Rocker, kick panel, floor?

[Chepe]

Need some advice from y'all who have done this before (which seems like an awful lot of you). '83, daily driver. Outer rockers had a few pinholes. Small holes under the plastic step trim were growing. Where the kick panel meets the floor, I knew it was rotting but didn't pull the vinyl and jute until an unwelcome visitor showed up this weekend, see photo.

Pulled the vinyl and the jute was soggy. The paint layer on the floor was scaled up and muddy. I knocked off some of it with a die grinder and the floor seems pretty solid. The fact that the flakes had nice paint on one side makes me hope there may be good (enough) metal still left to POR-15 and keep.

But the kick panel is rotten and the lip of the rocker is rotten. From the underside, the inner rocker looks fine. The passenger side looks like it's the same story - wet floor, hole in the kick where it meets the floor, inner rocker fine from below and outer rocker developing holes.

So, to the experts: I have to do the outer rocker. Should I do the inner rocker while I'm in there? Assuming it's sound - will I tear it up anyway as I'm drilling out the spot welds to remove the outer? I assume I need to replace the kick panel, but from what I've read in the threads it sits at a busy intersection and I have to remove a lot to get it in there. Fender's no big deal to take off, but maybe part of the cowl? And possibly tricky to get it all aligned when it's time to put it all back together. If there's a simpler way to get it solid and watertight, I'd love to know.

Then lastly, where the floor meets the kick - I don't know how far up those replacement inner rockers go - do they make it to where the kick panel meets it? Hate to buy/ship/cut/weld the whole floor just for that little part.

Any advice is welcome. I've learned a lot from you guys.

 

[smullen]

Bump for action!!!

Your's looks much better than mine. I've decided I'm going to have to sub mine out to someone. I need at least Most of the floor pan, inner and outer rockers, maybe kicks and maybe rear cab corners...

Now the trick is finding the right someone that will do a decent job, but not strait up bend me over. I'm out in the country and my choices are SLIM!

 

[Art Vandelay]

In the exact same boat but haven’t gotten to cutting yet. Been trying to find quality parts locally first. Scored some early 2000’s Tapco rockers and cab corners recently. Still need floors, inner rockers and footwells.

 

[Camar068]

I need to address mine as well. I looked closer and where the kick panel meets the floor, there was a sealant that looks like that found in the bed. Should the kick panel be welded to the floor or sealed?

Thanks Guys

 

[RecklessWOT]

Oh man, is that all? Unless you're going for a showroom quality restore you'll be fine. Find out where the moisture is coming from and fix that before anything (most likely door or window seal, maybe even cowl drains), after that some rust converter and seam sealer will fix that up plenty. For reference, here is what I found when I finally got around to pulling the vinyl floor up in my '08 GMC 2500HD last weekend. No cutting tools were used, just a few stomps with the ole size 10.5 boot...

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Your truck looks just dandy to me lol. As I said, rust converter or maybe even an encapsulator, then a good fat bead of seam sealer and slap that carpet right back down. Should buy you a few more years before you have to worry about it, especially down south. Just figure out where the water is getting in from in the first place and solve that before anything.

 

[78C10BigTen]

Oh man, is that all? Unless you're going for a showroom quality restore you'll be fine. Find out where the moisture is coming from and fix that before anything (most likely door or window seal, maybe even cowl drains), after that some rust converter and seam sealer will fix that up plenty. For reference, here is what I found when I finally got around to pulling the vinyl floor up in my '08 GMC 2500HD last weekend. No cutting tools were used, just a few stomps with the ole size 10.5 boot...

You must be registered for see images attach

You must be registered for see images attach

Your truck looks just dandy to me lol. As I said, rust converter or maybe even an encapsulator, then a good fat bead of seam sealer and slap that carpet right back down. Should buy you a few more years before you have to worry about it, especially down south. Just figure out where the water is getting in from in the first place and solve that before anything.

mine looks alot like that

 

[rusted nuts]

I need to address mine as well. I looked closer and where the kick panel meets the floor, there was a sealant that looks like that found in the bed. Should the kick panel be welded to the floor or sealed?

Thanks Guys

both welded then sealed

 

[Camar068]

both welded then sealed

TY Sir

 

[RecklessWOT]

mine looks alot like that

Hah, I got a guy that kinda gives me a wink and a nod and slaps an inspection sticker on my stuff, we have an understanding that I won't bring him dangerous junk and he won't bother me. This year the rust accelerated so quickly I didn't feel right getting a sticker until I fix some of the obvious stuff. The floor and ratchet straps in place of the gas tank straps were the two most important things on my list. They're good now so it's not an issue anymore, and I'm narrowing down some silly stuff now before I sell it in the fall to give the next guy a fighting chance. But it's gotten to the point where I'm not gonna be the A-hole holding the bag when the thing finally just can't pass for normal anymore...

 

[78C10BigTen]

Hah, I got a guy that kinda gives me a wink and a nod and slaps an inspection sticker on my stuff, we have an understanding that I won't bring him dangerous junk and he won't bother me. This year the rust accelerated so quickly I didn't feel right getting a sticker until I fix some of the obvious stuff. The floor and ratchet straps in place of a gas tank straps were the two most important things on my list. They're good now so it's not an issue anymore, and I'm narrowing down some silly stuff now before I sell it in the fall to give the next guy a fighting chance. But it's gotten to the point where I'm not gonna be the A-hole holding the bag when the thing finally just can't pass for normal anymore...

I wish i had a "wink, nudge, nod" guy still!

 

[RecklessWOT]

I wish i had a "wink, nudge, nod" guy still!

I wish my state would just do away with this BS "safety inspection" racket already like the state I grew up in. There have been so many studies that prove it does nothing to make the roads safer, just makes old timers feel safer because the idea of not hassling people over minuscule issues blows their minds.

The stuff that actually causes accidents like rusted out brake lines or bad throttle return springs, nobody even checks for those. God forbid you have some rust on your bedsides or a fog light that's burned out, whoa end of the world over here lol. Man I've had stuff so rusty that the frame was sagging in the middle, I just drove slower. I had customers that had wheel bearings that blew to the point that the hub was basically worn through, and you know what? The brake caliper held the wheel on. Sure he needed new brakes and his tire got chewed up, but no firey explosion took out a minivan full of kids. I'm sure his handling was garbage, but when you drive junk you usually know what you're working with and drive accordingly. The ones who don't will just as easy wreck out driving a brand new car because they would out-drive the capabilities of whatever vehicle they were in whether it was new or old and worn...

People need to be more attentive and responsible regardless of what they can afford to drive. Pretty sure nobody ever died from a rusty floorboard, and if so it was probably a freak thing and one in a million, sucks to suck...

 

[78C10BigTen]

I wish my state would just do away with this BS "safety inspection" racket already like the state I grew up in. There have been so many studies that prove it does nothing to make the roads safer, just makes old timers feel safer because the idea of not hassling people over minuscule issues blows their minds.

The stuff that actually causes accidents like rusted out brake lines or bad throttle return springs, nobody even checks for those. God forbid you have some rust on your bedsides or a fog light that's burned out, whoa end of the world over here lol. Man I've had stuff so rusty that the frame was sagging in the middle, I just drove slower. I had customers that had wheel bearings that blew to the point that the hub was basically worn through, and you know what? The brake caliper held the wheel on. Sure he needed new brakes and his tire got chewed up, but no firey explosion took out a minivan full of kids. I'm sure his handling was garbage, but when you drive junk you usually know what you're working with and drive accordingly. The ones who don't will just as easy wreck out driving a brand new car because they would out-drive the capabilities of whatever vehicle they were in whether it was new or old and worn...

People need to be more attentive and responsible regardless of what they can afford to drive. Pretty sure nobody ever died from a rusty floorboard, and if so it was probably a freak thing and one in a million, sucks to suck...

I 100% agree!!! I just got my s10 inspected and he was bitchin cus the back tires are a bigger size then the front, the exhaust apparently needs to exit from under and not stop under the bed and because a few bed cross supports are rusty.

 

[RecklessWOT]

I 100% agree!!! I just got my s10 inspected and he was bitchin cus the back tires are a bigger size then the front, the exhaust apparently needs to exit from under and not stop under the bed and because a few bed cross supports are rusty.

As long as it exits behind the passenger compartment, it's not hazardous in the least bit, unless you make a habit of driving real fast in reverse (which is illegal anyway). And the other stuff you mentioned, yeah I rolled my eyes so bad my head hurt...

What a joke. Especially as mechanics, these guys know what's safe or not, they just get some state agency shoving it up their a$$ so they have to play ball. The worst part is (up here at least, not sure how other states work) the state doesn't even get a cut of the inspection fee, the shop just buys the stickers for like $4 a piece (or maybe they went up to $7-8 or something now with infllation, was 4 last time I worked in a shop less than 10 years ago). I think the state makes a whopping 2-3 million a year from inspections, won't even put a DENT in the highway fund. The $20-50 the shop chooses to charge is all money in their pocket sans the price of the actual sticker. Ironically the more expensive places are the ones you wanna go to because they are making their money from a quick turn around, the cheap places get you in the door for cheap and then nickel and dime you for all you got. There used to be a place that did inspections for $7.99, I was never dumb enough to go there, they failed basically everyone that wasn't driving a current model year car.

 

[78C10BigTen]

As long as it exits behind the passenger compartment, it's not hazardous in the least bit, unless you make a habit of driving real fast in reverse (which is illegal anyway). And the other stuff you mentioned, yeah I rolled my eyes so bad my head hurt...

What a joke. Especially as mechanics, these guys know what's safe or not, they just get some state agency shoving it up their a$$ so they have to play ball. The worst part is (up here at least, not sure how other states work) the state doesn't even get a cut of the inspection fee, the shop just buys the stickers for like $4 a piece (or maybe they went up to $7-8 or something now with infllation, was 4 last time I worked in a shop less than 10 years ago). I think the state makes a whopping 2-3 million a year from inspections, won't even put a DENT in the highway fund. The $20-50 the shop chooses to charge is all money in their pocket sans the price of the actual sticker. Ironically the more expensive places are the ones you wanna go to because they are making their money from a quick turn around, the cheap places get you in the door for cheap and then nickel and dime you for all you got. There used to be a place that did inspections for $7.99, I was never dumb enough to go there, they failed basically everyone that wasn't driving a current model year car.

My current inspection guy used to be very lax but the state got his butthole and now hes tightening up the inspection rules. Hes a LONG time family friend of my gfs dad so theres history and i really like them so i cooperate and keep giving him my bizz.