RotoRocket

iTrader: (1)

As I was washing my 8 this weekend, I noticed some light surface rust speckles around the inner lip (facing the tires) of the rear wheel wells.

There wasn't much, and it all came off with a careful cleaning and a clay bar.

There was absolutely no perforation nor were there any paint bubbles (which could indicate rust underneath).

Keep in mind my car is 7 years old, so a little surface speckling on the rear wheel wells is to be expected. But I want this car's metal to free of cancerous rust for a long time, and to last A LONG TIME, as I'll be keeping it for A LONG TIME.

As I was doing this, I noticed all the debree BEHIND the wheel wells, which was a collection of grime, leaves and other assorted nastiness, which appeared coated in cosmoline and grease.

And that got me thinking.

Has anyone here cleaned out the inside of the wheel wells and also the undercarriage, and if so, what products and tools did you use to get the job done successfully?

Did you hoist the car or use pressure washers?

SayNoToPistons

iTrader: (8)

What state are you in?

Though I live in NYC, and we do get horribly salted winter roads. My '04 8 has only touched the snow ridden streets literally three times (every winter it goes into hibernation). It spends its time sitting exposed to the elements on my driveway. I have no "rust" on any of the body panels, and just some very minor surface rust on non-protected metals around the undercarriage.

As a regular, I keep my 8 washed and protected at all times (sealant waxes for all painted surfaces). Every time I wash the car, I spend at least 10 minutes hosing off the undercarriage as much as I can from all four sides of the car. Once a year, I put it on jack stands, go down under it with a hose, a semi soft plastic bristle brush, and all-purpose cleaner. When I say all-purpose cleaner, I mean ones for automotive uses, because they are formulated with a certain cleaning acidity not to harm automotive surfaces.

For the places that do have surface rust, I treat accordingly. I seem to have oxidation of the paint around the subframes. The semi-glossy black painted metals. I go down at the spots with rust with steel wool/brush, and prep it for applicable (metal) paint.

I have also found some surface rust on the "frame rails". There was one spot on each side from some rubbing against speed bumps. Nothing major. The rubber undercarriage coating scraped off, as did some bits of the primer, leaving a few minor scores of exposed metal. I prepped those as well, and applied 3M Undercarriage coating.

I kope that answers your questions. If you want to go all out against treating metal from rust, and preventing further rust... There's POR-15, its some insane **** formulated to protect against corrosion.

http://www.por15.com/whatispor15.asp

RotoRocket

iTrader: (1)

Thanks brother.

That's exactly the type of information I was hoping to hear.

I know, or at least have read/heard, that Rust Bullet is t least as good a product for undercarriage components that one intends to sand and prime as POR-15, but these products are very pricey.

Here's a pic and link from a Porsche 993 owner who used Xenit in rustproofing the underside of his Porsche and it honestly looks like it brand new:



http://forums.rennlist.com/rennforum...fectively.html


That level of cleanliness and corrosion free surface area (not to mention the nicely lubricated drivetrain) gives me wood.

SayNoToPistons

iTrader: (8)

I wish Mazda put a bit more effort into corrosion protection. A reason why I don't use pressure washers is because the rubberized undercoating would peal off like gum . I also forgot to mention that I put rags between the jackstand and the frame rails themselves to protect the undercoating.

I would LOVE to have a lift. That way I wouldn't mind maintaining the under carriage in a more intricate way.

RotoRocket

iTrader: (1)

Yep, a lift would be VERY handy. I'm going to try to get a friend to get me access to one for several hours, if it's possible, so that I can do something similar to what that 993 owner did.

I forgot to answer you that I'm in Michigan, so we have toxic, corrosive, salt laden roads whenever there's even a trace of snow, also.

Mazda has treated be very well as a customer, so far (year 7). Then again, I've only had two minor issues, that they quickly resolved. It may help that my dealership manager is very cool, I'm not a confrontational or angry customer, and that I have a pretty comprehensive understanding of legalese and the law, also.

In fact, I'd have to say that Mazda has treated me better than Ford, Volkswagen, GM, Honda, BMW.... probably only Nissan has treated me as well as Mazda has (Ford & VW were the absolute worst by a mile).

monchie

I would clean the exterior and interior of the car, wheels and tires, and the engine bay, but never the underneath of car. Usually, when you do clean the underneath of the car, you are a Mr. Clean freak...lol

RotoRocket

iTrader: (1)

I wouldn't be cleaning the underside just for the sake of getting it clean, but rather, to prep the surface so I could sand/grind off any metal that is chipped, scratched or dinged, and where oxidation has already set in. After that, I would prime those areas and then apply a inhibitor like POR-15, Rust Bulllet or Xenit.

I wouldn't do this with just any car. But since I plan on keeping the 8 basically forever, it's addressing the cancer of the car world - rust - in a strategic way that will hopefully substantially reduce future rust issues.

RotoRocket

iTrader: (1)

Update*

So, approx 8 months after I originally posted about surface rust around the inner rear wheel wells....

....it's back.

We've had really cold temps in Michigan, and then a snow storm, and then a warm period with rain for the last 3 to 4 days.

I noticed two days ago amidst temps in the 40s and tons of humidity in the air that the brown surface rust reappeared on both rear wheel wells.

I used a little mild rubbing paste (NOT compound) on JUST the few areas that had surface oxidation after a thorough wash, rinse and dry, and it removed the surface rust.

I cleaned out the back of both "lips" and removed all the gunk and debris that had collected.

I noticed that the wool-cloth like liner under above each inner wheel well was retaining water/moisture, and I suspect that in wet conditions or when ice had frozen up there, this slowly drips moisture down onto that lip wheel well area when the car is garaged, essentially creating a constant bath in the freeze-thaw cycles we're experiencing-- with road salt and other chemical in the water that's on the road, that makes the effects 10x worse.

Since I plan on keeping this car for at least 4 more years, I've been researching everything from FluidFilm to Por-15 to Amsoil Heavy Duty Metal Protector to Bioshield to lanolin oil to cosmoline (to be used as a protectant in the inner wheel well area during the winter months).

Anyone experience similar things or thoughts?

Loki

iTrader: (1)

Since the fender lips are a weak spot, I rub them down with bearing grease every few months, inside and out. Also have a can of Krown rustproofing that gets applied to the wool liner and around seams every so often. The liner soaks that stuff up like avsponge

RotoRocket

iTrader: (1)

I have been reading a ton of info on this, as it's obviously something that affects A LOT of vehicles, from Ford F150s to Civics to Subarus.

There are people who swear by an application of motor oil, other who use automatic transmission fluid and still others who use (and claim) that lanolin oil is the best (and that it's also the active ingredient in products like LPS 3 Rust Inhibitor and FluidFilm.

I am not willing to use motor oil or ATF because of the environmental issues and/or because flammability issues (ATF is highly flammable).

The lanolin oil idea has me intrigued, though, since it's not harmful to the environment, and apparently has staying power (one or two applications, in a mixture of mineral oil and a little bit of mineral spirits, can last for a season's full of wintery, salted roads).

Is wheel bearing grease flammable? I know it's very stick and tacky, so it probably has good adhesion and is not easily removed.

RotoRocket

iTrader: (1)

Okay, I finally found a local place that sells Fluid Film by the 12 ounce can for under $10 - it's a construction equipment sales place.

This should be enough to hit my rear wheel wells a few times this winter and it's Lanolin based and goes on clear.

After talking a few snow plow truck guys about this issue, they swear by this stuff and use it on the undercarriages and a lot of other parts of their plow trucks & buy it in bulk to spray with a pressure sprayer.

I'll let everyone know how it works out.

RotoRocket

iTrader: (1)

Hey everyone.

Since I REALLY can't find a new car under 40k that I like as much as my 9 year old RX8 (and most of these new cars I like LESS), I'm going to have a local guy who does restorations (paint, body, etc.) do the rust converter + POR-15 + primer + factory paint (OEM) + clearcoat along the rear wheel arches (both) AND metal prep + POR-15 + flat black topcoat along the frame rails.

I have no rust perforation, but the surface rust on the rear wheel wells (the lip) keeps coming back and the paint is starting to flake there, and there is chipping and rust starting on the same spot towards the rear of each side of the frame rails (near the jack point).

I do not have the proper sprayer/equipment to do the metal prep work, nor properly spray the factory paint or clearcoat, and besides, POR-15 is some nasty stuff to breath so it has to be applied in a well ventilated shop (only over prepped metal).

Does anyone not think this is a worthwhile investment for approx $300 including all materials assuming I can keep the 8 free of any serious rust issues for 3 to 4 more winters?

I really do not like any of the dozen or so new cars I drove, ranging from 25k to 42k, as much as the 8, and so I figure this is a smart move.

Yes? No?

RotoRocket

iTrader: (1)

FYI -

Drove Cadillac ATS (pos), Lexus IS350, Golf GTI, Audi A4, etc., new BMW 3 recently.

It's quite amazing how cars are less rewarding for those who like feedback, AND their interiors feel awfully cheap, even at the 40k to 50k price level.

This is why I can't rationalize selling/trading the 8.

If anything, if I needed to get another car ASAP, I'd look for a well maintained, low mileage 6MT RX8 - again.