Can this be welded?

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My Name: james13579

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Joined: Thu Jul 15, 2021 9:11 am
Model: C3 2002-2005, Original shape model
Year: 2002 (02)
Engine Size: 1.4 (16v)
Fuel Type: Diesel
Mileage: 95000
Trim Level: Exclusive
Gearbox: Manual 5 speed
DPF: No
LHD or RHD: RHD (UK)
Engine name: DV4 16-valve diesel (90 PS)

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Hi again and thanks so much for the advice.

Unfortunately, I now have a bigger problem. I tried jacking the car up today (placing a piece of wood between the jack and the sill) and the sill snapped away leaving a hole and exposing lots of corrosion.
sill.jpg
Does anyone think this is weldable or should I just take it as the end of the car?

I'm absolutely gutted as I recently spent 4 days changing the clutch on it, full service and new disks/pads! Would love to keep it going but I'm thinking maybe time to cut my losses and let it go.
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My Name: C3CAR

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Model: C3 2002-2005, Original shape model
Year: 2002 (02)
Engine Size: 1.4 (16v)
Fuel Type: Diesel
Mileage: 140000
Trim Level: Exclusive
Gearbox: Manual 5 speed
DPF: No
LHD or RHD: RHD (UK)
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james13579 wrote: ↑Wed Jul 21, 2021 3:37 pm Hi again and thanks so much for the advice.

Unfortunately, I now have a bigger problem. I tried jacking the car up today (placing a piece of wood between the jack and the sill) and the sill snapped away leaving a hole and exposing lots of corrosion.
sill.jpg
Does anyone think this is weldable or should I just take it as the end of the car?

I'm absolutely gutted as I recently spent 4 days changing the clutch on it, full service and new disks/pads! Would love to keep it going but I'm thinking maybe time to cut my losses and let it go.
I am surprised the MOT man didn't fail that.

yes, you can weld sills.

You need to cut away all the rusty stuff and then find a donor sill (from a good C3) and use that to patch it up.

The blue ones tend to rust more than the red ones. So have a look for a red one as a donor. Right up to 2009 will do.

Rusty sills topic, with a youtube video.
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My Name: james13579

Member
Posts: 5
Joined: Thu Jul 15, 2021 9:11 am
Model: C3 2002-2005, Original shape model
Year: 2002 (02)
Engine Size: 1.4 (16v)
Fuel Type: Diesel
Mileage: 95000
Trim Level: Exclusive
Gearbox: Manual 5 speed
DPF: No
LHD or RHD: RHD (UK)
Engine name: DV4 16-valve diesel (90 PS)

Post

Thanks.

Do you think I could weld a plate over it all the way along - something like in the illustration below?

I only have an arc welder but I'm thinking I could use a 1.5-2mm plate provided the metal I'm welding to is thick enough.

The idea of cutting sills out of another car sounds like a nightmare!
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sill.jpg
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My Name: Arfur Dent

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Model: C3 2002-2005, Original shape model
Year: 2002 (52)
Engine Size: 1.4 (16v)
Fuel Type: Diesel
Mileage: 100000
Trim Level: Exclusive
Gearbox: Manual 5 speed
DPF: No
LHD or RHD: RHD (UK)
Engine name: DV4 16-valve diesel (90 PS)
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You can't weld to rust. You will need to strip back to good metal to find something to weld to. I don't think your patch would hold up to any sort of inspection.

You will have much more rust on the sill than you can see in your picture.
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My Name: james13579

Member
Posts: 5
Joined: Thu Jul 15, 2021 9:11 am
Model: C3 2002-2005, Original shape model
Year: 2002 (02)
Engine Size: 1.4 (16v)
Fuel Type: Diesel
Mileage: 95000
Trim Level: Exclusive
Gearbox: Manual 5 speed
DPF: No
LHD or RHD: RHD (UK)
Engine name: DV4 16-valve diesel (90 PS)

Post

I'm going to grind all the bad bits off tomorrow and see what's left.

If I do weld in these areas, is there anything plastic or any wiring on the inside that I can't see? When welding a car in these areas before it started smoking from the inside. Got me pretty worried that there would be no way to put out a fire if I couldn't get to it.

(also, just realised that the picture I took had confused me and the plate I drew doesn't really make sense)
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My Name: Arfur Dent

Guru
Posts: 3628
Joined: Sat Jul 23, 2011 3:47 pm
Model: C3 2002-2005, Original shape model
Year: 2002 (52)
Engine Size: 1.4 (16v)
Fuel Type: Diesel
Mileage: 100000
Trim Level: Exclusive
Gearbox: Manual 5 speed
DPF: No
LHD or RHD: RHD (UK)
Engine name: DV4 16-valve diesel (90 PS)
Has thanked: 397 times
Been thanked: 148 times

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james13579 wrote: ↑Sat Jul 24, 2021 12:17 pm I'm going to grind all the bad bits off tomorrow and see what's left.

If I do weld in these areas, is there anything plastic or any wiring on the inside that I can't see? When welding a car in these areas before it started smoking from the inside. Got me pretty worried that there would be no way to put out a fire if I couldn't get to it.

(also, just realised that the picture I took had confused me and the plate I drew doesn't really make sense)

It's worth taking the door trim off and lift the carpet with something to protect it from heat. There is some plastic trunking inside the door along the floor, remove that too. Look for wires.

There won't be any wires inside the box section of the sill but you may be burning any paint or coatings inside. Wear a mask.

When welding keep a fire extinguisher near by.

Understand how to extinguish a fire. In an enclosed section, remove the oxygen source or cut off the access to more oxygen to starve the fire.
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