Rust on roof, repairing it

[Agent001]

I just realised that the FTO I just got had rust on the roof! Darn There are quite a few spots, all aligned in 1 line surprisingly, with 1 big spot which has rust, and the remainder just bubble-like with the paint still intact.

I'm not sure if this is a common problem with any of you guys, but I heard it is particularly common in 94-95 cars. Is it true?

Any way to fix it? And related costs? Would the rust get even worse with it being wet during rainy days?

Thanks! Pretty annoyed at it, considering that the car, besides that, runs well and all.

[bigpitty1]

yeah mine had that problem as well, on Dstocks website (http://www.completefto.com.au/FTO_showcontent.asp?aid=341)it has a thing on about the rust in the roof.

I started by removing the glue that is between the roof and subframe and got rust converter on to it and painted over it, that lasted 2 months and then I got bubbles forming.
When the bubbles came I got the angle grinder on the roof and grinded the paint and rust away, put abit of rust converter again, then I got a bit of fibre glass filler thingy from supercheap and fill up the spots that I welded away, sanded it down, primed the surface and painted it back up, and put a couple of layers of clear coat.

Right now it seems to be fine.

[dstocks]

Yep, this seems to be a common theme. I have seen 2 FTO's in Canberra in the last month with this issue too. Need to clear out all the glue - thats what causes the problem. Then its worth trying to repair the rust. If you leave the glue in, the rust will come back in a couple of months (thats what happened to me - I ended up doing mine twice). There have been quite a few threads on this one now. If you do a search you should be able to find them. Cars without a sunroof are much easier (and less expensive) to fix. You can do most of the hard work yourself if you follow my guide (that'll be the one that bigpity1 posted)

Good Luck

[Leigh]

After initally knocking out the glue myself I got mine fixed up by a work shop about 4 months ago now, and still no sign of it returning. Just as a side note, there is also a line that goes across the back as well as the front, so make sure you get that fixed as well at the same time, as my back line didnt appear till a few months after the front started showing. Get it fixed ASAP before it turns into a horror story!

[AERODYNAMIST]

will anything worse happen if i just leave the rust spot as it is?

[Bennoz]

Just remember - rust spots are like icebergs. If you only see a 5 cent size spot, then what you cant see is the 50 cent size damage below.

[bigpitty1]

If you don't do anything about it, it will just spread, basically rust is like cancer, if you don't completely remove it, it will just come back worse.

[dstocks]

I posted some piccies of mine when I did it (its on one of the threads). That'll give you some idea of what it looks like underneath.......

And here it is:

http://www.ftoaustralia.com/modules.php ... light=rust

[Agent001]

I'm not the kind of DIY guy with cars, just don't have any experience...

If I were to go to a panel beater to get it fixed...how much u guys reckon it would cost?? A rough guide would be good...Anybody who sent the whole car to get it fixed by a panelbeater of some sorts?

Any input greatly appreciated. Don't want to drag too long or it might get worse!!!

[dstocks]

The first time I tried to get it fixed - $700

The second $900 (but that was a discount based on the fact that the first didnt work. Should cost less if no sunroof.....