Rusty rear crossmember (1 Viewer)

[Dave and Ginny]

My Hymer b544 on a Fiat Ducato chassis is in for it's MOT next week so I thought I'd have a look around.

Never really think the underside is all that pretty...but wanted to check spare wheel, carrier etc. I was then horrified to find a hole in the rear crossmember. Clearly the design allows water thrown up by the rear wheels to lie in the 'C' section. Looking about over the main chassis showed no concerns with the wax oil of a few years ago still evident and doing it's job.

Four bolts hold it on and if it wasn't for the tow bar it would be easy to remove and replace, even if the bolts needed to be ground off. The tow bar makes a difficult job of it and I need to give it some thought.
It's clearly not been picked up on previous MOT's having passed with only minor advisories since we've owned the vehicle. Although it all looks pretty grotty, it's only excessively bad in this one spot.

Wondering on best course of action.

 

[tonyidle]

Give the rest of it a serious check over with a hammer. If the serious corrosion is confined to the lower horizontal section cut out the area of corrosion & have a new section welded in. If the vertical section is affected then it's probably better to replace the whole thing.

 

[Dave and Ginny]

That's my plan for today Tony, and I'm going to give it all a good wire brushing where it needs it and some treatment of some sort or other! The area with the hole is quite confined. If it were not for the towbar I could remove it in minutes! Removing the towbar nuts and bolts could be another matter though!

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[mike mcglynn]

Hi, That hole in the chassis looks to me like a jacking incident , but easily fixed with a friendly welder and some protective paint ,I had a look under my van recently and decided to paint the the sump pan and the lower cross member under the radiator with some red oxide I had found in the garage, both these spots are well known for the rust problems so if you can do these at the same time.

 

[Geo]

That is a simple weld repair situation treat with a rust converter like Jenolite and the paint to protect
not worth the replacement hassle at this point, done properly an invisible repair is possible.

Just for information
It should certainly have been an MoT advise of "corrosion in a non prescribed area"
and will result is a wrist slap for the tester if DVSA ever come across it within 3 months of its last MoT.
say in a road side check for example
After 3 Months it is deemed "possible" that it may not have been visible during the test
and no action can be taken against the tester.
Non corrosion related missed defects have only a 1 month period in which to complain
Mot regulations range from complex to why?
Ther are literally 100s or areas in which you may feel a complaint is justified or the tester has fallen below your expected standards
when in actual fact a complaint would be dismissed as the tester had fully complied
98% of complaints are based on what you expected of an MoT test.
Not realising, an MoT is the most basic testing a vehicle can get, With many many items only having to pass very minimal standards most of
which will pass an MoT and fail a service inspection
I can relate to situations where I can with a clear conscience issue an MoT pass and
at the same time recomend you dont drive the vehicle again until its safe or have it recovered home, now make sense of that

 

[Dave and Ginny]

Hi, That hole in the chassis looks to me like a jacking incident , but easily fixed with a friendly welder and some protective paint ,I had a look under my van recently and decided to paint the the sump pan and the lower cross member under the radiator with some red oxide I had found in the garage, both these spots are well known for the rust problems so if you can do these at the same time.

It's at the very end of the vehicle so you could be right and some plonker stressed it. You would see it clearly if not for the tow bar obscuring it. Two nuts and bolts either end secure it. It would easily remove if it wasn't for the tow bar! It must have been deteriorating for some time and not be an MOT item. Off out shortly to wire brush and have a good clean up for some treatment...of some sort!

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[Franck]

We are having ours replaced in a fortnights time as it's in a bad way but we are 23 years old. We can compare notes afterwards.

 

[Dave and Ginny]

That is a simple weld repair situation treat with a rust converter like Jenolite and the paint to protect
not worth the replacement hassle at this point, done properly an invisible repair is possible

Thanks for that, very interesting reading! I've been under the van most of the day with a wire brush and scrapper and I'm fairly happy there is nothing in any main structural parts to be concerned about. With all the crud out of the way it looks 90% better at least! Some rust preventer and paint should at least have it looking better!

Would that potentially be a failure issue or just an advisory? I don't have much time before the MOT is due to get a patch done.

 

[Geo]

If any of the corrosion is within 30cm (1 Foot) of a suspension, brake pipe, fuel line, Tow Bar
mounting points etc it is potentially an MoT FAIL
if its not in any of those prescribed areas then an advise can and should be expected
I cant of course see the surrounding areas my self to give an opinion
So to help you visualise where the prescribed ( Fail) areas are
Imagine a 30cm dia football, and if it were possible to place your corrosion anywhere on the outer skin area of that ball
then any mounting points found also inside the ball also would make that corrosion area a Failure
if no mounting points are inside that 30cm ball then its an advisory
Some testers just cant seem to grasp that analogy, if they can then assessing corrosion fails and passes is extremely easy
just remember this Magic 30cm is a ball, and measurements go and are applied in all and every direction from the corrosion, and not flat and linear like a pancake

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[Dave and Ginny]

I have found a welder that specialises in this kind of repair quite near to us. He says it's a simple enough job and will cut out the bad and weld in a new section. Coming out to us, even better, on Monday so should be looking better in time for MOT on Wednesday.

Thanks for all the comments and tips...especially @Geo , with some good MOT testing info that will be very handy in the future!