Corrosion woes, please help, advice needed

[paradilly]

Hi All,

I have recently purchased a mark 1 Fabia VRS (after recommendations on here and from my brother )

The car appeared to be mint, an 06 plate with 71k genuine miles and full service history, mainly skoda with last two at a dealer, mechanically spot on.

It was not until I washed the car for the first time last week that I noticed there is some rust that appears to be from stone chips behind the front wheel (mainly first foot but a couple of bubbled towards the rear of the sill). Now I know what you are going to say, buyer beware and I know I have been silly for not checking but my brother who knows a bit about cars also didn't check for this as we really wouldn't expect it on an 06 plate Skoda from a dealer, especially with how well the rest of the car has been looked after.

I'm a bit of a worrier by nature and this has now taken the edge off the car that I fell in love with (I really do love it that much ).

What would you guys do in this situation?

I have had a quote from a (extremely) reputable company for the work to be done (ground back, treated and resprayed) for £500. When looking at the work to be done they claimed that the rust is not due to bad accident repair as they could tell all the lines were done by robot and they did say they hadn't really seen anything like it on a Skoda of that age. A search of the internet also doesn't really come back with any real issues with rust. The technician at the body shop also stated that the metal was really solid and it was only the surface.

The bottom line is that I can afford to have this work done at this time, I really love the car otherwise but would like readers opinions of what they would do in this?

Should I get the work done and risk that it wont come back that quick (being a Skoda and the job being done well) and keep it or should I have it done and trade it in quick smart (I can afford that too at this time) and cut my losses (likely £1500)?

Please give me your opinions, its causing me sleepless nights :(, any feedback much appreciated

Great site, thanks guys.

[vrs'burks]

Mines a 56 plate n was suffering from the same thing,just had em resprayed while the car had some other work done in the bodyshop, the guy who did mine was suprised at how the sills were for young/low mileage car. . I think the cause of the problem is as you say stone chips starting it. .

I payed 250 to have bonnet wings and sills done hy a very good shop,so 500 just for the sills sounds steep.

[rwbaldwin]

Any pictures?

I'd imagine you can get an OK repair for £100 to £150.

[softscoop]

Skoda have a 12 year anti-corrosion warranty. Speak to your local dealer to see if you can claim before you pay for anything.

[XLBaconDoubleCheese]

Mines doing the same, yet to get quotes though. Would much rather pay £500 for a good job than a £150 poor job and certainly wouldnt be selling it because of it.

[paradilly]

Thanks for the replies already guys!

If it wasn't for how this car puts such a smile on my face with the torque and the mpg I'd be quick to get shut but I love it far too much

@vrs'burks - good to know I'm not alone in this one..... I think I'm just being paranoid about how it will spread but as stated it does appear to be the very suface, I wish I lived near you so I could take it there! The cost is much more than I expected but unfortunately I don't know any other body shops that I trust. I got a quote from these guys as I know they did a great job when a fool backed into one of my previous cars. The question is, how do I find a shop that will do a great job at a reasonable price? I don't want anyone doing a c*** job..

@rwbaldwin - Pics attached (hopefully) EDIT: Two posts down, couldn't work out how to attach . The image does actually make it look worse than it is being a close up with a bright flash. You can probably see how its almost as if the paint has peeled off rather than the rust breaking through. As you can see from the other shot, you can probably expect why I never in a million years expected to find that lurking underneath the sill since the rest of the car appears to be so well looked after, not even a parking dent and the car reeks of someone who has cared for the car, it even has almost all of the optional extras...

@softscoop - I've read about this but I think it may be too far gone/should have been reported earlier. I have emailed Skoda with my dismay so maybe I'll hear something back, of course Ill keep the community updated.

Thanks again guys for your responses, its nice just chatting with nice people willing to share, great community!

Edited 24 May, 2013 by paradilly

[paradilly]

@matt1chelski again thanks, good to know i'm not the only one (and I mean that in the nicest way guys n gals, I feel for your rust blues, I do) just thought maybe Id dropped on one with a particularly sinister past so its kind of good to know that it hasn't been totally mistreated etc.

You guys are convincing me to get the work done and keep it (which is what I really want to do inside)

[paradilly]

@vrs'burks I stupidly (from your name) assumed you were from Berkshire, don't ask, I know, /slaps self across face, I'm not normally that stupid (Berks is even spelt differently than burks FFS ) however I notice you are in South Yorks, if you can recommend that bodyshop I'd be a really happy bunny if you could tell me which one it is. Was from Sheffield but now living in Chesterfield so hopefully not that far away. Also, did they grind and treat etc. or just respray?

Cheers matey.

[paradilly]

Sorry, this newb didn't know how to upload photos so have drop boxed them, hope this isn't against the rules

Here is a pic of the rust and the car as per 16:22 post.

https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/25046007/2013-05-07%2017.42.59.jpg

and

https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/25046007/2013-05-24%2016.18.18.jpg

[Holmesie]

before paying for it to be done just take it in to skoda and see what they say at worst they will say no its from stone chips

[Thisday]

@ vrs'burks

Where abouts did you get your bonnet etc resprayed? Can't see your location as on mobile.

[Dudeoli]

I've been meanin to sort the exact same thing on my 53 plate since I notice a year ago :p it doesn't appear to have gotten any worse though if that's any consultation

[rwbaldwin]

Sorry, this newb didn't know how to upload photos so have drop boxed them, hope this isn't against the rules

Here is a pic of the rust and the car as per 16:22 post.

https://dl.dropboxus...07 17.42.59.jpg

and

https://dl.dropboxus...24 16.18.18.jpg

That looks like inside to outside to me. Make a claim under the corrosion warranty and if the dealer says otherwise, insist they send photos to Skoda.

Good Luck

[vrs'burks]

@vrs'burks I stupidly (from your name) assumed you were from Berkshire, don't ask, I know, /slaps self across face, I'm not normally that stupid (Berks is even spelt differently than burks FFS ) however I notice you are in South Yorks, if you can recommend that bodyshop I'd be a really happy bunny if you could tell me which one it is. Was from Sheffield but now living in Chesterfield so hopefully not that far away. Also, did they grind and treat etc. or just respray?

Cheers matey.

j h pro paint in sheffield did it mate,hes an approved merc sprayer and does work for lots of reputable car sales places.

His place is just down from crystal peaks in halfway.

Im not sure how much "treatment" was done to respray em but they were all bubbled and rusty so must have bin taken back,etch primed,primed and painted,the finish is now perfect.

[Thisday]

Cheers,vrsburks! I live 10 mins from crystal peaks so will be dropping by for a quote once skoda have rejected my bodywork claim!

[paradilly]

OK,

Thanks for all the kind replies.

I think Ill take rwbaldwins advice first and take it to the Skoda dealer (there is one in the town I live).

Failing that, thanks vrsburks, sounds just the ticket and not too far away from me.

It does kind of worry me though as if it is inside to out then the problem is likely to reoccur....

Thanks again.

[rover220]

Skoda have a 12 year anti-corrosion warranty. Speak to your local dealer to see if you can claim before you pay for anything.

not covered for stone chips though

[paradilly]

Absolutely however I would tend to agree with rbaldwin that it does actually look inside out.... Ill see what they say and post back.

[J Stewart VRS]

I have a similar problem with my 05 plate. On mine its more the stone chip/underseal peeling away causing the bare metal to corrode.Power washing the car seems to pull more off too. Rust is just started creeping round sill into view like yours but mine is black, so not as noticeable. Also just behind my drivers wheel on wing I have a problem with paint flake too. I live rural so i've put mine down to stone chips. I'm going to get mine repaired/treated, then mudflaps fitted to prevent in future. Good luck with yours

[paradilly]

Thanks again for the response.

That sounds exactly like mine! It looks like the underseal has peeled away, the surface rust has started creeping and in turn caused further paint to flake away.

Little update, I have since noticed that there are tiny bubbles at the back of the sill near the rear wheel too so it makes me more believe that this is the result of inside out. I have emailed my local Skoda dealer to see what they come back with.

Maybe its these terrible winters we have been having that are to blame but still....

Will keep you all updated if I hear anything back.

[paradilly]

Oh and P.S. I agree, the second I get mine sorted its mudflaps all the way, may spoil the looks a bit but I can live with it... Hate that large ping sound as a stone bounces off, makes me shudder