I removed my right sill cover yesterday because of the "normal" corrosion problem near the front. I have two spots where the paint has bubbled. However, after I removed the insulation from the inside I found several locations that were beginning to corrode. Question is, how much damage is too much to think about repairing? Secondly, does anyone on this site have experience (good, of course) with a body shop in the Central Florida area? I don't want mine to be the first one that they attempt to fix!!!!!!!!!
Side sill repair
- Thread starter viperstoo
- Start date
Ron
Enthusiast
What year is year Viper?
Roland L-Ocala FL
Enthusiast
If I am not mistaken, the side sills are made of aluminum so you better make sure the shop can work on aluminum. It has much different characteristics than normal sheet metal does! So far, mine still look ok but I have heard a lot about corrosion of the side sills, and I think it is mostly due to dissimilar metals being used together. The metals react with one another and corrosion is the end result, it is almost unavoidable.
When I was contemplating going to GEN1 side exhaust, most of the GEN1 sills I found had corrosion. Apparently one of the issues was the disimiliar metal used in the rivets. I called the Wizard and he recommended a shop near him that had done all of his sill warranty work. I called the guy and he knew what needed to be done and seemed to have his act together.
Of course with the Wizard's recommendation, that was really all that I needed.
Give Chuck a call.
Good luck!
Of course with the Wizard's recommendation, that was really all that I needed.
Give Chuck a call.
Good luck!
It's a '97 and has no rivets or anything attached that would be a dissimilar metal causing corrosion. The closest thing in proximity to the sill is the "foil" that encases the insulation but it is not in contact with the sill. I also have a '95 that I've owned since new and I had one side replaced under warranty but it of course had the rivetted insulation which was supposedly what was causing the problem. I was really surprised to see the problem with the '97 GTS. I would be interested in knowing how common this problem is with the "post rivet" side sill cars.
I did call Chuck Tater and discussed the shop(s) in his area. Chuck was very helpful and I could ship mine to NY but he suggested looking in the local area first because of the problems with shipping (proper packing, possible shipping damage, etc). As Chuck said, you don't want to take a chance with a part that has now become a $5,000+ item.
Gerald Levin
Viper Owner
Some guys get this done FOR FREE courtesy of the factory like Ron above. I have a couple areas just starting and tried to do the same thing but the factory responded, "****, your car is too old and warranty is no longer valid".
Ron
Enthusiast
The cause of the corrosion on early GENII's is the sill insulation. It is metal lined only on the exhaust side. On the sill side, the 1996, 1997 and possibly 1998's GENII's have exposed fiber glued to the sill. This fiber absorbs water from car washing, (enters underneath the "hockey stick" sill threshold) and holds the moisture against the sill for days. Start the car, and you steam the sills for hours. Ultimately the sill will corrode from the inside out. Guaranteed.
The solution is the newer fully metal encased sill insulation which the newer GENII's came factory equipped with. The fiber doesn't get wet therefore no super humid conditions within the sill. Unfortunately, this insulation is only available with the before mentioned super-expensive sill. Not nice.
What can you do? I lined the early insulation with heavy duty aluminum foil. Not pretty, but seemed to be effective as after wash, the sill was removed and the fiber was dry.
The solution is the newer fully metal encased sill insulation which the newer GENII's came factory equipped with. The fiber doesn't get wet therefore no super humid conditions within the sill. Unfortunately, this insulation is only available with the before mentioned super-expensive sill. Not nice.
What can you do? I lined the early insulation with heavy duty aluminum foil. Not pretty, but seemed to be effective as after wash, the sill was removed and the fiber was dry.
94RT10Ohio
Enthusiast
You can also go aftermarket with fiberglass, or for more $ carbon fiber. I have a set of glass sills and am very happy with them. They were used and needed some work but so far, other than a couple stone chips in the paint, they are holding up great!
I would like to keep the original sills since the car is a low mileage, totally stock '97 that I've owned since day one. However, I don't want to have to pay the BIG bucks for new aluminum sills so I would consider glass ones if my orginals can't be repaired. Do you know who made the glass ones you have and/or do you know who makes the carbon fiber ones?
carguy07
Viper Owner
BLUESNAKE367
Enthusiast
carguy07- them side sills are less than 1/2 the price of used gen1s...
any pics of fit and finish on a gen2??
Thanks,Rick
any pics of fit and finish on a gen2??
Thanks,Rick
