Morat

Grab the bull by the horns. Give that rust a good poke with a screwdriver. If it's solid, treat it and get some rust preventing product on there. If it goes through, it's welding time. But the sooner you get on it, the better it will be. Honestly, unless you crawl right under the Jeep you're never going to spot it all and even then the sneaky stuff can hide behind brackets and seams. Don't beat yourself up, it sounds like your Jeep is a whole lot less rusty than most! But get on it soon - Rust never sleeps

phloozy

Thanks, I am feeling better about it. The only thing I am worried about is the rust. It definitely ate through some metal underneath and it looks like previous owner tried to cover it or fix it because it has been sprayed black (thats why I missed it at first) It seems to be the only area with rust though (under the car by the foot well) I am in PA, know anyone who can help? :P

phloozy

Yup, The first month my wallet will hate me but it seems like smooth sailing after that. Not a spot of surface rust :/

dmill89

Rust in the floor pans is common in the XJ (unfortunately). Is it just one pan (there are 5: driver front, pass front, driver rear, pass rear, cargo) or is it multiple pans, is the hole large (larger than a soft-ball) or small or are there several holes? (pics would be helpful) If you haven't done so already pull the carpet up to look at the pans (the factory undercoating can hide rust), you get a lot better assessment looking at them from the top.

If it is just one or two small holes a sheet-metal patch would do (the floor is 20-22ga., though many use 16ga. or 18ga. for ease of welding), you can weld, rivet, or epoxy (using panel epoxy, PC7 tends work well) it in, cover everything in good rust inhibitor paint and use plenty of seam-sealer to keep water out (especially if you use rivets or screws).

If the pan(s) is/are heavily rusted with several large holes and/or large rotted sections replacing the bad pan(s) would be the best option (you can buy new pans for less than $50 each, about $100 for the cargo floor). Note: since the XJ uses "uni-frame" construction (with the frame rails welded directly to the floor) replacement pans must be welded in to preserve the structural integrity of the vehicle. If you don't know how to weld or know anyone who does try to find a local welder who does side jobs, they will likely do it for a "reasonable" (a couple hundred dollars) price, a body shop will likely charge close to $1,000 to replace one pan and $2,000-3,000 to replace the entire floor (it can't hurt to get an estimate from a local body shop though, but expect it to be high). It isn't a difficult job (just involves drilling out the old spot-welds, removing the old pans, welding in the new ones, sealing the seams and coating everything in rust-inhibitor) but it is time consuming.

bakas

If you are an old car enthusiast, you should accept the fact that one day there will be rust, and many expensive parts will start to break down. That's why they are so cheap. There are a lot of information about how to deal with rust for an XJ, so that will be a good starting point for you to learn how to become an old vehicle owner. You might not be capable of welding floor pans or you might not have time for that, but someday you'll be getting it fixed and you'll see that it's not a big deal.

Every vehicle has its own weak points. XJs have rusted floorpans almost out of the factory. My '80 silverado had rust holes everywhere, you fix one, other day some other part fell off.. My '98 ZJ had rust in rockers and ****ty electronics (which costs much more than fixing rusted floors). Even my 2009 Ford Fusion was a pain in the *****. Much bigger pain than the XJ. ****ty AC, nonfunctional power windows after 1 year and etc...

Just don't hate the XJ and don't be intimidated by the rust, it's fixable. Other repair and maintenance costs will save you more than enough money compared to any other vehicle. Hey, and an XJ is a good reason to buy some man toys and get dirty!

phloozy

Yeah I still love the truck, my biggest issue is the shop says they cant pass inspection with the rust. I am pretty sure I can take it to a different shop though. The other issue is I spent so much money on man toys for my rwd car lol. Either way ill bite the bullet and get it taken care of, I am confident this truck will last.

phloozy

I'll get some pics up tomorrow. Thats a good call on finding a local welder, I know there is someone in my community thats the "handy man" as a side job. Maybe he can help.

phloozy

Here is the hole I found, nothing else felt soft. It seems the previous owner sprayed the bottom with bedliner and it hasnt spread. Think I can just batch it and spray it or will I need to find a welder?

phloozy

Updated pic after removing all the soft metal. It seems most of the soft sections is some kind of white filler. It was very malleable. Next Step?

dmill89

The best option would probably be to get as much of the rust out as you can then patch it with some sheet metal. You can either weld or epoxy it in place (you could use screws or rivets but they will leave holes you'll have to seal), this is a relatively small hole in a non-structural area so the main thing is just to plug it so water or exhaust gases can't get in. Then thoroughly seal the seams around the patch, treat the area with rust inhibitor and if there is any void left under the patch (if it doesn't fit perfectly) I'd probably use a water-proof fiberglass filler (bondo-glass or equivalent) to prevent junk (road salt, etc.) from accumulating there.

You could also patch it with fiberglass cloth and resin.

Either way make sure all metal is treated with rust inhibitor (including any under the patch, especially if it isn't welded in) so the rust doesn't come back. POR15, Rust-Bullet, and Chassis-Saver are the best products for this, Rust-Oleum rusty metal primer and Rust-Oleum oil based paint are decent if you are on a tight budget, but don't seal it as well as the other listed products.

For PA inspection the hole just must be sealed so exhaust gases can't get in (foil-tape would be "legal") but I would recommend a permanent fix.

phloozy

This is the exact help I needed, thank you so much. I will get sheet metal and epoxy this weekend and take care of it. Still not sure if I want to go the sheet metal route or fiberglass. Can I get all of these materials at lowes/home depot or should I order better stuff online now?

dmill89

You can get metal at home depot and Lowes (since you have to shape it I would recommend 22ga. or 20ga.) and they should have fiberglass and resin too. If you go the metal route make sure to get a good pair of snips if you don't already have some. One of the better Epoxies for these kinds of repairs is PC7 which you can get at ACE/True-Value. Any auto-parts store should have seam-sealer, fiberglass-filler and fiberglass/resin as well. For rust inhibitor Rust-Oleum is likely the best that you will find locally. POR15, Rust-Bullet, and Chassis-Saver are not usually carried by "big-name" hardware or auto-parts stores, though you can check their web-sites to see if you live near a distributor, otherwise you can order them online but expect a week or so for shipping since these products are flammable they ship ground only.

phloozy

thanks, should be a fun weekend

dmill89

no-problem, on a side note: is that the driver or passenger foot-well? If it is the passenger foot-well make sure to check the AC evaporator drain, this being plugged/leaking is a common cause of rust in that area.

phloozy

Not sure what it looks like but i'll try to figure it out. There is a black tube in there, you can kind of see it in the picture. Any idea what it is? It is the passenger side.