These rust bubbles were on the front and rear of the door. Since the inside of the doors are another common rust area of the S30's, I opened the door to have a look. In addition to finding unattached parts in the door (maybe contributing to some of my rattles), I found what I had feared...
The lower portion of the door had a serious bit of rust on the inside. In fact, after popping some of the bubbles on the outside of the door I had some small pinholes through the door where the rust was heavy.
Since the panels were still very strong (even with pressure I couldn't push through these areas), I decided to treat the panels from the inside with a product called Rust-Bullet. This is a competitor to POR-15 and is said to bond with the rust via polymers intertwining with the rust. I had read good reviews of the product. Since the product needed very little prep, I used a screwdriver, vacuum, and compressed air to break-up and remove the dirt that had caused the rust to form. I then used denatured alcohol to prep the area for the application of the Rust Bullet.
I applied some painter's tape over the rusted-through holes in hopes that the Rust-Bullet would fill these areas enough to where I wouldn't have to patch. I applied 4 coats of the product following the directions. I used disposable brushes since the product is so difficult to clean and remove (this was recommended by the manufacturer). One thing I noted is that the brushes I used to apply the product were ROCK HARD after the product had cured; this felt promising.
Now that the product has cured only time will tell if the treatment was effective. I can say that the product went on smooth and thicker than I anticipated. It had the consistency of motor oil and "stuck" to the rust very well. The door looks good anyway with no real evidence that the rust was even there...
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