Styling Door Rust & Dented Sill - Easy to Fix?

[FDNY21]

Hello, I was wondering how easy it is to sort door rust and a dented sill. I haven't bought this car yet but I'm wondering how much it would cost me to sort if I did buy it (Panda classic).

Is it easy enough to do myself? Advisable to get someone else to do it? Who/how much will it cost? Picture of door corner (same on other side):

Would someone be able to pull this out? Who/how much will it cost? Picture of dent on sill:

I know a mechanic and he said I should leave a Fiat if I see rust. Should I leave this car, walk away, and find another car?

Also, just wondering. To take the badges off a Fiat, how easy is it? Heat up glue and take off for the rear ones? Not sure about the front one.

Thanks in advance!

 

[northernchap]

For a Panda, those doors look MINT mate!

I also have a dent like that in my sill from hitting a rock while green laning, no idea if it's fixable as I don't intend to bother.

It's your first car, you'll put plenty of dents and scrapes on it...

 

[FDNY21]

For a Panda, those doors look MINT mate!

I also have a dent like that in my sill from hitting a rock while green laning, no idea if it's fixable as I don't intend to bother.

It's your first car, you'll put plenty of dents and scrapes on it...

Yeah, I've heard the doors are some of the first to suffer. I had a good look around the car, as far as I can tell, those are the only real bits to worry about for rust... guess it's nothing to worry about yet, but was wondering anyway

I was tempted to leave the dent as well, I was more worried about the rust spreading to be honest

That's also a very valid point, which is why I wasn't intending on replacing bumpers any time soon, though you never know, I might take up to driving really well

Trying to haggle down the price as much as I can. I might be able to get it down to £1k, we'll see eh! The lower the better

 

[kestrel4x4]

.
Hello FDNY21.


The weakest parts of Panda Classic are :


- trasmission : 4wd lever, transmission shaft, rear differential
- chassis : RUST is a big problem for you in UK. You should check with a light the bottom ofthe car.

 

[Dragon Man]

do an oil change.. then with a spray bottle spray the old oil into the insides of the doors. they wont get any worse then

 

[kolza]

I will leave here few quotes from book I'm going through now which suits here :


“DO IT, THEN FIX IT AS YOU GO.”


“i wish means: would it be nice if..
i want means: if i want it enough i will get it.”


“Start taking bad decisions and it will take you to a place where others only dream of being.”


“If you always make the right decision, the safe decision, the one most people make, you will be the same as everyone else.”


- Paul Arden - Whatever You Think, Think Opposite
£6.5 from your local book shop

 

[FDNY21]

.
Hello FDNY21.


The weakest parts of Panda Classic are :


- trasmission : 4wd lever, transmission shaft, rear differential
- chassis : RUST is a big problem for you in UK. You should check with a light the bottom ofthe car.

Hello Kestrel, luckily I don't have to worry about a 4WD lever and rear diff as it's only a FWD! As for rust, yes, it may be a problem in the future, I checked the car and all I see really is door corners so far

do an oil change.. then with a spray bottle spray the old oil into the insides of the doors. they wont get any worse then

That could work as a sealant, sure, but it only recently had an oil change so I'm not sure if I could call it "old" oil!

 

[FDNY21]

I will leave here few quotes from book I'm going through now which suits here :


“DO IT, THEN FIX IT AS YOU GO.”


“i wish means: would it be nice if..
i want means: if i want it enough i will get it.”


“Start taking bad decisions and it will take you to a place where others only dream of being.”


“If you always make the right decision, the safe decision, the one most people make, you will be the same as everyone else.”


- Paul Arden - Whatever You Think, Think Opposite
£6.5 from your local book shop

You're quite the philosopher, aren't you I can imagine you have that book and listen to those quotes because of your Panda(s)...

Thanks though, I do see some real meaning in those. I'll never get a Panda if I'm not ready to take a risk, so I'll take that advice on board... let's see how it goes in the MOT later, the seller is going to call me :worship:

 

[FDNY21]

The Panda failed the MOT with the current owner, one refusal because of one front tyre, and the other front tyre being an advisory. At least there was nothing wrong to do with rust or anything else! Going to talk to the seller later and we'll see what happens

 

[FDNY21]

Seller still wants £1,150 for it, even with the rust/dent/scratches and other tidbits that were wrong with it. I've got an offer of £1,000 on the table but it sounds like he wants £1,150 or nothing. Guess we'll see, it's a shame, I was hoping to get this one. Money is always an issue :bang:

 

[lprescott]

You could always suggest 4 new corners an mot and 1100

 

[FDNY21]

You could always suggest 4 new corners an mot and 1100

Front tyres have already been replaced by the seller, so when he picks it up, it'll be passed (this evening). Sounds like he wants £1,150 or nothing, just hoping his other viewers don't buy in and then maybe he'll consider my £1,000 :worship:

 

[lprescott]

Good luck.

 

[kolza]

It is dow to you, but you might be strugling to find better one for £1k.
I'm sure there are some but are they going to be for sale any soon?

For example John's (Panda Panda) recently sold pristine condition 2wd white one for over £1.5 or close to that few weeks ago. Time is running and the difference between project and pristine one is getting bigger and biger.

From what I can see are you planning to keep this car as long as you can?
I would not recommend too clean car as a learner for simple reason, every time you will get a ding, dent, scratch, masive pot hole, catch a curve, all this will put you off from driving or at least drive you mad. Get a runner with full ticket and enjoy.

 

[FDNY21]

It is dow to you, but you might be strugling to find better one for £1k.
I'm sure there are some but are they going to be for sale any soon?

For example John's (Panda Panda) recently sold pristine condition 2wd white one for over £1.5 or close to that few weeks ago. Time is running and the difference between project and pristine one is getting bigger and biger.

From what I can see are you planning to keep this car as long as you can?
I would not recommend too clean car as a learner for simple reason, every time you will get a ding, dent, scratch, masive pot hole, catch a curve, all this will put you off from driving or at least drive you mad. Get a runner with full ticket and enjoy.

He wants £1,150 for it, I've tried, but I don't think he's going any lower until someone else pays him that for it anyway!

I do want a classic Panda, but it's just finding the right one. As you say, there are some around, but are they going to be for sale? Where, and when? This one is really close to me, so it's convenient, but I think the seller is asking a bit too much for it. I've tried getting £100-150 off but no budging, it seems! I tried to ask for some money off so I could seal up the windows properly, get some sealant for the doors and a proper clean for the dirty ceiling, etc.

It's not just about condition. If I found one cheaper in my area with a couple tidbits more wrong with it, I wouldn't mind. I just need to find one that's near me, for a good price. If I could get this one for £1,000, simple, I'd take it, but the seller is really holding out on that £1,150 sale price, and I'm really not sure what to do.

I don't want to get a completely clean car, but I would like a nice classic Panda that isn't going to rust out on me immediately and only last me a short while. I'm really umming and arring at this point. Here's my choices, that I'll probably have in my head for a while until something just ends up happening...

1. Hold out and wait for the seller to come down (could be unlikely?)
2. Bite the bullet and take it for the £1,150 (is that too much?)
3. Wait for another car to come along (when?)

 

[kolza]

. I just need to find one that's near me, for a good price.

Sorry, but your asking a bit to much, Pandas are not like Ford Mondeo mk5, they are rare they don't come up for sale on each street corner.

Don't get me wrong but you can't be that fussy when it comes to buying 25 years old Fiats unless you are willing to pay top money or the asking price. In this case seller might be absolutely right and it is purely his call to sell it or not, he knows this panda value, and he is right! He might be feed-up with you already, at least I would if some one would try to haggle for some cleaning detergent after me spending £50 on MOT and pair of tyres. Full ticket is adding at least £300-400 to the value.

Simple question - is £1150 still withing you budget? Yes - go for it, no - wait for another one.

 

[FDNY21]

Sorry, but your asking a bit to much, Pandas are not like Ford Mondeo mk5, they are rare they don't come up for sale on each street corner.

Don't get me wrong but you can't be that fussy when it comes to buying 25 years old Fiats unless you are willing to pay top money or the asking price. In this case seller might be absolutely right and it is purely his call to sell it or not, he knows this panda value, and he is right! He might be feed-up with you already, at least I would if some one would try to haggle for some cleaning detergent after me spending £50 on MOT and pair of tyres. Full ticket is adding at least £300-400 to the value.

Simple question - is £1150 still withing you budget? Yes - go for it, no - wait for another one.

I know this is a rare car and that I can't just find one, just like that. I'm not saying I can go and find one just like that, I didn't mean to make it sound like that - I just mean that obviously one will come around one day, but I don't ever know if it will be the right one, so I don't know what option to go for. Sorry if I made it sound like it was as easy as getting a Mondeo Mk5, I of course know it's a very rare car now.

The thing is, on his advert, he said that it had 12 months MOT and he mentioned no defects. As I talked to this guy, it all piled up. It turned out it didn't have an MOT, and now he wants me to pay more because of the tyres and new MOT, even though it should have been fine in the first place as he advertised it with a 12 month MOT and no problems. The dent, rust, scratches and discolouration were all news to me after I talked to the guy.

Aside the from point and being fed up with who and why, it's just a risk, which is why I've been thinking about it and talking about it so much. I don't want to get it wrong. But as the same time, if I want a classic Panda, this may be the one. I'll have to sleep/dwell on it.

I also thought about what you said about those quotes. If I never take the risk, I may never experience it. Maybe biting the bullet is the way I have to go with it. Thanks for your advice Kolza, you've been very helpful

 

[Michael Dranfield]

Sorry, but your asking a bit to much, Pandas are not like Ford Mondeo mk5, they are rare they don't come up for sale on each street corner.

Don't get me wrong but you can't be that fussy when it comes to buying 25 years old Fiats unless you are willing to pay top money or the asking price. In this case seller might be absolutely right and it is purely his call to sell it or not, he knows this panda value, and he is right! He might be feed-up with you already, at least I would if some one would try to haggle for some cleaning detergent after me spending £50 on MOT and pair of tyres. Full ticket is adding at least £300-400 to the value.

Simple question - is £1150 still withing you budget? Yes - go for it, no - wait for another one.

Actually there is another choice, let someone else buy it and then regret it for the rest of your life, have a look on the how many left website , how many there are left of this model and how they have declined over time, this may help you make up your mind,also remember with a car 25 years old there will be problems with rust as these cars were made before the advent of galvanized steel paneling .
And you say this car is in your local area, supposing you see another one just as good for £1,000 but its in Scotland, how much is it going to cost you to collect it ?

 

[northernchap]

I get what you mean about price, but if it's got a test on then that's pretty good. I mean look at the heap of c**p I bought for 850!

https://www.fiatforum.com/members-motors/429798-my-panda-4x4-northernchap.html

Now admittedly it's a 4x4 but still it shows the price for a tatty car, your one looks nice and is probably worth the money. On the other hand, does sound like he's mucked around a bit so you're right to be wary - good luck anyway, hope it works out!

 

[FDNY21]

Actually there is another choice, let someone else buy it and then regret it for the rest of your life, have a look on the how many left website , how many there are left of this model and how they have declined over time, this may help you make up your mind,also remember with a car 25 years old there will be problems with rust as these cars were made before the advent of galvanized steel paneling .
And you say this car is in your local area, supposing you see another one just as good for £1,000 but its in Scotland, how much is it going to cost you to collect it ?

34 left on the road, similar amount SORN I believe, for the Fizz model anyway. Not that the Fizz decals or Fire badge exist on the car any more But nonetheless, very valid points there, thank you, you're right as if I don't get it, I may be putting down one of my biggest options