Is my wagon a wagon?

I attended inspection, yesterday. What a nightmare. They found a bunch of stuff, some of which might be exagerated (will get back later, on that). The rust wasn't exagerated, though.
This is the last bolt to get freed. The other 3 got removed and I oiled them, before screwing them back in. While the one adjacent was out, I tried spraying rust-free through the hole, to oil that stubborn bolt. If it doesen't free up, I'll have to drill a hole in the frame, to spray rust-free directly onto the rusted threads

 

Getting back to the rust, this is what the German authorities discovered. The Dutch inspection which passed this vehicle is a private garage authorized by the Dutch government. Since the Dutch inspection took place this summer, there's no way that this car could have rotted between then and now. it hardly even rained, this summer, here. The car was welded before and on one side, the inspector showed me. That's where they didn't bother drilling a hole, like on the other side, to let moisture back out. That's why the floorboard rotted on the side which was already repaired.
To add to the rust, the brake discs need replacement, as well as the struts of which one is leaking. As I was driving the vehicle, the suspension seemed okay, except for the harsh taking of small roadway irregularities of which I thought might be due to the Chinese Kankook tires.
The rattle was due to a deteriorated example of this one which I removed from the good side. I only need one or two. which means, I don't need to fork out the 118+€ for an entire set:



A dustcap was rusted on one of the rear shocks. That's why I thought the inspector exagerated. He still might have, possible condemning both shocks because of the rusted cap. The next time I have it up on ramps, I'll give it a check. If the rebound more than once, They're in need of replacement. If they pass, I'll see if just the cap is replaceable.
Getting back to this independent authorized for inspection authority garage, there are plenty of these, here in Germany, when you visit sizable cities. These are run by Thurd Worldlers of which service mainly their own or gullibles or those needing to off their shoddy vehicles. In smaller towns, locals avoid such places. that's why you hardly find them there. Either this lady was trusting of them or maybe slipped them some chump change, to falsify the inspection. When one visits the Netherlands, one gets the impression that they care for their vehicles well. The semi-trucks delivering flowers from Holland to here are always washed down and shiny waxed.
In any event, this is going to be expensive, when you think that you can trust an inspection certificate. I don't know yet as to how I'm going to deal with it, just yet. That's why I'm not posting the copies on the internet. When you read or hear through the newspapers or radio about some accident where it's not clear as to the cause being mechanical or not, I suspect that much of it is hush news, since years ago, only governments were authorized with safety inspections and you had never heard of unexplainable accidents.
Circled is where the pictured part from the above image was taken. The rectangle shows one of the repaired frame parts



The yellow arrow points to the side of which there is the drain hole, noting that it wasn't drilled on the opposite side. The other arrow points to a busted-off bolt which shouldn't be. That'll get drilled out, at convenience



I took it to a local shop, just after inspection, to get an estimate on the rust repair. He said, between 600- and 700€. Since I already dropped 900€ fetching it, replacing the timing belt and the inspection, there's 1100€ left, before reaching Audi sale piggy bank.
Assuming that I can get it done cheaper, if I were to remove carpeting and upholstery, I'm thinking about getting one of these mini torches for around 150€, if it'll save me at least that much and I'll have one more handy tool around

https://www.obi.de/loetgeraete/roth...-autogenschweiss-und-hartloetgeraet/p/5530993



I've got a normal one stored at my sister's house. But, that's in Metro Detroit. I know how much work I can do with that, before having to get re-fills. I think, it was 4 acetylene re-fills to one oxygen, maybe. They have a larger set for double the price. But, the oxygen bottle isn't re-fillable. Which means, to replace it costs some 134€. This smaller version only costs 20€.
I'll melt away all areas around the rust and then see how feasable the gas consumption was. If reasonable, which I doubt, I might just go ahaed and braze all of the holes shut

 

Can you get a hold of paraffin wax? It works well when using a torch to free a rusted bolt, as it has a very high ignition temp, unlike penetrating oils, which flash off quickly if the metal's too hot. Just heat the area, then apply a stick of paraffin to the area; it'll melt and penetrate the threads while they're still very hot. Then it should be removable at that point.

 

Isn't paraffin just ordinary candle wax?

 

No. Paraffin is the byproduct of crude oil. It's waste product.

 

They also make candles from paraffin, as its cheaper. But the downside is that's made from petroleum, so burning it inside as you would a normal candle is not the smartest. There has actually been discussions about banning candles made my paraffin due to health reasons (cancer).
Always check that the candle you buy is wax and not paraffin.

 

I pulled the carpetting, yesterday

They were bolted down. I found more rust of which the inspector didn't. Since these vehicles didn't have inner fender liners like newer ones have, all it takes is a couple good stone chips through the tar, to get the rust going.
At least, I can mostly confirm that the vehicle has the milage which is shown on the odometer, since it's analog. Meaning that it isn't possible to electronic manipulate it, through the ABS (I don't think that this car even has that). I confirmed it, through examining the timing belt and tensioner bearing. The belt still looked good, though. It is original Daihatsu, even. Audi recommends belt changes at 120,00 kilometers of which I'm more than certain that this belt would have crossed the finish line with flying colors and have been good for even more. I've seen engines still running with belts which were in much worse shape. It was common for VW Rabbits to snap belts, because their owners were accustomed to being previous owners of pushrod-operated valve engines. They simply ignored warnings to renew their belts.
On the other hand, the tensioner bearing was drying out and had play in it. You could see where the grease was slung out through the seal. The discoloration looks like it might hint at thermal damage

I was lucky that the rust free did indeed do its job. But, I'll keep that trick in mind. The upper threads of that bolt were funky, though. I used a tap die to straighten them out. But, it still turned difficultly into the subframe threads. So, I chased those with a tap. I started soaking other bolts which are to come off, as soon as the new struts and shocks arrive, if I can even get hold of some.
The local parts store can get me brake discs. But, at 66€ each, i might as well order everything from one place. Therefore, saving through the free shipment for ordering parts totalling over 100€. For 66€ on-line, I can get one of the best discs. TRWs, Brembos, ATEs and another German one are available for less than the parts store will sell me them for. Problem is, I don't know this one outlet which has everything except the stabilizer bar bushings. Some of these outfits are fakes. I guess, I could try ordering a couple of the less expensive parts and see if they arrive. Here's one of the tempting sites. I could choose between strictly oil Monroes or go for the gas-filled Bilsteins. Performance isn't as important to me as is comfort. Longevity is also a playing factor. Methinks, the gas-filled are likely to leak much sooner than the strictly oil-filled. What do yous think?: https://www.autoteiledirekt.de/suche.html?keyword=Stoßdämpfer

 

I think you're right on the Monroes. Bilsteins are a great shock, but overkill for a basic people mover that you don't plan autocrossing with.

 

I've read good and bad about Monroes, in this forum. MAK recently mentioned them getting pushed by a Ford dealer, instead of the house brand. If they're Made in Chinas, I don't want anything to do with them.
I tested mine, today and they don't rebound more than once. So, I think that the inspector condemned the one for having a rusted through dust cover and the other, because they should get replaced in pairs. Japanese shocks do hold their oil pretty well. But, I suspect that they are kind of hard, because of that. I could save 81,20€, if I were to go with the Monroes and less expensive brake discs of identicle brand. I'll have to see about the difference in shipping price. If I don't try to save money, right now, I'd be going with Sachs gas-filled all the way around. Which should provide a comfortable ride and not overkill the suspension with performance Bilsteins.
I've been spending way more time on the internet looking up items and torch rentals for this car than doing actual work. I'll ask the owner of the shop welding it up, if I could rent his torch there, to chase the rot. When you glow that cancer, it'll pop from the trapped moisture and will start to slag, as soon as sheetmetal of original thickness is reached. That way, they'll have something solid to weld on.
This is how far I've gotten today.
The arrow points to a rust hole blocked by the seat. That's where a seatbelt is anchored. This is going public, for putting that Inspector in Holland on the spot. Circled is the sloppy wiring to the trailer hitch socket. That will certainly get adressed, after inspection is through. I think, I'll remove the hitch for now, since I won't be needing it soon. At the moment, it's heavy and looks to be in the way. The bumper's got to come off, anyhow. So, I'll use the opportunity:



The left side seems not to have suffered that bad. Perhaps, because the fuel tank was shielding it from excessive salt spray:

 

I ended up ordering the Monroes, afterall. I have no time to wait until the Sachs are again available. At least, the Struts will be Sachs. There looks like a screw cap for replacing just the cartridge (I hope), like it used to be on Vee Dubbs

 

My question is who’s gonna come down and bust up the vote?! We’re all locked up at 2 votes per choice

 

The selection that worries me the most is still at only one voted

 

Here's the missing view of the nearly rusted-out seatbelt anchor. If an accident were to occur where a buckled-in passenger were to sustain injuries or death resulting from inspection negligence, I wonder how the vehicle's insurer would react, in such a case:



I removed the stabilizer bar, in order to inspect the rubber bushings. The shop which "serviced" this vehicle thought that they could compensate for the destroyed bushing, through replacing the bushing behind the control arm with the improper fat one pictured:



Surprisingly enough, the swaybar end which housed the damaged bushing has suffered less rust-erosion than the end which still had intact bushings. Later on, I'll try looking up any recalls. If none are set out, I'll see if my auto club will try dealing with getting one going, since this could erode to the breaking point on existing vehicles, within the next couple decades:



In any event, I'll end up having to replace the entire bar, in order to avoid damaging the existing- and new bushings, unless I weld mountings for normal trackrods and then find a narrow sway bar from another vehicle using identicle bar thickness:

 

I've gotten it almost ready for getting welded, as far as the sheetmetal's concerned. All that's left to do is to drill out the failed plastic fasteners which hold the plastic front inner fender wells.
After heating the floorboard up from underneath (the blowtorch doesen't take kindly at heating downwards), I scraped off the tar they use which holds in moisture, as initially unintended. The stuff's pretty heavy. Thus, adding a sizable amount of weight to the car. In the long run, I may contemplate removing it entirely, since older cars never had it



All parts are on their way.
The old shocks seem to function like new. I've never heard of anyone having to replace Jap shocks at only 60 some thousand miles. Just because the sheetmetal dustcap has rusted can't be a reason to condemn the shocks ability to function.
They use fine-threaded 12 mm bolts, to fasten the shocks. Despite oiling the ones at the bottom, after having soaked them in penetrating oil, they were still exessively stubborn. If I have passing ones, I'll install normal 12 millimeter European bolts, in their place. In any event, I'll keep the shocks and put them aside for a rainy day

 

The Made in Poland Monroes were the first to arrive. They're only slightly longer than the ones that were on there and they're fatter. They also need more force, to move in both directions. We learned, at auto tech, that if the vehicle doesen't bounce twice, the shocks are still good. So, it'll be interesting to find out if the ride will be stiffer. Actually, good shock absorbers should be controlling rebound more. That's why I was hoping for the combination gas and oil Sachs shocks



The hitch is disassembled and put into storage. I'm looking into the possibility of cutting the support bracing from aluminum plate. But, that's not an urgent matter



While looking for a replacement for the Audi wagon, I was focused on Daihatsu and Suzuki, until a few days ago when a Subaru caught my attention. These are some of the variations of which I could have had. At least, parts problems would have been much less criticle.
The white tombstone in front of the guages is slightly annoying, though. I would have considered spraying it silver:



It almost looks like it was assembled on the same line, together with the more modern Daihatsus, since Subaru and Suzuki did share entire bodies, on certain models



Then, there's the small van of which they call a "Wagon"



Then, there's the Vista Cruiser copy



White's good for exposing rustbucketry