I always knew the old 1600 I'm planning on doing up had a lot of rust, actually make that a shitload of rust, so it was no surprise to me when I got a professional to take a look at it and he reckoned that, conservatively, the estimate to get the whole thing repaired and repainted was around $18K - 20K

He took a good look at it, even got another guy in the shop to come out and they both reckoned, that it needed soda blasting to strip it right back so that the extent of the rust damage can be fully known before welding, hi-filling and then painting it. They reckoned they could repair the obvious and noticeable rust for around $10k but said that there is probably a lot more in there (and I believe them) and it would only come out later on after the whole thing had been finished i.e. don’t waste your money.

The cost is a suck but to be fair the body work has been neglected for too long, there's holes in it everywhere from rust, paint bubbling etc... although my old man was pretty stunned, he thought $10K - 12K at the most!
Sooo given that neither he nor I are panel beaters, we could do some work like wire-wheeling it, maybe cutting out the rust etc.. but spare time is our enemy as I work full time and he works part-time so I doubt we'll get enough time to get around to it. I was thinking that maybe I'd be better off finding another 1600 that's rooted engine/gearbox wise but with a pretty straight and virtually rust-free body may be, financially, a better option?

Anyone have any other advice?

Restoring the old girl is looking like costing us nearly $30K once the L18 gets hotted up and everything else gets done, that’s getting pretty far out of our budget range, starting to wonder if it is worth it for an old Datto

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Current Garage:

1971 Datsun 1600
2019 Mazda 6 Touring Wagon
2009 Holden SV6 Sedan

Hmmmm.
Always a PITA this rust stuff!
The good news is, rust is far lighter than carbon fibre
I spent 10 years working on my '65 Datsun Fairlady repairing the major/obvious rust outs.
Part time of course!
[See the link in my signature.]
When it came time to engage a Body Shop to finish the job, the first thing they did was send the body and all panels to Minus Paint to strip off the surface rust, seam sealer and such.
Below and Hold! more rust!
BUT it is minor and reasonably easy to repair.
The moral of the story is, you won't know how bad it all is unless and until the panels are all stripped.
Then you are committed to spraying it with a primer to prevent it from deteriorating again.
Read, $$$ and time.
Unless you decide to develop the necessary skills and acquire the related tools, you will need the budget that you have been quoted.....and then some!
Having said all that, it is possible to learn welding, metal shaping and such and DIY.
It boils down to whether you want to see it all through or look for a better car.
Remember, they are all over 40 Y.O. now!

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Regards, Graeme
Just trying to help...
http://nissanman.shutterfly.com/
graemes@internode.on.net

If you do go down the path of fixing your shell the trick is to find someone good who is happy for you to do all the unskilled stuff yourself, and also someone who doesn't have a massive mortgage and employees to pay for. I just got my Stanza rally shell back from a guy down your way who might be able to help you out. PM me and I can send you some more details.

Get another shell I got my rust free one for 3 grand with a ca18det engine the good shells are still out there you just have to wait till they come up

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Current build 1600 ca18det
Westmead sydney

You can still buy good stockers for 6k

the problem is you can spend 3, 6 or 20 grand on a 1600. you wont know how bad it is till its fully stripped. all 1600 have rust and i highly doubt there is any out there that dont. i have been doing some of it myself like rust in the floor pan and areas that arent going to be seen with the eye to save money i will paint it myself as well because i cant pay the 10k to 20k i got told as well. just get in a give it a go once you start it aint that bad

Cheers,

Richard.