren't that hard to come by.

[572]

Thanks for your input guys!

Going over to Justin's this morning to continue taking it apart, see if there are anymore nasty surprises, and we'll make a decision from there. I'm leaning towards parting it out, so if anyone is interested in any parts please let us know!

[Jmac]

Mate you 2 fellas are obviously keen to have a MK1 so i wouldnt part it out man, keep all the good bits, from experience you might find a good one with a crap engine or the likes, you will find yourself one , put this one down to experience guys. You might have to go interstate , all part of the fun and its worth it , they are great cars.
Jmac

[Jarred]

From my experience, it's always handy to have a few spares lying around. Don't sell all the parts, but pull off all the good panels and bits and peieces and go looking for a mk 1 with a clean floor, and then choose which panels are best, and then it'll be nice and rust free (hopefully)

[572]

Well after another full days work, we can't find anymore rust. Took bonnet, bumpers, front wings, hatch etc off to check - just surface in a few spots.

We also have a contact for welding, for more than likely no cost (friend of my fathers), so it's not all over yet! Just need to establish what we need to purchase to do the repairs (i.e. what thickness steel, mild steel?) and take it from there.

And yea Jimmy we are very keen to own a MK1, so after that bit of good news, we're not ready to quit just yet!

[Jmac]

Good work fellas let me know if you need any technical asssistance.
Jmac

[Valver.]

Definitely keep the car!! I used 3 Mk1s to build my last project car

[Preen59]

Definitely keep the car!! I used 3 Mk1s to build my last project car

holy crap! I used 2, but i didn't scab much off the donor.. But 3?! that's full on.

[paulie71]

I have a 4door body under the house from a dormant project. Am looking to offload my Golf stuff to make room for renos. Body is straight and has no rust in floor (have even tarred the underbody of the floorpan!). Contact me if you want to know more.

Cheers
Paul