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Does anyone Rustproof their car?

Started by 60eldo, May 07, 2017, 08:57:01 AM

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60eldo

   I was thinking of rustproofing my car buy since I only drive her in the summer, Im not sure. But even the rain or just washing it could cause rust. What do you guys do?
Jon. Klu

The Tassie Devil(le)

The biggest cause of rust, apart from the obvious salt on the roads, is not washing the car correctly.

By this, I mean, getting all the dust and dirt from underneath, and especially behind trim, and up inside wheel arches.

There is a lot of hidden places where dirt can congregate, and slowly rust from the inside out.

The secret of a good wash is the rinsing afterwards, with a good pressure hose, and plain water.   Get it everywhere till any, and all suds are removed.

Bruce. >:D
'72 Eldorado Convertible (LHD)
'70 Ranchero Squire (RHD)
'74 Chris Craft Gull Wing (SH)
'02 VX Series II Holden Commodore SS Sedan
(Past President Modified Chapter)

Past Cars of significance - to me
1935 Ford 3 Window Coupe
1936 Ford 5 Window Coupe
1937 Chevrolet Sports Coupe
1955 Chevrolet Convertible
1959 Ford Fairlane Ranch Wagon
1960 Cadillac CDV
1972 Cadillac Eldorado Coupe

Eric DeVirgilis CLC# 8621

#2
Generally only recommended when the car is new. Any surface rust beneath the rustproof coating will continue its course.

Blistering of undercoating is especially detrimental because it creates pocket for water to become entrapped.

As the car is only going to be run in fair weather, I'd just leave it alone. Keeping the car dry is the best policy. Never wash the car with a hose unless absolutely necessary. Much better to clean with a soapy water with a sponge and wipe dry with clean towels as you go.

Liquid should be prevented from running into any areas where it cannot be seen or accessed to be wiped dry.
A Cadillac Motorcar is a Possession for which there is no Acceptable Substitute

Alan Harris CLC#1513

The fellow that does body work for me (Dr. Jake) says that that once a car has been washed, it is not a good idea to put it indoors immediately. Water is the enemy, and hidden areas will dry much more quickly if the car is out in the air and wind.

7gen

If you are going to rustproof, an oil spray applied yearly is better than a coating.

My car was undercoated 40 years ago and much of it was still on the underside. It is a hardened Ziebart-like coating. Rather than having water get up behind the coating, I had it oil-sprayed and do so yearly. That at least decreases the probability of water getting up behind the old Ziebart. Oil sprays can slow down the rust as well. I live in an area that gets about 300 inches of snow each year. We understand salt and rust.

I use waterless car wash, mostly, to clean the car. Too many areas to hold water, like behind the chrome, etc.

Scot Minesinger

Do not do it.  Have owned my 1970 DVC 12 years now and it has been driven in summer afternoon rain storms, even got caught in a snow storm and horrific salt once.  Undercarriage looks just as it did 12 years ago and 40k miles ago when I bought it.  As others wrote, you may trap moisture and dirt that is existing and actually accelerate rust.  Further undercoating may lower value, will hurt you on judging at GN, and may seem to any perspective future buyer (I know your car, never selling and etc., but best to keep options open) that you are trying to hide something. 
Fairfax Station, VA  22039 (Washington DC Sub)
1970 Cadillac DeVille Convertible
1970 Cadillac Sedan DeVille
1970 four door Convertible w/Cadillac Warranty

The Tassie Devil(le)

After I wash my car, I dry it off with a chamois, then take it for a drive to get rid of the moisture from the parts I cannot dry.

I never put a car cover on it until the next day, if I remember, and if I forget, then it doesn't go on.   Nothing worse than putting on a car cover immediately after washing, or with any sort of accumulated dust.

Bruce. >:D

PS.   I must be the worst washer of cars as I only use a brush on the end of my hose, then a quick rinse.   Hate wasting water as water is too valuable to waste.   But then, Water down here is really valuable, and good enough to drink straight from the tap, and put into batteries when needed.
'72 Eldorado Convertible (LHD)
'70 Ranchero Squire (RHD)
'74 Chris Craft Gull Wing (SH)
'02 VX Series II Holden Commodore SS Sedan
(Past President Modified Chapter)

Past Cars of significance - to me
1935 Ford 3 Window Coupe
1936 Ford 5 Window Coupe
1937 Chevrolet Sports Coupe
1955 Chevrolet Convertible
1959 Ford Fairlane Ranch Wagon
1960 Cadillac CDV
1972 Cadillac Eldorado Coupe

60eldo

      But what about when washing putting water on your car and the water goes down the doors and sits,,,,NOT GOOD,,,IT STARTS TO RUST<<<I think water is NOT GOOD
Jon. Klu

The Tassie Devil(le)

Hang on........ how do people wash a car without using water?

Bruce. >:D
'72 Eldorado Convertible (LHD)
'70 Ranchero Squire (RHD)
'74 Chris Craft Gull Wing (SH)
'02 VX Series II Holden Commodore SS Sedan
(Past President Modified Chapter)

Past Cars of significance - to me
1935 Ford 3 Window Coupe
1936 Ford 5 Window Coupe
1937 Chevrolet Sports Coupe
1955 Chevrolet Convertible
1959 Ford Fairlane Ranch Wagon
1960 Cadillac CDV
1972 Cadillac Eldorado Coupe

60eldo

   Use a damp samous or just dust it,,,,we dont drive in mudddd
Jon. Klu

The Tassie Devil(le)

Ha ha...... I see.

Here in Australia, when going for drives, one sometimes has to go where others fear to tread.

Bruce. >:D

'72 Eldorado Convertible (LHD)
'70 Ranchero Squire (RHD)
'74 Chris Craft Gull Wing (SH)
'02 VX Series II Holden Commodore SS Sedan
(Past President Modified Chapter)

Past Cars of significance - to me
1935 Ford 3 Window Coupe
1936 Ford 5 Window Coupe
1937 Chevrolet Sports Coupe
1955 Chevrolet Convertible
1959 Ford Fairlane Ranch Wagon
1960 Cadillac CDV
1972 Cadillac Eldorado Coupe

60eldo

   So carefully wipe off the mud, damp cloth
Jon. Klu

7gen

https://www.amazon.com/Meguiars-G3626-Ultimate-Waterless-Wash/dp/B006FUT0CS

Waterless car wash is a really slippery fluid you use a spray bottle to apply, then wipe off.

If your car is mudded up, it really won't work because you'll scratch the paint. You need to hose off the mud at that point. However, for regular washing, it works great. No water getting behind the chrome or anything to sit.

I've also used a blower in the past to blow water out of crannies but have turned to this in recent years.

The Tassie Devil(le)

Quote from: 7gen on May 07, 2017, 08:49:48 PM
....No water getting behind the chrome or anything to sit.....
It is behind the chrome where the dust sits, and eventually turns to mud.

When I had a car that had side mouldings, like my '57 Chev, I would always point the hose upwards and under the side trims, and always would get dirt out from them.

But, I suppose I drive my cars in any weather, as down here, one cannot really predict what the weather will do from one day to the next, or sometimes, one hour to the next.   Why have a car when one has to be governed by the weather forecast.

We had a ten day run down here last month, and 23 Cadillacs came over from the mainland.   Sure showed up some major problems on one '60 Convertible that the owner didn't know about.

Bruce. >:D
'72 Eldorado Convertible (LHD)
'70 Ranchero Squire (RHD)
'74 Chris Craft Gull Wing (SH)
'02 VX Series II Holden Commodore SS Sedan
(Past President Modified Chapter)

Past Cars of significance - to me
1935 Ford 3 Window Coupe
1936 Ford 5 Window Coupe
1937 Chevrolet Sports Coupe
1955 Chevrolet Convertible
1959 Ford Fairlane Ranch Wagon
1960 Cadillac CDV
1972 Cadillac Eldorado Coupe

Dan LeBlanc

I tend to use waterless wash as well. In the off chance my car gets wet, I will dry it off with a chamois and then into the garage with the heat on and a dehumidifier until it doesn't collect any more water.
Dan LeBlanc
1977 Lincoln Continental Town Car

bcroe

A problem here is with the windshield.  Rust proofing never seems to be applied
around the inside of the windshield frame.  So if there is the slightest leak,
these unprotected areas get bad rust from the inside out. 

Bruce Roe

William65 CLC#30475

Quote from: 60eldo on May 07, 2017, 08:57:01 AM
   I was thinking of rustproofing my car buy since I only drive her in the summer, Im not sure. But even the rain or just washing it could cause rust. What do you guys do?
If it helps you out any i use fluid film, it's Lanolin based i have used this for years, also POR15 is good to just do your prep work hope that helps ya Chris
1993 Fleetwood Brougham
1994 Fleetwood brougham
and many others in the past..
Chris..

Lexi

#17
Moisture in the presence of exposed metal and oxygen will result in rust, sooner or later. I never wash my car, just dust it and wax/detail as required. If I had to wash it, (as in it being muddied up like in the photo), I would use water and try to avoid all spots were water can collect and not be readily wiped off or dried. Would also take a drive and attempt to road dry as much of it as possible. If I had to use some form of rust proofing it would be an oil spray, with the intention of having it re-applied on a yearly or so basis. Parts covered in grease and oil tend to repel water! Can't remember seeing a rusty part in a salvage yard that was grease and oil encrusted. Before oil spraying became available, I will never forget seeing a 1950s Mercury, factory white, which the owner had done his own oil spraying since new. He even had incorporated drill holes with caps to facilitate this, in strategic rust prone spots. It was his daily driver all year long even in the winter. As a 20 year old car when I saw it, it was pristine and apparently rust free. The owner said he was going to start a company to oil spray cars. Clay/Lexi

bcroe

I have heard it works well; a lot of work and frequent.  But if it started to
become more common, the gov would probably come down on all the oil
being dripped on the road.  Bruce Roe

Lexi

#19
Bruce you are right, it was a lot of work. The fellow told me that he sets aside an afternoon in the fall once a year to do it. I believe I saw him using a syphon gun with a long nozzle to treat some hard to reach places, plus a mechanical spray bottle for others. This would be about 1976 when that tar like based undercoating was popular (later proved to trap moisture), so his oil idea made sense. He said he used a fluid common to the aircraft industry which was similar to Type A automatic transmission fluid. Yes, it is also messy, so he parked it over cardboard for a few days to catch most of the run off. My own experience came years later using Krown Rust Control. Same idea. Works wonders, just is messy. Nothing comes without a disadvantage I suppose. It is actually good that there is run off for a while as it permits the fluid to get everywhere and protect the metal where it is most vulnerable, which is what you want. I found that a drive on the highway for a few hours blows most of the loose stuff off.  Eventually that which drips onto the road or your driveway does wash away and is supposed to be eco-friendly. I have had several of my daily drivers oil sprayed, even a beater that was already rusted when I got it. Worked wonders. Seeing that '57 Turnpike Cruiser in mint condition sold me on the process, (and cars of that era where not as rust resistant as the new automobiles are). Dan's comments regarding a heated garage and/or the use of a dehumidifier are also highly recommended. Clay/Lexi