I need some advice as I NEVER encountered a problem like this and hope I never do again..

I was coming home the other night from a friends house and he lives over a set of rail road tracks well I naturally slowed to around 10-12 mph and went over them as I have done before a million times, and then I hear what sounds like a blowout..I check the tire pressure and their fine all my gauges look good no warning messages at all.

The road is in the country so no street lights, and I didn't have a flash light..The road is PITCH BLACK..So I continue to drive home nothing strange after the initial boom, then I go to change lanes hit a reflector on the road and hear and feel this AWFUL vibration right under the seat, and what sounds like a scraping noise.. It goes away again as fast as it came..


I pull into the garage and get under the car with a flashlight to find just enough clearance for no rocker panel damage a rail road spike driven into the floorboard on an angle right under the driver's seat location!! Guys first thing I noticed is the size of this thing try 11 inches long and 1/2 inch wide the car bent it slightly after going over it..

So now I need to repair a 1/2 inch hole in the floorboard..It doesn't appear to have gone all the way through, I was quite lucky it never made contact with anything else and other than this hole no damage was done..

Anyone know of the best products to use for a job like this..

Thank you for suggestions ,and be careful when going over rail road crossings..

 

The floor pans are made of balsa wood, with a protective covering over it.
I would say an epoxy resin, like Bondo, would be good to use for a permanent repair.

You need something that will protect the wood from moisture. Put some duct tape over the damaged area in the meantime.

 

That floor pan can be replaced. My friend's Z06 had a hole in the passenger side floor pan, put there by the dealer. He had them put in a new floor and it had special glue to hold it in.

I suggested he fix it with clear silicone caulk, and he said NO. Thanksfully the dealer stepped up and owned up and then fixed it.

 

I forgot they were Balsa..

I have to research and find a good Epoxy filler..

 

A little late but 3m 5200 sealant will work very well.

 

Call your insurance company and get it repaired correctly. I would also contact the rail company as they should have insurance to cover it as well.

 

gotta be carefull driving over things... your story reminds me of one I heard long ago. A mother was driving down a street with her 3 little kids. Suddenly, she slowed and pulled to the side of the road and no one could figure out why. When the paramedics arrived they found a piece of rebar had gone through the floorboard of the car and speared her far enough to cause death. IMO, You just dodged a bullet.

 

Are you CRAZY for posting that info and NOT posting a Picture? FAIL!




Glad your ok...

 

That is what comprehensive insurance is for. They don't count it against you if you use it either.

Bill

 

If the insurance wont cover it, you can fix it as good as new.

Here are couple of repair methods. First off, this is how the floor boards are constructed:

Yep, they have a balsa wood core:







If you look closely,,,you can see where everyone tested the hardness of the wood. One of them is mine!

If it were me, just for ****s and grins, I would smooth and clean up the hole to a round hole and then find a piece of balsa that would fit into the damaged area. The thickness of the wood would need to be the same thickness as the origional wood. (maybe a bit shorter to make the gob easier) Put a piece of saran wrap just bigger than the hole on the bottom of the floor board and use duct tape and secure it in place. Then mix up some JB Weld and add just enough to cover the bottom fiber glass thickness. Once it drys use some Elmers wood glue and glue in the wood plug. Then cover the top of the wood plug with JB weld.

Sand flat and I bet the repair would be difficult to spot. If you just want to get it repaired, just fill the hole with a fiber glass chop mixture and sand flat! It works fantastic

BC