Rusty arch and sill advice needed!

[DaveM89]

Hi guys. Have recently bought my first mr2, an electric blue mk2 rev 3 n/a in good mechanical condition - however it does have the dreaded rusty arch and sills! javascript:emoticon('#-o') its not too bad, but needs looking at.
Just looking for some advice on the best way to repair? Im not afraid of getting stuck in and have tools, just lacking the specific mr2 knowledge at the moment!
Ive seen mk1 replacement arches but nothing for mk2's? is there anyone that sells replacement arches and sills or is it a DIY job?
Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Cheers, Dave

[KarlBristol]

Firstly congrats on your recent purchase

Unfortunately Toyota don't sell replacement sill sections, but only the entire rear quarters which are pricey and turn it into a rather large job. Hence it's not just a quick cut and weld job as I suspect you thought it would be.

If you have it done professionally both of the inner and outer sills have to be custom made and you can expect to pay between £800-1300 for a proper job including the labour and paint but it really is worth it.

There is hope if you want to do it on the cheap yourself. Members on here have had mixed (but usually positive) results through using Ford KA sills or Vauxhall Astra IV sills. From what I've been told and have read the KA sills are the closest match that you can get off of the shelf.

I think there are quite a few threads on here where people have tried it themselves if you do a search. I chose the easy route and just dug deep into my wallet

[KarlBristol]

Have you got any pictures of the rust?

Oh I forgot to mention the arch - dependant on how bad it is you might be able to fill it or patch it by welding in some metal. Of course if it is really set in then an entire rear quarter might actually solve several of your problems at once...

[DaveM89]

Thanks for your quick response! Sorry about the late reply, have been busy at work.
Some very useful information thank you. I'll have a look at getting some quotes for the sills, as there is a 5p sized hole and I imagine this needs to be looked at quite soon! It was bodge repaired by the previous owner - apparently they blended out the corrosion and then stone chip painted it, but id like to do as proper a job as I can.

unfortunately it wont let me upload pictures as I haven't done enough posts yet! 'do you have an email address? I could email them over?
thanks for your help and advice, its greatly appreciated!

[KarlBristol]

No problem
Just sent you a pm

[KarlBristol]

Out of interest where are you based as there's a classic car restorer/garage near me who owes me a few favours. They sorted out my sills (see my build thread) and would be perfect for your car

[DaveM89]

Ive emailed you some pics thanks!
unfortunately I live the other side of the country - in Norwich so maybe a bit far ill take a look at your thread though, cheers

[KarlBristol]

No problem, I'm always happy to help

Here are the pics - it looks lovely in the first pic, but seems to get worse as I go on... I've got to be honest I didn't expect the rust to be that bad on the arch









If it were mine I'd attack it and see how much is rotten and needs replacing, unfortunately paint can hide a multitude of sins sometimes. If nothing else this will make the job cheaper if it goes to a professional as they won't need to cut and grind the rust out. At least that way you'd know what you were dealing with and could work out the best way to proceed...

I'd lend a hand if you were closer

[Gullzter]

Maybe a good time to get wide/afblug arches?