rear arches

[bumblebee]

Where can I get replacment rear arch panels to get rid of the rot? Ford only do a qtr panel at 270plus vat. Please help!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !

 

[red]

Hi Bumblebee, Welcome to the site!

Any good body shop should be able to make some replacement panels to weld into the places where the rust exists.

How bad is it?

 

[bumblebee]

I want to do it properly and arches are the only way! I don't want it to come back in 6 months.

 

[red]

As above if you get a bodyshop to cut out the affected area and weld back in a new sheet of metal then it shouldn't come back.

The only way it will keep re-occurring is if you sand it down and paint over it. Sometimes this can last months/years still though.

I'd get some quotes from a local body shop if it were me.

It may or may not be more cost effective than buying complete new quarters and having them sprayed and fitted.

 

[mini-mole]

do go for the full rear 1/4 as mine has 1 and 6months after having the car it started to bubble up again, ya best bet is a wheel arch repair panel.
http://www.carpanels.co.uk/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
have a look at teh link and c whats on there.

 

[bumblebee]

Thanks for the link but they don't list rear arches does anyone? I bought the car for my wife and she loves it and I have to say I love it too but I can take the car back if I am unhappy. The car was in a showroom and now 2 weeks after been out in the open air the rust is shooting out and its obvious that it was just done to sell it!. Other wise the car is in great condition Was 3k about right for a millenium? I could only find one other for sale and that was 4k.The car is very good apart from those arches and the misses loves it. I have a mate who has been a body man since mk2 escort days and he is telling me with out a panel its going to cost a lot to repair it properly! Is the millenium worth looking after I hope it is because the she loves it and it looks like its going to cost to keep it looking good! Oh well :?

 

[Dal]

The millennium was only made in a run of 1000, so it's well worth keeping it as good as you can. Unfortunately rust on the rear arches comes to all pumas so there's little you can do to avoid it unless you treat it well from new. The only sure fire way to get rid of the rust is to cut it out, then treat the inner arches as seen in this post:

http://www.projectpuma.com/viewtopic.php?p=15170#15170" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

£3K for a millennium is pretty cheap in todays market.
(As long as it's not been to the moon and back for mileage)

Be careful with the paintwork as it's not a metallic and therefore doesn't have a clear lacquer coat on top protecting it from the elements. It may have oxidised a bit over the years to go a bit dull and flat. Getting a paintwork restorer (like t-cut, but that's a bit harsh IMO) will remove the oxidation and bring back the shine.