OEM Bolt holes left Open. Rust fix?

[keatoFZJ80]

Forgot to seal/do anything to OEM roof rack bolt holes about 8 months ago after rack delete.

Yes I know, probably one of the stupidest things anyone could do. ( I'm a high school student, please spare me the hate I know how stupid it was to forget about something so huge)

Anyways, Id like to immediately solve this problem and get rid of the inevitable rust I've created. I was thinking I would remove the headliner, insulation, and everything in the way of the actual roof and then go from there. Probably use some sort of a liquid rust eater, repaint, and seal. And yes, I would properly seal the roof rack holes with bolts +rubber washers and silicone.

Please help shed some wisdom and guidance about what I should be doing.

 

[ppc]

What year of vehicle? The answer is dependent on knowing this. Pictures of the.rust will help as well

 

[keatoFZJ80]

What year of vehicle? The answer is dependent on knowing this.

1996

 

[ppc]

The 95-97 headliner can be dropped but still is a time consuming job. I would treat the outside damage and just try to use a q-tip to treat the holes and the underside as best I could. If the rive nuts are bad they should be ground down and punched down and body filler and paint. Just leave the riv nuts where they be. If the riv nuts are still intact just paint and use RTV, rubber washers and stainless washers and screws.

 

[leonard_nemoy]

Slap some stainless steel bolts and rubber washers in the holes than squirt some silicone over the top. Being a high school student chances are high you will total that rig in the next year so why waste time, money, or effort on some rusty holes.

 

[FMC80]

It’s okay, many people have done much worse. Don’t beat yourself up, you’re here to get help so that’s a good step forward. Good on you!!

What @ppc said works. I removed my rivnuts though, as I didn’t wants metal bits making noise rolling around up above me.
Pictures would help to determine the extent of the rust and repair required.

 

[thedoughboy]

Quick Fix:
Wire brush and treat with RustBullet. Fill holes with JB Quick Weld or their puddy. Paint, if you'd like. When you have time and funds anyone can grind the JB Weld out and weld the holes shut.

 

[keatoFZJ80]

Slap some stainless steel bolts and rubber washers in the holes than squirt some silicone over the top. Being a high school student chances are high you will total that rig in the next year so why waste time, money, or effort on some rusty holes.

Hopefully that isn't the case as I only have to survive the death parking lot of any high school for only a few months.

It’s okay, many people have done much worse. Don’t beat yourself up, you’re here to get help so that’s a good step forward. Good on you!!

What @ppc said works. I removed my rivnuts though, as I didn’t wants metal bits making noise rolling around up above me.
Pictures would help to determine the extent of the rust and repair required.

I'll check back in this afternoon with pictures. Thank you

 

[Kernal]

If the rust is on the sheet metal and not just the threaded holes you can sand down to the pits then apply a phosphoric acid product designed for "killing" rust such as Ospho, Rust Mort, or Rust Kutter and follow the directions.

You of course want to be very careful about not allowing any acid to drip down the bolt holes onto the headliner if it's still in place as it would damage the material. If the threaded holes/threads themselves are rusty you should kill that rust before putting anything into the holes to plug them up. You could remove the headliner or very carefully using a Q-tip slightly damp with the rust killer and swipe the threads of each bolt hole a few times then let it dry at least 24 hours.


Here's one video where some of the most common rust killer products
were compared:

 

[western flyer]

Be careful with using some silcone types on painted steel due to corrosion problems.

Silicone sealants and rust

Silicone sealants and rust

forum.w116.org

Is RTV Silicone corrosive to painted metal?

Recently my 2017 VW GTI started leaking through the rear speaker, apparently it is a problem with the MK7 platforms due to the seal behind the speaker deteriorating over time. It is a CPO but I rather just fix it myself than take it to the dealer. Basically the speaker has a rubber/foam gasket...

bobistheoilguy.com

adhere academy: are RTV silicone sealants corrosive?

Yes, some are. It is good to understand this chemistry and the different types so that you can make sure you choose an appropriate RTV silicone sealant for your application.

www.intertronics.co.uk

 

[keatoFZJ80]

If the rust is on the sheet metal and not just the threaded holes you can sand down to the pits then apply a phosphoric acid product designed for "killing" rust such as Ospho, Rust Mort, or Rust Kutter and follow the directions.

You of course want to be very careful about not allowing any acid to drip down the bolt holes onto the headliner if it's still in place as it would damage the material. If the threaded holes/threads themselves are rusty you should kill that rust before putting anything into the holes to plug them up. You could remove the headliner or very carefully using a Q-tip slightly damp with the rust killer and swipe the threads of each bolt hole a few times then let it dry at least 24 hours.


Here's one video where some of the most common rust killer products
were compared:

Thank you!

 

[keatoFZJ80]

Be careful with using some silcone types on painted steel due to corrosion problems.

Silicone sealants and rust

Silicone sealants and rust

forum.w116.org

Is RTV Silicone corrosive to painted metal?

Recently my 2017 VW GTI started leaking through the rear speaker, apparently it is a problem with the MK7 platforms due to the seal behind the speaker deteriorating over time. It is a CPO but I rather just fix it myself than take it to the dealer. Basically the speaker has a rubber/foam gasket...

bobistheoilguy.com

adhere academy: are RTV silicone sealants corrosive?

Yes, some are. It is good to understand this chemistry and the different types so that you can make sure you choose an appropriate RTV silicone sealant for your application.

www.intertronics.co.uk

Thank you!

 

[keatoFZJ80]

It’s okay, many people have done much worse. Don’t beat yourself up, you’re here to get help so that’s a good step forward. Good on you!!

What @ppc said works. I removed my rivnuts though, as I didn’t wants metal bits making noise rolling around up above me.
Pictures would help to determine the extent of the rust and repair required.

This is the worst bubbling out of all four sides but the other ones aren't much better.

 

[western flyer]

Thank you!

Should we worry about water leaks with an aftermarket roof rack?

Just installed my k9 roof rack today! Looks pretty sweet but I'm worried about leaks from the mounting holes. Does the 200 series have any drainage system under the rail mounts? The installation guide from ez-awn did not mention anything about applying RTV sealant on the mounting holes. (But...

forum.ih8mud.com

More here...

 

[western flyer]

Please see what I posted in #2 here:

Factory Rack Removal Options?

I picked up a roof rack recently. And would like to remove my stock system completely. What are other options besides welding and a repaint/liner methods. I know they have a cover up kit for the 100s now. I was thinking of some large color matched rivets/washers possibly. My paint is good and is...

forum.ih8mud.com

And #19 here:

Preparing to remove roof rack - How to avoid spinning nutserts?

Edit: Nevermind, the search function was my friend.

forum.ih8mud.com

 

[keatoFZJ80]

Please see what I posted in #2 here:

Factory Rack Removal Options?

I picked up a roof rack recently. And would like to remove my stock system completely. What are other options besides welding and a repaint/liner methods. I know they have a cover up kit for the 100s now. I was thinking of some large color matched rivets/washers possibly. My paint is good and is...

forum.ih8mud.com

And #19 here:

Preparing to remove roof rack - How to avoid spinning nutserts?

Edit: Nevermind, the search function was my friend.

forum.ih8mud.com

Awesome thank you

 

[western flyer]

You are welcome.

 

[keatoFZJ80]

Below is the best picture I could get of the driver side front holes about the sunroof that were left open.(passenger side is the same condition) Doesn't look like any surface rust from what I can see. Would it still be worth pulling the headliner to check the sunroof drain where water would have gotten in and to also check the rear holes? If not, I would just take the recommendations around different ways of sealing the holes.

 

[FMC80]

Doesn’t look that bad from the pictures. Do what the guys are telling you and you’re fine.

 

[Kernal]

Can't really see what's going on in the photo directly above, but the other photos showing rust around the nut serts look to be fixable. I would first sand that area by hand to see how it cleans up, get it down to bare metal but there will be some small rust pits, that's when you carefully apply the Phosphoric acid type rust killers, just follow the directions. Once that rust is stopped you can prime then paint the area. For a quickie paint job just get some painters tape and tape off an area around the nut serts then paint, no one is going to see your roof as you roll down the road.

If you wanted the paint job to last a bit longer than just cheapo rattle can paint you could use a 2K (two component) aerosol paint in a spray can (SprayMax primer and paint); it's not cheap but it will last much longer than the other stuff)

Or, next down in cost is SEM primer and paint; it's not 2k, but better than your average rattle can paint.

If the body color is ?White Duplicolor has a White color EBTY15787 that is a very close match to the original 045 White, no one will notice the slight difference on the roof.

If you want to keep those threaded holes you could use a new stainless steel screw with a thread sealer on the threads before you install the screws. That way if you or the next owner in the future wants to reinstall the roof rack or anything else, they can remove those screws.

Otherwise after you've killed any rust on the threads you could fill them with a two part epoxy (Permatex or JB Weld) then sand, prime, and paint over it.