Kick panel rust

[Lippyp]

On examination I seem to have the usual rust hole at the bottom of the passenger side kick panel just above where the floor and kick meets the drivers side doesn appear to be holed but I need to give it a good looking over.. Obviously I want to repair this properly. Does this mean removing the wing (fender) and door and how involved s this? does it mean removing the grille etc first, in other words exactly how much will I have to strip down to get reasonable access to the area as the work will be done outside. Also any pictures of repairs in progress in this area would be appreciated as guidance. Hod difficult an area is this to repair properly, it's not a huge hole and the floor appears sound although I've not given it a really good prod yet.

All advice gratefully received.

[70rs/ss]

That is just a flat single walled piece of steel. Cut it out and replace weld, done. You should not have to remove anything. If it is below thw duct the fender may have to come off to get at the point where the duct meets the kick panel, you'll know more once you look closer.

[ChevLoRay]

Man, been a while since I was on here and saw you had posted anything....good to see you're still around.

The kick panels can be repaired, but oftentimes, it's an overlay of metal. The cause of the rust is the dirt and debris that are deposited within the panel, beneath the cowl vent. When it rains, the dirt and debris are washed down to the lowest point and that is behind the vents on the kick panel.

On my truck, the shop that repaired them, just did an overlay. It will be carpeted at a later date, hiding the repair. To actually get at the area, means removing the wing (fender), then cutting an opening into the plenum on the side of the cab, behind where the fender (wing) was. I am looking at the same repair, just to allow the vent doors to operate and to keep water and rain from running down and causing it to rust, again.

[Lippyp]

I have new carpet for the kick panels so if it's just a matter of plating over it the thats not too bad, cutting the chamber open sounds like a huge amount of work for a small hole!

I've been lurking around on and off but other stuff has kept me from getting the truck back on the road last year (working on my holiday home in france, keeping my new daily driver Isuzu 4x4 running etc etc) in fact I'm off to france for most of February in two weeks time.

[wolfthing2000]

Just as a thought,and from what I am repairing onmy truck, I have the same repair to do and my rust went down throught the pillar and also the body supports were rusted out on the bottoms. I strongly reccomend crawling under and checking down there.

[70rs/ss]

Be SURE you cut out the rust, do not just cover it because it will come back with a vengance. You can cut out the hole, coat with por-15 or the like and then plate over that.

[PanelDeland]

It's a bad spot for rust that's for sure.Tim Christian sells cowl vent covers.They will keep larger stuff(leaves ect) from getting down the vent and clogging the drains in the bottom of the fender below the vents.Remove the cowl and clean down inside the cowl below the vent,then install the screens and the area will not clog as easily and shouldn't rust if it drains and stays dry.

[Bob B.]

Like many of you, I have seen inside kick panel rust on a lot of these trucks. Let me share what I have found. The drains for the cowl are actually quite a bit higher than the seam where the kick panel meets the toe board. So, where does the rust come from? A couple of problems. First, the sealer that was used between the kick panel and toe board was applied before the cab was painted. If you dig the sealer out, you see raw steel. The sealer had a tendency to crack, and water, often from a leaky windshield gasket, runs right into the joint. Another potential cause is on the outside. If you remove the fender, you see the lap joint where the kick panel was spot-welded to the toe board. This joint is sealed like the inside is, but here water runs over the joint from the cowl area. Yet another potential problem is from the 'A' pillar. The 'A' pillar is basically what holds the roof up. On these trucks, the 'A' pillar is a welded up box, attaching to the roof header on top, welded to the inner cowl, kick panels, and running down to into the rocker panels. The door hinges also bolt to this pillar, and there is also one bolt holding the fender, at the top rear. These bolt holes are the problem. Small amounts of water can leak in around the bolts (the manual says to seal them) and it drains to the bottom of the pillar. The pillar is closed at the bottom, and there is no way for the water to drain. If enough water gets in there, it rusts the inner rocker panel first, if it gets really bad it will eat the outer rocker and the inside kick panel. Goodmark and others sell the bottom section of the pillar (it's the dog-leg looking part that goes in between the inner and outer rocker panels). What I do on these trucks when I have the front fenders off is always remove the plastic plugs at the front of the rockers and have a look in there. Make sure that the drain holes in the rockers are clear. You can see the bottom part of the pillar just inside the hole. I then take a 3/16ths." or so drill, and drill a hole up in the bottom of the rocker lined up with the bottom of the 'A' pillar. Drill right through the rocker, and up into the pillar as well (it's about 3/8ths." up from the bottom of the rocker). Very often, a bit of rusty water will drain out. Spray some 'Zero-Rust' or like product in the hole using a 'WD-40' nozzle. Now, should any water leak into the 'A' pillar, it will run right out into the rocker, where it will drain from the hole you made, or the existing rocker drain holes. If you are repairing the rockers of a rusted truck, and replacing the bottom of the 'A' pillar piece, drill a hole in it. And, be careful of the replacement rockers, they often don't have drains in them. Better to make a few hole yourself than have rust make them for you!

[Botietruck]

Bob B. That information is priceless! I've been thinking about this for a long time and I will certainly heed your advise on this before I finish my restoration project. Thanks!

[raggedjim]

Hope this helps, it shows the order of repair. I also replaced the front cab support and floor. Usually, once you start cutting out rust, you find more...

This is a blazer but the repair is pretty much the same...

Good luck, Rg