Undercarriage Rust! Problem or not...? **Update page 3**
 

I was underneath my car today and noticed this rust on both arms near the front tires. You can see where the black paint has peeled off.

Attached are some pics of the rust, thoughts/comments?

http://i271.photobucket.com/albums/j...g_tin/rust.jpg

http://i271.photobucket.com/albums/j..._tin/rust1.jpg

http://i271.photobucket.com/albums/j..._tin/rust2.jpg

To me it seems like a lot of rust on a car thats less than a year old...

i have a number of places like this as well. What concerns me is the impending winter and road salt. A mechanic recommended I spray the undercarriage with a sealer. Anyone have thoughts on that? Certainly don't want to spray it on the exhaust or other hot parts...

I would clean that off (lightly wire brush the rust off too) and use some Duplicolor engine enamel paint matte black. Why engine enamel you ask? Cause I've used the stuff on exterior and it is very strong and dries very fast. :)

Also...if you look from the back of the car the exhaust flange is rusty and ikky looking. I sprayed that as well. Basically I use this stuff when cleaning up partially rusted metal bits. (Also works great for plastic bits as well).

Another thing you can use is Rustoleum...but it takes longer to dry and I think most of them are semi-gloss/gloss finish.

I know corrosion is covered under warranty, but I don't know whether this amount of surface rust is really a problem.

Bring it to the dealer. It's not a huge problem now, but the paint around there is gone and it has begun to rust. If you don't stop it now, it will spread slowly but surely. Doesn't help that your car is in a corrosion-promoting environment in the winter. Make use of that 5 year corrosion warranty, this is your baby.

I guess I would be a little concerned being how new the car is. I'll have to crawl under mine for a "salt, snow, water free" comparison.

I concur with the earlier post - give it a light wire brush clean and use some hard enamel paint to cover it up, possible use some rust inhibitor before painting aswell. That should fix the problem, although I'm a bit surprised by the amount of rust on a near new vehicle.

I looked at the rest of the car pretty thoroughly and those two arms were the only areas with rust. I'm curious if any of you have the same issue. My car was built last November and I bought it at the beginning of January.

No rust, not even paint chipping. 5K miles.

hmm..

I recently got a chance to look underneath my car when I had it on a lift to do my short shift kit install..

I didn't see any rust thankfully.

I'm in the swampy southern humid part of Georgia as well. I only have about 2k miles on it though.

I guess I'll have to check once every month or so just in case. :ugh2:

undercarriage spray is a good investment to me.... here's why.... view 11 posts up

My 2002 Jeep Liberty's undercarriage looks better than that, I'd have the dealer fix it.

It would seem Nissan found the cheapeast steel they could for this car, rotors, steering linkage and now this...but what do expect for 40K

Some rusting down there is normal but when a painted surface is peeling and rusting then something's not right.

Yeah I also have a 2000 Dodge Ram and it doesn't look like that either.

As posted by others id take it in and have the dealer look at it first. If they give you crap then clean the rust off and spray it...if you do it early chances are it won't spread.
My 5 year old G (original owner) looks 10x better then that. I have tiny rust spots on the painted bits from rocks/debris here and there, but none like that that goes across the metal.

I looked under my Z with my mirror tool but did not have such rust either. I have some rust on the exhaust hangers and non painted metal but not on painted bits like urs. :confused:

No rust or chipping 2600 Miles - 6 months old.

I don't drive in rain or snow though, so that is why mine still looks showroom floor clean.

I'd have the dealer take a look at it. :tiphat:

If you decide to do the coating your self look into POR15, I have used it in restoring aircooled VW Beetles and it works very well.

POR15, Inc. - Stop Rust Permanently - Repair Gas & Fuel Tanks

I've seen this advertised in some of the car mags. I used this last year on my well casing and it's been great so far.

Car Rust Protection, Repair, Prevention by automotive car paint

Your profile says "SoCal". Are you close to Savannah?

John

+1,000,000 This is a hit in the Porsche-community. Somewhat pricey, though.

Only rust through of body panels is covered.....Surface rust on underbody components is not..
I'd wire brush it and treat it. Dealer is likely not gonna help you..

I'm from Socal but I'm stationed at Fort Stewart, GA at the moment. Savannah is like a 45 min drive for me. Very close :icon17:

gotta love AZ

:iagree:

I lived in AZ for a year. (Fort Huachuca / Sierra Vista) I also have a few buddies who live in Gilbert.

I would take the 100 degree dry heat weather over three any day over the hod humid muggy weather of Georgia :shakes head:

Don't feel too left out. I'm in Chicago and my car looks similar underneath. I called the dealer and they said to bring it in. I doubt they'll do much, or at least they won't do enough. I'm tempted just to lift it up, give it a quick brush off, and then hit it with either the POR15 or some good old Rustoleum. Either should do the trick and work just fine.

On a side note, the rust we're seeing is very superficial. Unless you plan to keep this car 10 years, I doubt it will ever be an issue.


**just picked up my Rustoleum enamel (flat black), a steel brush, some foam brushes, and a new carbide brush for my dremel for the tough spots.

When you talked about the terrain of south Georgia I knew you had to be close. I'm from Charleston, marshview isn't much different :icon17:

Humidity is a killer :p

Some days, if not all, I feel like I'm showering in sweat when I step out my door. :(

:iagree: ......... and I was born and raised here. If you're not from this part of the country and used to it, it can be killer. 95 degrees here with the humidity is way more uncomfortable than 100 degrees in the dry southwest, as you stated. But.......... right about now (October), through April, the weather is so good it does make up for that summer heat :icon17:

My Evo had the same issue with the undercarriage rust. The dealer said that it was "normal" to the extent that rust will form where the paint has chipped exposing the steel body parts/frame. Like its been said, unless you plan to keep the car for 15 years plus, its not going to rust through. The dealer won't cover rust unless its visible on painted body panels.

You should try another dealer. The most vulnerable areas for rust, especially where it snows, is the underbody carriage. The only time you see rusting on body panels is when there is a deep scratch that goes straight through the paint onto the metal.

Ummmm...You might want to read your warranty. Dealer has NO obligation to cover any underbody rusting..

I just read the warranty, you're right. However, that kind of rust so early on a new car isn't something pleasant.

Yes, obviously from the disposable society.

Finish quality under the car isn't that great. I don't think it's gonna be pretty after the Norherners go through this winter with salt, crap and corrosives on the roads..

I don't plan on keeping my car in an hermetically sealed box to save for the NEXT guy.

If you are going to repair the car don't forget about neutralizing the rust - don't just wire brush it and paint over it! Conquest is another good rust converter to use as well.

Okay I finally got my car to the dealer today and had them take a look at the rust. I really didn't think it was a big deal, but the service manager was shocked that a car with 8k and garaged would have so much rust. Apparently when they put it on the rack there was more rust than I could see just crawling underneath.

So they ordered all new parts and they will be here in a week or two. If you live in a rainy or snowy area you may want to inspect your car too.

that's good they are stepping up, but which other parts were rusted out??