Do you guys think there is any chance of saving this car?

It was our family car for a long time and recently I got a chance to buy it back.

The biggest concern for me is the fact that the rust seemingly spread to the chassis itself and not just the sideskirt.

Thoughts?

Your vehicle does not have a chassis.

 

You either have a lot more faith or are even more of a risk taker than me to have jacked up the car directly underneath the rotten area!

 

That it has not collapsed suggests there remains ample strength and welding in a new section of sill and the wing bottom will make a good repair.

 

Entirely saveable but if you do not have the skills to DIY I doubt that you will consider the price being asked by a garage worth it compared to the cars value.

 

4 decades ago many people like myself were doing 6 repairs like that most weekends for very little money on MOT failures and it was an annual thing for owners.

Garages used to do welding but these days its a quick spot on an exhaust or a small patch to get it through an MOT and thats about it. Have a friend who had a garage and he said the prep work etc plus welding costs so much in labour it wasn't worth it. Plus he always said that unless it was stripped right back and all the rusty metal cut out and done properly( which would in my cases cost more than the cars were worth) it would probably need rewelding  again for the next MOT. Might be worth a quick check to see if anyone local does car restoration or if theres an old style garage near you. Body shops cost a fortune probably due to most repairs are being paid for by insurance. 

Alasdair