How much of a nightmare is this to fix?

79Spider said:

Found a 74 Spider for sale that overall looks like a good deal but there is this small problem - the rear strut has broken through. What do you guys think? I have no idea how much more cancer is back there.

Thanks!
Eric

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In my book, that's automatically a parts car. Rust is like roaches. If you see rust, you probably have an infestation. When what you see is a structural problem such as this, I would be forced to assume the car is not structurally sound until the car could be thoroughly disassembled and inspected.

There may a lot more hidden than you can envision,
Im still working on my 72 5 years later and parted out the 77 due to rust

Agree with what the others have said - the odds are good that if rust caused the shock mount to break then the rust isn't limited to that mount. However, one further consideration:

That is a Bilstein shock poking through the hole where the mount has broken off. Among the early BMW community, Bilsteins are notorious for breaking shock mounts - for whatever reason, they cause a lot more fatigued mounts than do OE or Koni shocks.

So maybe he brand of shock is at fault and this car isn't a rust bucket. As with any used car purchase, a thorough rust evaluation is called for.

If the rest of the car does check out OK, a competent body shop can fabricate a replacement mount. The R side is probably also cracked and will need attention as well. This area is fairly inaccessible, so some hours will be involved. I can't quote a number, but would expect it to be $500 minimum.

If you do go through all that, ditch the Bilstein shocks!

maybe/maybe not

It's possible the shock(not strut) has frozen and pushed through. Get the hulk on a lift and perform an up close inspection

It could be that the 'homecoming queen' was muy grande! It would be worth checking it out further like Cab and Jay say:wink2:

I still miss my old '74 spider and first Always Looking For Another!

Mark

Well that sucks but pretty much what we were thinking too. Looking at some other pics of it there is a strong possibility that this is structural rust and lots of it. Right now we have a 79 that has rust in the rockers and lots of dents and dings but structurally sound. This 74 however has a lot of the parts that we're missing, plus good front and rear bumpers and comes with an extra engine and transmission for $1400. But, alas, out of parts car room at this time.
Thanks!