Body and rust restoration, not paint and body shop

txdozer · Post by **txdozer** » Fri Mar 24, 2006 7:50 pm

Iâ€™m having a hard time finding a body shop in the Houston, TX area that will do rust restoration. Most of them are insurance . . . hurry and replace the body parts. I found a couple of places, quotes of $2000 to $5000 USD. Iâ€™m sure somewhere in cyber space someone can help me find a more cost effective place

Danno · Post by **Danno** » Fri Mar 24, 2006 9:08 pm

isn't the whole point of owning a Fiat learning to do it ALL on your own? lol, just kidding. What kind of restoration of your rust are you looking for? i find that one way to restore rust to is get bare metal wet. (again, i kid) what kind of condition is your car in? do you have pictures?

So Cal Mark · Post by **So Cal Mark** » Fri Mar 24, 2006 9:16 pm

don't expect to find someone cheap unless you'll accept poor quality work. You're seeking work that can potentially take much longer than estimated. And unless the body shop wants to gamble and quote it low and possibly lose money on the job, they're going to quote it high. You be better off to find a body guy that works on the side or take it across the border

mdrburchette · Post by **mdrburchette** » Sat Mar 25, 2006 3:18 am

Mark is right. Rust repair can be very expensive and you get what you pay for. Case in point: I have a friend who owns a 1958 Olds 88 as his daily driver. A couple years ago, he had someone replace the rocker panels and cut out some rust in the doors and install patch panels. When questioned about his technique, the guy told him it was the quickest and cheapest way and would be just as good. 6 months later, there were rust bubbles coming back. The guy didn't grind and seal the weld areas from the underside. Depending on how much rust damage you have and where it is, 2 to 5K is not unreasonable.

noneedforanintroduction · Fri Apr 07, 2006 12:30 am

Call Chip Buczo at Bake-O in Stafford. (his last name is pronounced boots-o)

Don't tell him I sent you or he might charge you more... LOL
Just kidding- he's my oldest friend in the Houston area, and he's a former Fiat owner. His mom used to have a Yugo GVX, too...

He did my Bella's paint and body repairs for me.

(281) 879-0176
tell him Al sent you

mbouse · Post by **mbouse** » Fri Apr 07, 2006 8:45 am

Yous gets what yous pays for.

I just had a quote for a complete re-do on paint with minor body work.

$3,200 BEFORE he saw the condition of the replacement door.

T'aint cheap. Hard work and lots of it are a major item.

Oh, yeah, and that quote was with ME dechroming, debadging, removing all glass and lights.......

bruce bennett · Post by **bruce bennett** » Thu Sep 21, 2006 12:13 am

While I totally agree with So Cal Mark here.
I must offer a tiny warning.

don't just take anyones word for it, no matter how big or nice their shop is.. and take no notice of all the show car trophies on the wall, no matter how many times he points to them... and forget how nice his 72 chevelle looks. it's just window dressing.

make sure you see an example of their actual welding work before hand.

I took my "77 124 in to have two new floor panels welded in. simple job I was told...

What I got back, was a 2000.00 dollar mess that looked like he was welding in his sleep, I could see daylight through the welds and no overlap at all in the panel edges. some panels have 1/4" gaps between them. and he had lots of good solid metal to work with.

I'm still saving up to have it fixed.