Rust around licence plate bolts.

Post about yourself, your Tercel, or your Tercel projects in here, share pictures of your Tercel, or post trip threads!
Post Reply
User avatar
Mark
Highest Ranking Member
Posts: 883
Joined: Mon Apr 22, 2013 9:49 pm
My tercel:: 1984 Automatic, 1981 sedan
Location: Victoria, B.C.

Rust around licence plate bolts.

Post by Mark »

I took the inner plastic cover off from the wagon hatch a couple of days ago and found big rust holes around where the licence plate bolts screw in. This picture is from the outside after removing the outer plastic ATM trim:
IMG_5132.JPG
IMG_5133.JPG
I cut away most of the rusted area and brushed the area with rust converter and let it dry for a day:
IMG_5134.JPG
IMG_5135.JPG
I spray painted the area inside and out with a "rock-guard"-type chip protector paint:
IMG_5136.JPG
The next day I used sheet metal screws to attach some pieces of sheet metal over the holes. First I coated the area with rubberized asphalt undercoating:
IMG_5137.JPG
Finally I coated the whole repair inside and out with another thick layer of the undercoating. It doesn't look pretty, but this area is hidden behind the licence plate and ATM anyway.
IMG_5138.JPG
IMG_5139.JPG
I'll have to figure out some other way to attach the licence plate (this time without holes going through the sheet metal of the car and dissimilar metals exposed to moisture).
You do not have the required permissions to view the files attached to this post.
User avatar
ARCHINSTL
Goldie Forever
Posts: 6369
Joined: Sat Apr 30, 2005 1:52 pm
My tercel:: Goldie is a 1986 SR5 attualmente con Weber/also owned the first T4WD in STL in late '82
Location: Kirkwood, a 'burb of St. Louis

Re: Rust around licence plate bolts.

Post by ARCHINSTL »

While you are at it - check out this link:
viewtopic.php?f=7&t=6917&hilit=hatch
Tom M.
T4WD augury?
"Oh, do not ask, 'What is it?' Let us go and make our visit."
T.S. Eliot - "The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock"
"Now and then we had a hope that, if we lived and were good, God would permit us to be pirates."
Mark Twain
User avatar
Mark
Highest Ranking Member
Posts: 883
Joined: Mon Apr 22, 2013 9:49 pm
My tercel:: 1984 Automatic, 1981 sedan
Location: Victoria, B.C.

Re: Rust around licence plate bolts.

Post by Mark »

The reason I took off the back panel and found the rust holes was because I was wire-wheeling/rust converting/chip-guard painting the bottom edge of the hatch just like you were in that link Archinstl. You can see the black strip along the bottom edge in some of the photos. All those holes under the ATM must let in a lot of moisture. There is a thin gasket running around the edge of the back of the ATM that is probably supposed to prevent water from getting in, but it's so old it's gone hard and doesn't seal very well. I'll probably run a bead of the rubberized asphalt sealer all around the back edge of the ATM to help seal it. I'll leave the bottom edge of the ATM unsealed so if any water does get in it can easily drain out.
Post Reply