Technical Rust through my floors

[vinjones]

I'm 17 and just bought a 1971 fiat 124 spider to work on with my dad. First thing we noticed was a lot of rust, so after taking the seats and everything out here is what we found:

We researched for a bit and ended up concluding that this would be a very large project to do ourselves (with no welding equipment or experience). We are wondering what our next course of action should be. Do we take it to a local expert? Just asking people who have dealt with this issue: how bad is it actually?

 

[Twink80]

I'm 17 and just bought a 1971 fiat 124 spider to work on with my dad. First thing we noticed was a lot of rust, so after taking the seats and everything out here is what we found:

View attachment 464760View attachment 464761View attachment 464763View attachment 464766


We researched for a bit and ended up concluding that this would be a very large project to do ourselves (with no welding equipment or experience). We are wondering what our next course of action should be. Do we take it to a local expert? Just asking people who have dealt with this issue: how bad is it actually?

Buy a mig welder and learn how to weld!
Unless you know a local and cheap fabricator this will get expensive quickly

Look at the other recent posts for rust comparisons

Yes it is serious, seat mounts are classed as structural (ie not decorative!) so need to be repaired and have good integrity

 

[Bonefish Blues]

Buy a mig welder and learn how to weld!
Unless you know a local and cheap fabricator this will get expensive quickly

Look at the other recent posts for rust comparisons

Yes it is serious, seat mounts are classed as structural (ie not decorative!) so need to be repaired and have good integrity

Exactly this. Either diy or be prepared to empty your wallet!

Have you had the car up on a lift yet? There are many, many projects that just grow and grow as more rot is discovered, because it wasn't really examined thoroughly at the start. That would be worth doing at a professional's premises under their advice, just to see the full cope of what you would be taking on.

Sorry if that sounds overly negative, it's not intended to be, it's just being real-world and 'eyes open' before you get into it too deep - I love a good restoration thread!