Really bad rust stories - let's hear 'em!

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I had a 90 tbird when I was a kid, the frame was rotted so bad it failed inspection.

This past year we had to retire the misses 2000 neon due to a rusted engine cradle..
 
Originally Posted By: JustinH


This past year we had to retire the misses 2000 neon due to a rusted engine cradle..



Wow! a 2000 gone already. 7-8 years isn't long for a car, even in the rust belt. From working on cars, I can say that the cars that have been taken care of with regular washes and waxes do last longer before they rust. Also, the body panels and underbody seem to hold up a lot better on most mid 90's and up vehicles. Holes in the floor and massive panel rust are pretty much things of the past. The trademark Honda rust where the rear quarter panel meets the bumper isn't as prominent as before, either. Suspension components and brake calipers/rotors are still prone to get rotten even on newest gen cars, though. We still get plenty of use out of the oxyacetylene torch and air hammers at the shop.

I remember when I worked at Firestone having to deny service on some older unibody cars because as soon as the lift touched what was left of the pinch welds all you would hear is CRUNCH. Sorry sir, we can't safely hoist your car.
 
Rust-Proofing, Rust-Proofing, Rust-Proofing... $20,000 - $30,000 is a lot of money for a car. $100.00 a year is not...

Why oh why do we let them wither away...

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Originally Posted By: AcuraTech
From working on cars, I can say that the cars that have been taken care of with regular washes and waxes do last longer before they rust.


After a snowstorm where salt has been used on the road, I'll take the car to the self-serve carwash and rinse it out underneath, even if it's below freezing and the water is turning to ice as it hits the car.
 
Speaking of 'young' cars that don't last too long, I have to confess my '02 Cavalier will be one of them. Because of money/time/effort, I don't take nearly as good of care of it as I should. It's got surface rust on the inside of all 4 doors, I don't wash it as often as I should, and its gets parked every day in a super-heated parking garage (easy 25C in the garage). The doors, at least, will be swiss cheese on it within 2 years, at most!
 
$100 a year and I don't was my car from Fall to Spring. I Swear! No rust...

$1,000 over 10 years is far cheaper than $20-30K every 10 years to replace the vehicle...

Man I should own a Krown Rust Control eh?
 
Originally Posted By: brianl703


After a snowstorm where salt has been used on the road, I'll take the car to the self-serve carwash and rinse it out underneath, even if it's below freezing and the water is turning to ice as it hits the car.


There's a debate on that, where briney water is worse than caked dry salt.

All depends on what weather is coming up next and how and where you'll store the car in between... and how you'll make it home from the carwash with salt dust in the air.

I take the minimalist approach... when it rains, I get a free underbody wash that gets into the same nooks and crannies the salty water does...
 
Originally Posted By: eljefino
Originally Posted By: brianl703


After a snowstorm where salt has been used on the road, I'll take the car to the self-serve carwash and rinse it out underneath, even if it's below freezing and the water is turning to ice as it hits the car.


There's a debate on that, where briney water is worse than caked dry salt.

All depends on what weather is coming up next and how and where you'll store the car in between... and how you'll make it home from the carwash with salt dust in the air.

I take the minimalist approach... when it rains, I get a free underbody wash that gets into the same nooks and crannies the salty water does...


I take the Car-Wash/Wax it, spray it with Rust-Proofing and wash the truck in the spring again. Then Rinse/Repeat like shampoo.
banana2.gif
 
My '95 Integra was rusting around the quarter panels when I bought it, I paid $1,000 to have them sandblasted, coated with rust bullet inhibitor and filled in and repainted, and it came back a few weeks later.
mad.gif
 
Originally Posted By: ThirdeYe
My '95 Integra was rusting around the quarter panels when I bought it, I paid $1,000 to have them sandblasted, coated with rust bullet inhibitor and filled in and repainted, and it came back a few weeks later.
mad.gif


I know that feeling, sister's 95 civic. My dad and I "fixed" the rust and had it painted. Over 3 years later it's back.
 
Seems that once a car 'gets rust' in one form or another, no matter how well you fix it, it ALWAYS comes back. You have to prevent it from ever starting!
 
Cancer is not a fun thing... Close Family has had it, and it has gone into remission but only comes back again and again. I'm not a pessimist but it's the closest thing I can compare it too...

Not a nice part of life at all.
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In 71 I bought a Valiant, and in 77 a LUV. Both quickly and severely rusted. I traded the Valiant on an 81 Phoenix and it on a 92 Grand Am, and it on an 02 Cavilier. I never saw anything on the last 3 except a little surface rust on the underside.
 
I find that the early 1980s is when it became more likely that a car would survive a long w/o serious rust issues, but it was still very hit-and-miss. 1960's and 1970's cars, it was a guarantee in the saltbelt that a car was rusted out within 10 years with average use....
 
You're right. It was in the early 80s that manufacturers started getting serious about corrosion protection for their vehicles.

By 1985 Chrysler incorporated zinc coated steel to all it's sheet metal - even for the roof and hood panels, which were last to get this treatment.
 
Originally Posted By: Kestas
You're right. It was in the early 80s that manufacturers started getting serious about corrosion protection for their vehicles.

By 1985 Chrysler incorporated zinc coated steel to all it's sheet metal - even for the roof and hood panels, which were last to get this treatment.


How come the Caravans rot so fast then?
 
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