Problem need advice

[Ferbie]

Hi guys,

I've been searching all over the internet, this forum and vortex but haven't found a ton of info. So I'm really hoping you guys can chime in!

I was an idiot today. Jacking up a friends Golf (MKIII) and I totally put the jack in the wrong spot.... wasn't sure where it should go, the pinch weld was already really bent and mangled..... so I used one of those rubber looking pads on the bumped down floor panel (I hope you understand what I'm talking about). Like the part with the bumpy coating, there is a runner along the bottom of the car that is jutted down... I thought it was subframe.

Anyways.... you can probably guess where this is going.... jack went through floor..... i really ****ed up. There is now a jack sized hole up through the floor of the car and I don't know how to fix it.

Would fibreglass repair kit be the right idea? It's a curved down section, so a metal plate wouldn't really work... I thought maybe a fibreglass patch would do the trick... but not sure about strength and all that.

Any opinions, advice, help is GREATLY appreciated!!

 

[electraglide]

repair

you could shape a piece of metal over the hole and rivet it in if you cant weld it then fibreglass over it or you could fibreglass over the hole but the problem with fibreglass is it needs to be fairly warm to set up you can use a hair dryer or heat gun but dont over do it it is flammible and dont put too much hardener in it follow the directions on the can .
If you use the heavy fibreglass cloth as opposed to the fibreglass repair kits at CTC you will have a stronger fix .... I find the heavy cloth works better if you cut it in strips about 1-2 inches wide and 4 or 5 inches long then soak them in the premixed resin /hardener mix .
you dont have much time once its mixed depending on the mix ratio and ambient temp so work fast and wear rubber gloves .
Fibreglass pound for pound is stronger than steel but you will have to be careful not to jack on this point again ,one other tip if you tape a piece of saran wrap on the bottom of the hole [under the car] using duct tape and keep the saran wrap tight once the fibreglass is dry you remove the tape and saran wrap and you will have a smooth gel coat finish on the bottom you can then spray this with undercoat from CTC and know one will know the difference unless they pull up the floor mat
good luck

 

[imo000]

Take a pic. Did the jack go completly through the floor?

This is a ghetto fix but you can use expending foam insualtion. When it sets, shape it with a knife and then cover it with rubberized undercoating. The proper way to fix it is to weld in a pice of steel. Is you buddy ok with just a fibreglass patch?

 

[Ferbie]

Thanks guys! I love this forum!

I wanted to post a pic but forgot to grab one this aft. I'm gonna go back over tomorrow, I'm sure that will help. My bad!

 

[petea4]

Wow, that sucks! Did the jack tear through the carpet?

What is the condition of the car? Is this car a beater daily driver? Show car?

You should straighten the floor, weld it up, new carpet, and undercoat.

Or lay a metal plate down, fiberglass the inside and the underneath, spread some tar and undercoating.

Does your friend know?

I'm thinking next time you'll be looking at the jack as you hit those first few pumps! Didn't you notice that the car wasn't lifting as you were cranking on the handle?

 

[redlinedave]

When I was a teen-ager I "fixed" my VW busses rusted out rocker panels with
Good Stuff and pop cans then sprayed under coat over the whole mess

 

[electraglide]

fibreglass

if you decide to go the fibreglass route make sure you rough up the area with a grinder or coarse sand paper 60 or 80 grit it helps the resin bone to the metal .
Obviously welding is the best fix but if you dont have a welder or the experience using one then fibreglass is your next best option
If you do decide to weld make sure there are no brake or fuels lines in the repair area or you could have more problems than you have already !

 

[Windex]

If the jack went through the floor, then the floor was rotten to begin with.

I'm a fan of fixing it right. Find a shop with a MIG welder and weld in a patch panel. There are a decent number of shops out there that will do this kind of repair fairly cheap.

 

[Ferbie]

Hey guys, thanks for the input. As promised, here are a couple pictures. Hopefully they'll help give a better idea of where the hole is and what size.


This pic shows the pinch weld, and why I didn't want to use it. So the hole is in the big bump down seen in picture, it seemed solid and I thought is was another lift point.

This pic shows the hole. It's on a real curved spot, which is why I thought fibreglass would be a good option. The fuzzy stuff is the bottom of the carpet.

Pete, the car is a daily driver car. Right now it's parked for a while, and I am caring for it. I didn't move it for about a week and half, and the brake seized so I jacked it up to deal with the brake. I have not told them yet because I don't want them to stress about it. I'd like to fix it for them and let them know when they get back. And the carpet is fine, it only punched through the floor pan. There is a big air pocket between the bottom and the carpet in that spot.

Windex, the jack wouldn't do that if the floor wasn't ok? I thought I just picked a point that was too weak. As for shops, any ballpark on fairly cheap?

As far as welding, I would not be able to do that on my own. I'd have to go to a shop. That was why I thought of fibreglass. So is the fibreglass not really a good solution? I thought it was pretty strong stuff.

 

[imo000]

That floor is all rotted out. Just use fibreglass. Duct tape the outside and fibreglass it from the inside.

 

[Windex]

Looking at your picture, that floor was already rotten, likely from waterlogged carpet and underpadding (indicated by the stains on the now visible underpadding and by the previously intact undercoating/paint on the outside). Another issue is your rotting brake lines - they need to be replaced.

As for the repair, fibreglass would likely work best in terms of cost vs work required, but would also likely fall off in a year or so.

I know that you jacked in the wrong place, but a floor with proper integrity would just dent, not tear. The carpet was stronger than the floor before you jacked it. You were only the unlucky guy to make an already weak floor fail.

 

[electraglide]

re picture

the floor is toast you cant weld it[too rusty] the only way to fix it properly is cut it out and weld in new floor pans not something you would want to get into especially if it isnt your car the best fix like I said is to fibreglass it I dont know what you have near you in the way of fibreglass most marine repair places will carry the heavy matt cloth which will be better than the smooth ctc cloth in their fibreglass kits your going to have to pull the carpet to repair it no matter what this isnt your fault the car is rotten and you had the misfortune of jacking it up in the wrong place .
1 square foot of cloth will be more than you need just pick up some hardener and resin and if your messy some acetone to remove it from your skin !
I use old popsicle sticks to handle it stir the cloth in the resin hardener mix until its soaked then put the cloth over the hole with the stick make sure there are no air bubbles and dont forget to put the saran wrap and duct tape on the bottom the fibreglass wont stick to the saran wrap and it will act as a back up on the hole until the glass is dry .

 

[electraglide]

bye the way this car shouldnt be on the road its only a matter of time before those brake lines blow it will never pass a safety if you have any problems e mail me

 

[P2B]

Check the strut towers - if the floor is that rotten in a MK3, the towers are probably done too.

Simon

 

[imo000]

Here's another "option". Pretend you didn't do anything. That floor would have fallen apart in the next year anyways.

 

[petea4]

^^ then his buddy jumps on the highway and the "magic carpet" levitates!

 

[rhskcdn]

My 2c.... floor rot in an MK3 means it probably isn't worth fixing.

 

[petea4]

You can't leave it like that. Fix/patch it and let your friend know what is going on. Full disclosure. Maybe it's time to look for another car. Not your call or ours.

 

[Ferbie]

LOL! Thanks to all, the input has been great. Windex and everybody else, I appreciate the confidence vote that it wasn't all my fault. I was mildly stressed (to under exaggerate HUGE).

Don't worry Pete, I am definitely not going to leave it like that, and there will be full disclosure. I would like to patch it up first I think so when they get back it's a "hey, this is what happened, but look I fixed it!" kinda thing. And yeah, as for the new car thing, that's totally their call lol.

Thanks again, I'm probably going to go the fibreglass route and do a nice solid patch with plenty of undercoating spray.

 

[2ManyKMfor1Tank]

My first car was an 82 jetta, which my Dad got for me in '89. It had 285k km on it at the time of purchase, I drove it till it had 450k km on it at which point the TB broke, slapped a new head and a set of rings on it and it ran great. The floor was completely rotted out in it by the time it was 15 years or so old, we riveted in a sheet almost the size of the entire drivers side front, it was horribly rotten. Looking back, I don't think I would do it again, it becomes a death trap in an accident scenario - the car would probably fold in half in a fender bender. It looked very similar to the photo's you posted, I'd let your friends know it won't be long before it reaches this point.