OK, tonight I decided to give the car a quick wash, used a jetwash.... and the paint blisters came off.... The car does need a new wing on the passenger side, the rust really is bad, on the driver's side it seems to be surface rust in the corners, where the wing (fender) meets the front bumper and where it meets the plastic trim. You can see the rust on the passenger side on the attached images (remember I'm in the UK so it will look like your driver's side :-D)

My major concern is rust on the A post and roof. Looks like at some stage the car has had a replacement windscreen (windshield) and it wasn't done right. It looks to me like they didn't seal it right and ended up squirting some extra silicone that was keeping moisture where the chrome/platinum coloured trim goes around the windscreen and on the roof. I've also attached some images of the A post rust.

I took the trim off and it doesn't look good. I think ideally I'd need to cut out the windscreen (windshield), do the repairs and then fit the screen once it's ready.... Has anyone done it on a w124?

Any other ideas?

We only bought the car to use it as a workhorse but I have a soft spot for the w124 and a friend of mine owns a bodyshop so I could do most of the work myself, then get him to paint the bits.

Looks like I'd need to paint:

- both front wings
- roof
- A post

and replace:
- passenger side wing (fender)

I'll probably just buy a cheap aftermarket wing (fender), don't fancy spending a fortune on a genuine panel, they are way too expensive. Do you guys think I should paint the new wing off the car and then fit it when it's ready?

ALSO: Has anyone repainted the side mouldings to match the rest of the car? How difficult was it to remove and then refit the chrome trim? I might be tempted to paint the bumpers and mouldings one day to match the colour of the car, I'm not so keen of two tone body!

Thanks in advance for your help!

 

Have not had to do these repairs.

However, it is very common, after the bumpers get scuffed, for owners to paint the entire car to match the top half. This from the mechanics at the dealership.
My own car is respeayed so that it is all Brillant Silver, including the actual rubber bumper strips.
IMO I think this makes the car look less dated, but also a bit taller and less massive.

Good luck on the repairs.

 

My concern when it comes to painting the bottom part of the car is how to remove the chrome inserts and stick them back in. If I just mask them, the paint is bound to start flaking off at the edge where the bumper meets that thin chrome trim.... and that's the only thing stopping me from painting it now.

I need to address the rust issue ASAP, it doesn't look good at all, it's getting on my nerves.... Even if all I do today is rub it down and use some rust inhibitor to stop it from getting much worse, it'll be a start!

I was quite impressed with the condition of the paintwork on most of the car.... I gave the boot (trunk) a bit of polish (used Farecla G3) and then a bit of wax and it looks like new with NO SMEARS and that's very rare on a black car, let alone a 16 year old black car!!!

 

I've done a ton of rust repairs on older cars and I can tell you that to fix that windshield pillar rust, I personally would cut the windshield out, sandblast the area clean, then weld up any holes that might be present, do a little bodywork where your welding/blasting took place, then paint and put the windshield back in.

I would do the same with the front fenders, blast the rust areas super clean, then fix any rust holes and smooth out the area. I wouldn't replace a whole front fender for that little rust spot. Then I probably would repaint the whole car including the lower body cladding so it's all one color. The cars do look much better all one color instead of the two tone which I have never cared for.

I just got done doing this to my 300TE wagon, I posted some before and after pictures in the forum with the new paint. I also had to repair some rust spots like your car has, I used a vacuum blaster (called the Vacula!) to blast the rusty areas without getting sand everywhere, it worked quite well. My rust was in the rear quarter panels.

If you have access to the tools and can do the work yourself this should not be an expensive repair, it'll just take some time. My car is a workhorse too, with 262K miles on it (422000 km) but I still like it to look nice.

 

Thanks for the advice!!!

Your T looks really good with single tone body, I've never been keen on two-tone colour schemes.

Well, I wasn't looking to replace the fender I posted pics of.... that one can be repaired.... The other fender has lots of rust holes and it's not worth patching it up, a new one will set me back about $60.

Wish I had access to a sandblaster! All I did so far is I cleaned the bulk of the loose rust.... applied some rust inhibitor and then a bit of primer and top coat.
I didn't want to leave the rust on the car....

I've got a spare set of side mouldings so I'll probably sand them down, get them prepped and then paint the whole lot!

I know what you mean about keeping a car clean, I don't like to drive around in a car with rust, even if I only use it as a workhorse.


When you were paining the side mouldings (cladding), did you mask the chrome bits or did you remove them from the cladding before painting?

I quite like the looks of a black grille (including the surround), any tips on painting the chrome grille to have it all black?

Thanks in advance!

 

I'm not certain about repainting the whole car.... the only panels that would need repainting are both front fenders, maybe one rear quarter (there is a dent and I could sort it out when I'm at it) and the front section of the roof. It's solid (non-metallic) black and the paint is like new, I know that if I repaint it (my friend doesn't have a dust-free chamber in his workshop I'm afraid) it won't look anywhere near as good as it is now.
Do you think it will be possible to blend the new paint on the side of the A post and on the front section of the roof (where it meets with the sunroof)? I REALLY don't want to paint too much.
I do want to paint both bumpers and all the cladding.

When you painted your bumpers, what did you do about the bumper inserts front and back. They have a textured finish, did you sand it, prime it and smooth it or did you just use a plastic adhesion promoter and painted over the textured surface?

Is it a big job to cut out and refit the windshield? I don't want to damage it when I take it out. In the old days I used to replace windshields on cars where they used to sit in a rubber seal.... never did a new style windshield that is glued onto the body!

One again thanks for your reply!

 

try some merc breakers to see if the have any good wings in the same colour and just get a get the the one area painted A to C pillar, personally I think you should leave it two-tone but thats just my opinon. The chrome trims are really easy to remove for the cladding if you have the right trim tool
I would leave the screen to a pro get the screen taken out where the car is being painted then put back in after- keep us updated

 

Well, I decided not to bother getting it very clean.... it's worth bugger all and I need to be spending the time doing up the garden, not the car

I'll struggle to find a used wing for a w124 in good nick at the breakers... the car is just too old for that!

Once the garden is looking good, I may spend a few days getting the car up to scratch.... I'll probably cut the windscreen out myself, otherwise it will get all too expensive.... If I do the prep work myself (and I have done it on several cars in the past with good results), I will just have the cost of materials and that's not that much, if I start subcontracting work, it will get expensive.

I really don't like the two-tone cladding and because of the car's little value, I'm not bothered about devaluing the car by painting it all the same colour!

I've got a set of spare trims, will probably take them apart one day, paint them and then do the bumpers etc.

Thanks for your advice anyway!