No older cars in New York State?

[JTK]

Originally Posted By: Aero540T
^^
I’m guessing it’s that NY has inspections. Michigan doesn’t. Here there are rusted out old cars all over (a couple of mine included)


We do have mandatory yearly safety and emissions inspections. As long as something critical isn't broken or inop due to rust, you're good to go.

 

[SeaJay]

NY State does have annual inspections. Significant rust on suspension, brake and steering components will fail the vehicle. The labor and parts bill to replace these can be quite significant. I had a 3/4 ton very rusted pickup that cost over $3,000 over two years to replace all of those items to be compliant. I would have been better off if I had sold it for scrap. As my grandpa used to say "never feed oats to a dying horse".

Rusted frames, as long as not cracked will usually be okay though.

 

[Whimsey]

sorry posted in wrong post

 

[oilpsi2high]

Originally Posted By: SeaJay
Annual treatment of upstate NY cars will not stop the rust. They get eaten alive for a few months at a time every winter.

Put them up on a lift after every time out on wet salted roads, spray them down and keep warm until dry is the only way to prevent the rust. Anything less is just slowing it down a bit.


Actually they rust in the spring when the temp and humidity rises. Not so much in the winter. Even with road salt.

 

[littleant]

Up here in northeastern Vermont if you want a nice rust free vehicle to drive in the spring-summer and fall NEVER drive it in the winter. Leave it in the garage.

 

[oilpsi2high]

Originally Posted By: littleant
Up here in northeastern Vermont if you want a nice rust free vehicle to drive in the spring-summer and fall NEVER drive it in the winter. Leave it in the garage.


Can't say I agree with you. My truck came from VT and the frame is rust free. It was driven in winter, but oil sprayed annually.

 

[CharBaby]

Here's just one of the sad things about owning a vehicle in NY State.
As our vehicles approach that 10 year mark and possibly needing some repairs, we easily put in some money into our vehicles. We climb underneath or put the vehicle on a garage lift and inspect the chassis and body panels. OK, they look good! So, we put in some money for this repair and maybe again, for that repair and we're happy.

Then the following year after a nasty winter and lots of road salt with the vehicle that looked just fine the year before, is now all of a sudden, TERRIBLE!

Gee, what happened in just one more winter? NOW, we're all depressed about spending that money in the first place and want to sell/trade-in our vehicle on another because the rust is accelerating rapidly. For the first, Oh, 8, 9, 10 years all was OK but now, things are disintegrating quickly. So years 11, 12, 13 and beyond, are a shame!

By 16, 17, 18 years, we start to experience structural issues(vehicle dependent) to the point that the vehicle is just about unsellable for a reasonable price(without actually giving it away). And we just shoveled in a hefty amount of money the year(s) before.

If you don't do your own repairs or know a thing or two about keeping a vehicle a long time, it just makes sense to get rid of a vehicle in NY State by 10 years w/< 100K miles in order to stay somewhat ahead of the game.

This is just my opinion.

 

[JustinH]

When I lived in Buffalo, some of the largest volume Chevy dealers were in the suburbs surrounding Buffalo. West Herr, Paddock Chevy, etc.

Tons of my friends and family drive new Chevy cars, and dump them every few years.

 

[Trav]

Good reason not to drive anything decent in the salt belt in winter, get a cheap beater, dispose of when its done.

 

[littleant]

Originally Posted By: oilpsi2high
Originally Posted By: littleant
Up here in northeastern Vermont if you want a nice rust free vehicle to drive in the spring-summer and fall NEVER drive it in the winter. Leave it in the garage.


Can't say I agree with you. My truck came from VT and the frame is rust free. It was driven in winter, but oil sprayed annually.
Yes some folks spray there vehicles with oil and do a good job at it. But if the fenders-rockers are not done the only thing that survived is the frame. Saw a 4 year old explorer today with rusted rockers

 

[KrisZ]

Its hard to explain what kind of damage road salt and brine does to vehicles to a person that never lived in such a place.
It's actually hard explain it to people living in the salt belt as well, since a lot of them simply don't work on their cars and never see the underside. To them, the car starts rusting once the sheet matel starts to show it, like doors or quarter panels. Little do they know that by then, the underside is in a much worse state.

Ontario is probably one of the worst places as far as rust goes. It's so bad that pretty much every little town has a Krown, Rustcheck or some other rustproofing place. Yet, not a whole lot of people are actually treating their vehicles from what I can see, at least in the greater Toronto area. Common mantra is that washing is good enough and that manufacturers have gotten so much better.

Well, you still hardly see anything that's more than 15 years old, just like in the 90s and early 2000s. So it seems manufacturers did improve greatly from the 70s and 80s, but the progress seems to have stopped there. It's not a big deal for the majority of people that buy new and trade in early, but for those of us that keep their cars long or buy them second hand, it's a major problem.

 

[Patman]

I notice a lot more older cars on the roads of Niagara Falls and Buffalo than I see here in Southern Ontario. My wife comments on it a lot too, often saying "I haven't seen one of those cars in years!" These older cars we see aren't in good shape mind you, they are usually rusted out pretty bad and being held together by duct tape and a prayer.

 

[littleant]

Originally Posted By: KrisZ
Its hard to explain what kind of damage road salt and brine does to vehicles to a person that never lived in such a place.
It's actually hard explain it to people living in the salt belt as well, since a lot of them simply don't work on their cars and never see the underside. To them, the car starts rusting once the sheet matel starts to show it, like doors or quarter panels. Little do they know that by then, the underside is in a much worse state.

Ontario is probably one of the worst places as far as rust goes. It's so bad that pretty much every little town has a Krown, Rustcheck or some other rustproofing place. Yet, not a whole lot of people are actually treating their vehicles from what I can see, at least in the greater Toronto area. Common mantra is that washing is good enough and that manufacturers have gotten so much better.

Well, you still hardly see anything that's more than 15 years old, just like in the 90s and early 2000s. So it seems manufacturers did improve greatly from the 70s and 80s, but the progress seems to have stopped there. It's not a big deal for the majority of people that buy new and trade in early, but for those of us that keep their cars long or buy them second hand, it's a major problem.
Well said Sir. I have seen folks come from the south for a week or two to ski or snowmobile only to find there vehicle rusting in 3 years.

 

[Hall]

Originally Posted By: WyrTwister
Go to youtube and watch some of the repair videos by mechanics in the rust belt ( like South Main Auto ) .

When they put a vehicle on the lift , you will see the large amount of rust .


My favorites would be people doing brake work and when they remove the caliper, the rotors almost falls off. Here, you spray something like PB Blaster on the back and through the wheel studs and let it soak. Then, get your rubber mallet and start whacking it for a couple of minutes. Spray it some more, take a break, then go back to whacking it with the mallet again. If you're lucky, it will start budging !

 

[Nick1994]

I've posted it on here several times, here we go again:

I really feel bad for you guys in the salt belt, and don't know how you do it! Cars here look like brand new underneath. 228k miles and 18 years for my Camry, look underneath and it looks like a new car that's been driven down a dirt road.

 

[SeaJay]

Originally Posted By: Nick1994
I've posted it on here several times, here we go again:

I really feel bad for you guys in the salt belt, and don't know how you do it! Cars here look like brand new underneath. 228k miles and 18 years for my Camry, look underneath and it looks like a new car that's been driven down a dirt road.


Rust on cars is a cost of doing business in the rust belt states. Must be worth it, there are tens and tens of millions living here.

 

[WyrTwister]

Originally Posted By: Nick1994
I've posted it on here several times, here we go again:

I really feel bad for you guys in the salt belt, and don't know how you do it! Cars here look like brand new underneath. 228k miles and 18 years for my Camry, look underneath and it looks like a new car that's been driven down a dirt road.


I feel bad for them too . But not bad enough to move up there and join them .

When shopping for a used car , I have never looked under one , inspecting for rust .

 

[KrisZ]

If you look at where your food comes from, most of it is from places that have four seasons. What do they teach kids at school these days to have such a narrow view of the world?

 

[pandus13]

Originally Posted By: Trav
Good reason not to drive anything decent in the salt belt in winter, get a cheap beater, dispose of when its done.

Trav,

Over your long years of service and servicing, did you find some manufacturers products resisting more than others?

Let's talk in decades to make it simpler.

P.S. How you've been? How is the eye recovery?

 

[Kurtatron]

I hate rust. Living in the salt belt eliminates roughly half the year of nice driving conditions for me. I have a beater that I use all year round, and a nicer car that only is used in the summer. I use Fluid Film. I is not a perfect solution, but it has definitely slowed down corrosion. Fenders get rusty still from wash off, but at least when I work on the car, the fasteners and mechanical bits are not crusty like KFC’s extra Crispy chicken. All the being said, I love the low cost of living out here, as well as the beautiful change of seasons. I actually kind of like winter, just hate driving in it.