Cracking in "C" pillars (1 Viewer)

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cruiserdan

cruiserdan

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There was mention in another thread about "C" pillar cracking in some 80's and where and what it looks like.

In the interests of getting the information out I will start a new thread instead of burying it in another thread.

Here is where and how they start, this in my vehicle....:mad:
Copy of pillarcrack.jpg
 
I am going to look into it. I seem to recall this to have been known for some time in OZ and other markets where they get used a lot harder than they have been in the US. I did not pay too much attention to it at the time because I do not have a heavy rack and I do not see full-time hard service. I can see now that I was incorrect to think that it wouldn't happen to me. I have heard that the later vehicles are "reinforced" somehow but I have not spent any research time yet to find out what, if anything, was changed.
 
Well, I just ran out in the snow(yes, it's snowing on April 24th in VA :rolleyes: ) and sure enough, Dan might as well have taken a picture of my truck, same color and all. I only have the crack, and associated chipped away paint and rust on the driver's side, not the passenger side.

I know for a fact that up until I took possesion of this truck in November, this 80 had never been wheeled or taken offroad AT ALL. When I got it the underside looked like it was new from the factory. This is interesting. I wonder where else is cracking that we can't see easily....

Ary
 
Bummer Dan, I jsut looked at a couple 93-94's over the last couple of weeks and josh darn if they did not have the same trouble. These were new to wheeling, daily driver little old lady cars. No roof racks (except stock). So I think it does not matter how hard you are on it, it will happen. Any I hope you find a solution you can share with us. good luck robbie
 
yup....
same color...
same year...
same place...

mine appears to only be chipped paint. I don't se a physical crack...... yet
nothing showing on the passenger side

I would have just chalked it up to *chipped paint* or a re-paint or something if you wouldn't have posted the pic.

What are the long term effects of this crack? How big does it get? Is my truck going to fall apart???? :crybaby:

<edit for data point info>
93 with 170,000 miles, OME heavy lift (less than 5k on the lift), IRONPIG rear bumper, sliders with some weight to them.
no roof rack, but definitely been off road and heard the body flexing numerous times. :grinpimp:
 
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This was prolly covered in the other thread, but what's a likely cause? I can definitely see a heavily loaded rack being the culprit, but it doesn't sound like anyone's got that. Could it be the body flexing from wheeling?
 
If you really study that area carefully you will see that it is quite a compound curve and is stamped out of a single sheet of steel. My guess is the metal is thinnest and most stressed at that radius and it is simply stress-cracking. Logic dictates that the more severe the usage, IE heavy roof racks and/or extended operation on bad roads, would accelerate it. I suspect that is the reason we are now just seeing it over here.
 
Mine has a very small crack, with a dusting of rust, on the DS. PS looks perfect to the eye, but finger pressure shows a buldge.

Lots of miles, but never off-road. Of course, the freeway around Seattle is nearly as harsh as the outback...
 
Mine is cracked on both sides, The LH side is a little more noticible.

I wonder if some of that body panel adhesive stuff that is used to glue instead of weld panels on would slow it down or stop it.

One could pull the inner trim panel off and get the nozzle in there and goop it up good from the back side. A bodyman friend of mine says that stuff is as good as welding and it would flow into the crack I bet. I have not asked him about using it in this situation though. He is 600 miles away from me and the first words out of his mouth will be "I need to see it".
 
Does anyone know if drilling holes at the very ends of the crack will stop the spread of it? I ask because this technique is used in fiberglass and seems like it might be applicable here.

Dan, I agree that the metal in the area has had a significant amount of work put into it and that it is likely a thinner part of the body. As for the adhesive stuff, it's been my understanding that it needs to be applied in a lap joint, not in a butt joint, but I could be mistaken. I would think you need to make a patch of sorts and then use the adhesive to glue it in.

Ary
 
cruiserdan said:
I have not asked him about using it in this situation though. He is 600 miles away from me and the first words out of his mouth will be "I need to see it".
Click to expand...

With as many people on this board as there are, I'd imagine one of us with this problem is somewhere close to him. Just an idea.

Ary
 
cruiserdan said:
He is 600 miles away from me and the first words out of his mouth will be "I need to see it".
Click to expand...

1200 miles @ 10mpg @ $3/gal (premium) = $360 investment to satisfy the curiosity of all your loyal fans? Where has customer service gone...

...oh, that's right, you probably have a life too!

Enjoy Moab! I'm hoping to go next year.
 
Damn! :frown: Just ran out and looked, crack on both PS & DS.

> 97'
> 130K miles
> Never off-road or in any accidents
> I have carried some dangerously heavy loads of lumber up top via Thule towers and bars.

Now what? I am going to have to tell the :princess: I need sliders sooner then later to stiffin' up the body to keep it from splitting apart.

....... when life gives you lemons .... :D
 
where is this exactly?
are we talking about the rear of the opening of the second row of side doors?
If so, it's completely different looking on my 97.
 
Dan, I would venture a guess that the most structuraly sound repair will involve welding in a gusset and then welding the crack. If that turns out to be true, any adhesive you might apply in the meanwhile will be more work later to clean out prior to welding.
 
cruiserdan said:
A bodyman friend of mine says that stuff is as good as welding
Click to expand...

If it's the same stuff I'm thinking of, they use it to put semi truck bodies together. It should be strong enough and give the area extra support and strength.

Here's mine. I added the rust to help you see it.
 
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Well, by-golly, just went and looked at my 95 and it's got a little crack. But, it almost appears as if it's just a failure in the paint. Doesn't look much worse than that. I have had a heavy ARB rack on and have had a lot of weight on it. I guess this goes against my theory that the wussy light weight transmission in the newer rigs kept this from happening.
 
I'm thinking if the root issue is stress concentration at a thin, sharply folded corner, then grinding out the crack and welding it would likely be sufficient as a permanent repair. Possibly no gusset would be needed.
 
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