I need to do something about the rust on my XJ soon or decide to sell it. The body doesn't have a spec of rust anywhere but the undercarriage is a different story. I've only had it 2 years, so way too late for me to prevent any.

First major issue is the floors. Holes under each floor mat and cargo area.
Second major issue is the driver's side frame rail- about a 12" section is rotted out on the bottom (pic attached)

Third major issue is the leaf spring shackles, the front ones are getting pretty nasty. The thick metal the leaf springs directly attach too seems ok but everything around the plating is crispy. I can take better pics if these aren't good enough.
Passenger side:


Driver's side:


The stuff in the pics is oily because I sprayed it with fluid film. I can't weld, so I'll have to take it to a shop. Does everyone think it's fixable for a budget of 2 grand? Not a firm budget but a $7000 job ain't in the cards!

Thanks!

 

Man, I work in a Mustang restoration shop, rust damage is the hardest thing to estimate. Whatever rust you can see, there's usually WAY more hiding underneath.

If you can get some brighter/clearer pics up I might be able to give you a better idea of what you're up against.

But consider your $2K budget. That's money that could easily net you a clean 2WD XJ. You'll have everything needed to convert it to 4WD, and a ton of spare/extra parts you can stash or sell.

 

Yeah, that Fluid Film is great stuff, but it's making it very hard to see what's going on there.

You might want to clean it off with brake cleaner, let it dry, then take some good pics, then re-apply the FF.