Just taken the front bumper off an r reg micra, one owner ,50,000 miles, to weld the x-member up, only to find the whole of the front x-member is totally rotten and not worth welding
It needs replacing,now thats a pink fluffy dice :-(
so just to remind everyone, mint cars, low mileage, shiny, are not always mint underneath, no matter what the mot may say ,if more than 3 months old
Here endeth the lesson
..........................................;-)
{Subject header amended - DD}
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Next lesson: Buy a galvanised car. If all you need is a hatchback, there's loads of choice.
659.
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friend of mine was welding a car about 2 years ago, he found some steel that turned out to be galved (you can usually tell as it burns with a green tinge through the mask)part of the galv came off or was it the fumes through welding anyway it got on his skin went septic and he got blood poisoning,he was in hospital for 10 days and nearly died
lesson no 2 buy a plastic 13 amp plug plastic pig ;-)
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Hard to imagine galvanizing doing that, BB. I'm no welder but it's only metallic zinc, so the worst it's likely to produce when heated is zinc oxide - aka calamine, which people use to make skin better, not worse. I suspect there was something else present that burned and produced something dangerous.
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I find that hard to believe. When I learned how to weld, we were told to try to remove the galvanizing bt scraping, filing or sulphuric acid because it contaminates and weakens the weld. Nobody mentioned possible hospitalisations. It could have been cadmium which is a different proposition although as far as I know still not enough to send you to hospital.
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Ive just spoken to him and he confirms that the doctors told him it was chemicals coming out of the galv that gave him blood poisoning, they were absorbed through his skin.
I remember this very well as i had to deal with some of his customers who were more concerned about getting their cars repaired than whether he lived,it was actually a life changing moment for me as i realised how calous people can be
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Are sure it's a Micra and not a Polo, they are mint and have holes in them ;o)
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Its well known if the construction industry that welding galv steel gives off poisonous fumes:
www.mig-welding.co.uk/welding-safety.htm
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Surprised you were shocked at front X-member corrosion on R-reg Micra, bell boy, its a well known rust spot on those motors. In fact they can rust all over underneath.
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Gosh - I've learned something today. Looks like zinc oxide is another of those chemicals (like surgical spirit!) that's for external use only.
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So if the fumes off galvanised steel can be lethal... when it comes to robots welding cars in factories there will be fumes. Won't some of this affect the staff over time? I'm assuming it would be accumulative heavy metal poisoning.
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Im on with it aprilia yes i know they rot but this isnt rotten its devoid of metal
heres a few pictures in between the heat of the afternoon that is here and having to work outside because of it
________
i6.photobucket.com/albums/y246/smartiesx3/PICT0004...g
i6.photobucket.com/albums/y246/smartiesx3/PICT0003...g
i6.photobucket.com/albums/y246/smartiesx3/PICT0002...g
i6.photobucket.com/albums/y246/smartiesx3/PICT0001...g
i6.photobucket.com/albums/y246/smartiesx3/PICT0005...g
i6.photobucket.com/albums/y246/smartiesx3/PICT0006...g
i6.photobucket.com/albums/y246/smartiesx3/PICT0004...g
i6.photobucket.com/albums/y246/smartiesx3/PICT0003...g
i6.photobucket.com/albums/y246/smartiesx3/PICT0002...g
i6.photobucket.com/albums/y246/smartiesx3/PICT0007...g
i6.photobucket.com/albums/y246/smartiesx3/PICT0006...g
i6.photobucket.com/albums/y246/smartiesx3/PICT0005...g
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Great pix bb, shudder.
Looks as if you may need to graft a couple of other bits of metal in to make all secure.
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Thanks for the interesting pictures. I would have no faith in this vehicle whatsoever given the extent of the corrosion - I wonder what the suspension anchorages and other hidden parts are like?
My partner has a Peugeot 106 of similar age - it looks virtually immaculate by comparison, such is the value of galvanised steel. (Except for the bits above the spare wheel which they mysteriously forgot about - Waxoyl to the rescue here).
659.
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Im on with it aprilia yes i know they rot but this isnt rotten its devoid of metal
Not too bad, bell boy, a coat of Waxoyl 'Black Wax' brushed over it should cure it... ;-)
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>>>>>Im on with it aprilia yes i know they rot but this isnt rotten its devoid of metal
heres a few pictures in between the heat of the afternoon that is here and having to work outside because of it<<<<<
OK we get the picture :-))
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Gosh - I've learned something today. Looks like zinc oxide is another of those chemicals (like surgical spirit!) that's for external use only.
Calamine lotion must have a very small %age of zinc oxide in it. As your skin breathes, you could absorb a lot of zinc fumes and not know until its too late.
On the subject of cadmium being present, one of those links says "cadmium WILL KILL YOU". When we deal with contaminated land, cadmium contamination is classed as more dangerous than arsenic.
I thought in a car factory, chassis' will be galvanised after welding? If there is any post galv welding I expect they would have extractor fans?
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In a car factory steel is brought in pre-galvanised.
Galvanising requires heat and large vats and tends to distort thin metals.. it's a very contaminating process.
madf
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I would not want to be anywhere near a steel galavanising plant!
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I've been scraping rusty blisters off daughter's Micra sump, and smearing with grease, perhaps I should be looking further afield.
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Our 98 Micra was mint coloured apart from the brown bits!
www.photobox.co.uk/album/3262964
40K miles and excellent condition elsewhere.
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