Vans, vans, rusty Vans....

[daves87rs]

Maybe it is just me, but I have noticed quite a few rusty Caravans lately...

Not the beat up ones from the 80s...I'm talking late 90s early 00s....

And it is not just a bits of rust (like those who never. ever wash the car )

This rusting is everywhere-doors, hood, hatch, front doors, sliding doors....

Now I expect this out of the older cars (80s, early 90s), but some of these vans are barely 10 years old.

A good griend of my mom has a 03 Caravan-and the sliding door alreay has a decent amount of rust on it.

Makes me sad.

I was actually considering a SB caravan to replace the wagon ( More room for friends/family hockey stuff)...

Hmmm...Do you guys notice this too.Or am I crazy?

[Robert Hall]

Maybe it is just me, but I have noticed quite a few rusty Caravans lately...

Not the beat up ones from the 80s...I'm talking late 90s early 00s....

And it is not just a bits of rust (like those who never. ever wash the car )

This rusting is everywhere-doors, hood, hatch, front doors, sliding doors....

Now I expect this out of the older cars (80s, early 90s), but some of these vans are barely 10 years old.

A good griend of my mom has a 03 Caravan-and the sliding door alreay has a decent amount of rust on it.

Makes me sad.

I was actually considering a SB caravan to replace the wagon ( More room for friends/family hockey stuff)...

Hmmm...Do you guys notice this too.Or am I crazy?

Maybe some of those are Katrina salvaged? I rarely ever see rusty cars except those brought in from out of state (too dry here, no salty roads).

[daves87rs]

Maybe some of those are Katrina salvaged? I rarely ever see rusty cars except those brought in from out of state (too dry here, no salty roads).

It's possible. I live in a state that loves to use salt...

But even GM's old dustbuster vans are still in better shape here....

[Camino LS6]

Haven't noticed here.

I used to see rusty cars all the time, but not in recent years.

[Camino LS6]

I have seen lots of rusty Ford F-series - especially the bumpers and tailgates.

[CARBIZ]

It's possible. I live in a state that loves to use salt...

But even GM's old dustbuster vans are still in better shape here....

They were plastic-bodied, so they better not rust!

Rust is a big problem here, but I've always found that Chrysler bodies hold up pretty well. We still see alot of old K-cars, Caravelles and vans from the '80s that are holding up okay. I even see some of those old New Yorker RWD beasties around.

[toesuf94]

I too have seen a large amount of rusted Caravans here in Iowa...rust everywhere. Aerostars too, badly. You will be hard pressed to find a single Aerostar here with anything remotely resembling a rocker panel. We had a friend of ours give us a '92 Caravan that actually was so rusty we could not do anything with it...so it ended up becoming some 7 year old farm kids go-kart on the farm. I kid you not.

[gm4life]

I see tons of rusty Chrysler vans... I hate it. Rust is abuse at least cover it up and repaint. I hate Iowa's use of SALT!

[CARBIZ]

I too have seen a large amount of rusted Caravans here in Iowa...rust everywhere. Aerostars too, badly. You will be hard pressed to find a single Aerostar here with anything remotely resembling a rocker panel. We had a friend of ours give us a '92 Caravan that actually was so rusty we could not do anything with it...so it ended up becoming some 7 year old farm kids go-kart on the farm. I kid you not.

Sorry, but it's grossly unreasonable to expect a 15 year old vehicle to be pristine. Seriously. Unless the vehicle was undercoated, hand waxed a couple times a year and washed frequently, there is just no way. Or parked inside and never driven! Nobody - not Mercedes, not BMW, nobody warrants their sheet metal beyond 6 or 8 years.

In the north-eastern States, Ontario and Quebec it is worse, due to our damp winters and the tons of salt the municipalities dump on the roads.

The Aerostars I've seen around here had serious rust issues almost from the outset.

[daves87rs]

I have seen lots of rusty Ford F-series - especially the bumpers and tailgates.

Newer ones? 97-03? 96-back?

I know the pre-97 ones rust pretty quick...

[Camino LS6]

Newer ones? 97-03? 96-back?

I know the pre-97 ones rust pretty quick...

Mostly the older ones (that bodystyle). They seemed to rust very quickly.

[Robert Hall]

Mostly the older ones (that bodystyle). They seemed to rust very quickly.

Yeah..I've seen a lot of rusty F-series when I'm in Ohio..and the Rangers..the old Rangers rusted like crazy...Fox Mustangs were known for rusting decklid/hatch edges, doors...haven't noticed any of the SN95 ('94-04) era cars with rust, though...

I saw a first-gen Taurus when I was in Cleveland last year that was the rustiest Taurus I've ever seen... rust holes around the door handles, rust all over the doors, fenders, quarters, 1/2 inch or more of the decklid bottom edge missing, etc..

Rust is such a rare sight here, even surface rust..faded or peeling paint I see occasionally, but the only rusty vehicles I see are probably from out of state like my Bronco was (I brought it to Colorado with 9 years of Ohio/Michigan/Illinois rust).

Edited June 28, 2007 by moltar

[Intrepidation]

I live in the snow belt, we use salt in the winter and it eats away at cars...the Shadow has tons of rust along the lower body, and a rust hole in the driver's side foot well.

First gen Caravans, and to a lesser extent, 2nd gen Caravans are notorious for rusting on teh rear hatch where the lower window seals are...I don't know why. Oddly, our `86 never rusted there. It did however, rust on the sliding door, driver's door, passenger door, and where the rocker panel meets the rear wheel well on the driver's side...currently it's the only rust spot now. Water apparently collects there and doesn't drain out properly...which is why it rusted there.

I notice only small rust spots on the 3rd generations vans for the most part...probably paint imperfections. Most (that haven't been in accidents) hold up pretty well. A friend of our family has an `03...it has rust on it where it was damaged and they never bothered to repair it...not the van's fault. However there is a paint blister on the left corner of the hood...I suspect it will start to rust.

My car has a rust spot in a strange place...on the driver;s door frame at the top (not the roof itself). I plan to fit it this summer...it's only surface rust...I have no idea why it's there of all places, but it'll be fixed before it can spread.

I've seen some badly rusted Chevy Ventures...worse rust than older Caravans..one was white, and had a rust hole bigger than my hand along the lower rocker panel on the driver's side.

[daves87rs]

I live in the snow belt, we use salt in the winter and it eats away at cars...the Shadow has tons of rust along the lower body, and a rust hole in the driver's side foot well.

First gen Caravans, and to a lesser extent, 2nd gen Caravans are notorious for rusting on teh rear hatch where the lower window seals are...I don't know why. Oddly, our `86 never rusted there. It did however, rust on the sliding door, driver's door, passenger door, and where the rocker panel meets the rear wheel well on the driver's side...currently it's the only rust spot now. Water apparently collects there and doesn't drain out properly...which is why it rusted there.

I notice only small rust spots on the 3rd generations vans for the most part...probably paint imperfections. Most (that haven't been in accidents) hold up pretty well. A friend of our family has an `03...it has rust on it where it was damaged and they never bothered to repair it...not the van's fault. However there is a paint blister on the left corner of the hood...I suspect it will start to rust.

My car has a rust spot in a strange place...on the driver;s door frame at the top (not the roof itself). I plan to fit it this summer...it's only surface rust...I have no idea why it's there of all places, but it'll be fixed before it can spread.

I've seen some badly rusted Chevy Ventures...worse rust than older Caravans..one was white, and had a rust hole bigger than my hand along the lower rocker panel on the driver's side.

That's strange-but interesting-I've seen paint issues on the 97+ vans...I wonder if that could be one of the main reasons why they rust so much....

It's interesting you say Ventures rust bad- I think I've seen just a few Ventures with any rust on them-usually on the slidling door. Even the dustbuster vans seem to say mostly rust free...

Older Ford Vans seem to get rusty too-but the ones from 01 up seem to be ok (knock on metal)

On the other hand, I've seen all gens of Tarurs rusting-I guess they should be happy they keep running...

[Intrepidation]

When was the last time anyone saw an AeroStar?

[mustang84]

80s J-bodies and A-bodies can be found in rusting abundance where I live; they easily take the cake for the worst rusting cars I see on the road on a regular basis. That Celebrity I posted a while back was the first time in my life I have ever seen an A-body from before 1989 without any rust. I can't even remember the last time I saw a Pontiac 6000 on the road.

I've noticed that '83-'88 Thunderbirds and Cougars haven't held up throughout the last couple decades (whereas Lincoln Mark VII's usually still look pretty sharp). All the T-birds and Cougars I see usually aren't rusty, but the paint is badly faded and the bumpers usually have paint chips showing ugly yellow beneath them...and there's usually some serious bumper sag going on.

G-body Cutlasses, Regals, Montes, and Grand Prix's tend to have bad issues with rust along the rocker panel that travels up into the door...which is unfortunate because they are some of my favorites.

Toyota Tercels and Corollas get bad rust around the wheel wells....sometimes to the point where you could almost run your hand in a 90 degree arc between the rust. The paint fades badly as well...I don't think I've ever seen a Tercel from the early 90s with nice paint.

Various Dodges, Plymouths, Chryslers, and Eagles from the 90s have extensive problems with paint peeling that leads to rust (especially on hoods and roofs). I see early 90s Grand Caravans and Intrepids driving around with huge swatches of primer because all the paint has peeled away...my buddy's '95 Intrepid is rusting on the roof after years of the paint peeling off. The same thing is happening with my other buddy's '97 Eagle Vision.

Chevy also has problems with WHITE 2nd-gen Luminas that have whole chunks of paint peel off down to the primer. I see it all the time...and it only happens on white ones. All over the doors, hood, roof, and trunk you can find this problem.

Taurus's and Sables pre-1990 generally haven't held up well. Most are beat up with faded paint and rust. Later generations are faring much better.

Edited June 28, 2007 by mustang84

[Intrepidation]

The Dodge Spirits had paint pealing issues, and Shadows have rust issues underneath of the hatch...water seems to collect there. First gen LH cars seem to hold up well in my area...most are rust free with decent paint.

Late 80's Accords rust and fade pretty bade, as do the era Corolla and Camry. Tercels look OK from what I've seen. Lots of broken door handles on 90's Corollas, Prizms, and Camrys.

Edited June 28, 2007 by Dodgefan

[daves87rs]

When was the last time anyone saw an AeroStar?

This Morning.... :AH-HA_wink:

It was red..I think it was red...too rusty to know for sure...

[daves87rs]

80s J-bodies and A-bodies can be found in rusting abundance where I live; they easily take the cake for the worst rusting cars I see on the road on a regular basis. That Celebrity I posted a while back was the first time in my life I have ever seen an A-body from before 1989 without any rust. I can't even remember the last time I saw a Pontiac 6000 on the road.

I've noticed that '83-'88 Thunderbirds and Cougars haven't held up throughout the last couple decades (whereas Lincoln Mark VII's usually still look pretty sharp). All the T-birds and Cougars I see usually aren't rusty, but the paint is badly faded and the bumpers usually have paint chips showing ugly yellow beneath them...and there's usually some serious bumper sag going on.

G-body Cutlasses, Regals, Montes, and Grand Prix's tend to have bad issues with rust along the rocker panel that travels up into the door...which is unfortunate because they are some of my favorites.

Toyota Tercels and Corollas get bad rust around the wheel wells....sometimes to the point where you could almost run your hand in a 90 degree arc between the rust. The paint fades badly as well...I don't think I've ever seen a Tercel from the early 90s with nice paint.

Various Dodges, Plymouths, Chryslers, and Eagles from the 90s have extensive problems with paint peeling that leads to rust (especially on hoods and roofs). I see early 90s Grand Caravans and Intrepids driving around with huge swatches of primer because all the paint has peeled away...my buddy's '95 Intrepid is rusting on the roof after years of the paint peeling off. The same thing is happening with my other buddy's '97 Eagle Vision.

Chevy also has problems with WHITE 2nd-gen Luminas that have whole chunks of paint peel off down to the primer. I see it all the time...and it only happens on white ones. All over the doors, hood, roof, and trunk you can find this problem.

Taurus's and Sables pre-1990 generally haven't held up well. Most are beat up with faded paint and rust. Later generations are faring much better.

There's very few A bodies around here...

My 80s J-body was pretty rust free until it got hit....

[Camino LS6]

Neon - King of peeling paint (especially those purple ones)

This thread makes me all the more amazed that my wagon is almost rust free after 30 years in New Jersey. That shouldn't happen, but I'm very glad it did.

[Flybrian]

Rustamino!

[Camino LS6]

Rustamino!

I do have one of those

Just ask Z, he helped me get it.

[I hope GMRULES again]

When was the last time anyone saw an AeroStar?

I'm looking out at my neighbors as I type this, an 85 and its very rusty. I haven't noticed newer Caravans with rust issues but now I'm going to look for it. I know all the early 90's models rusted below the back window on the liftgate.

[daves87rs]

Neon - King of peeling paint (especially those purple ones)

This thread makes me all the more amazed that my wagon is almost rust free after 30 years in New Jersey. That shouldn't happen, but I'm very glad it did.

I was surprised our 95 Neon's paint never cam off...maybe because I waxed it?

But it rusted pretty well though..

[daves87rs]

Rustamino!

[Camino LS6]

I case you forgot what it looks like, here is the "Rustamino":

[american_revolution_2005]

Those A-bodies do rust out. I have seen one that is currently for sale that has no rust. But then again it was garage stored and not driven in winter. It only has 76k kms on it.

[CARBIZ]

Those A-bodies do rust out. I have seen one that is currently for sale that has no rust. But then again it was garage stored and not driven in winter. It only has 76k kms on it.

Since you are in Orangeville, we share the same rusty climate. When a customer trades a vehicle in, without exception, I can tell without even asking whether they had the vehicle rust proofed or not. Nothing survives more than 8 or 9 years up here without some form of help, whether it is some meticulous owner who washes/waxes the vehicle religiously, or whether they had it undercoated when they bought it, or whether it has been garage stored and only has 35k km on it - a vehicle needs special treatment up here.

I have had bewildered people ask why their 1980s "anything" with only 80k km is starting to rot out. Whether driven a lot or not, our winters here are nasty. There are not too many places in the world where a vehicle has to endure 105 F in the summer and -5 F in the winter. That kind of swing is not good for the vehicle mechanically, nor the paint.

[Camino LS6]

Since you are in Orangeville, we share the same rusty climate. When a customer trades a vehicle in, without exception, I can tell without even asking whether they had the vehicle rust proofed or not. Nothing survives more than 8 or 9 years up here without some form of help, whether it is some meticulous owner who washes/waxes the vehicle religiously, or whether they had it undercoated when they bought it, or whether it has been garage stored and only has 35k km on it - a vehicle needs special treatment up here.

I have had bewildered people ask why their 1980s "anything" with only 80k km is starting to rot out. Whether driven a lot or not, our winters here are nasty. There are not too many places in the world where a vehicle has to endure 105 F in the summer and -5 F in the winter. That kind of swing is not good for the vehicle mechanically, nor the paint.

Both of those temperature extremes can happen here as well, and for years rusty cars were common around here. For some reason, they are now a rarity. Part of it seems to be from better factory rust prevention and part of it is likely the increasing affluence of the area reducing the numbers of older cars.

In my barn are 3 1977 A bodies, their conditions are very different from each other as they are from 3 different states with very different histories.

The "Rustamino" was "run hard and put away wet" in New York state. The floorpans, bed, quarters, and the bottoms of the doors and fenders have extensive rust.

The Wagon is a great example of the benefits of rustproofing/undercoating and garaging. It is from New Jersey and should be nothing but a rusty memory. However, it was extensively undercoated and spent most of its life being garage kept. So it has very little rust and still wears the original paint. Only the doglegs behind the rear doors require rust repair in two small areas.

The Project Camino spent its life in Las Vegas, was never undercoated, has no rust, and still has factory (color) paint on its underbelly!

[Oracle of Delphi]

I case you forgot what it looks like, here is the "Rustamino":

Is that a Holden?

[Camino LS6]

[mustang84]

Here's a rusty "modded" Cavalier that prowls the streets around ISU, known as the "Redneck ricer" This gives you an idea of the rust these cars see, but it can be found much, much worse (like 6"-8" rust holes in the doors).

[Intrepidation]

Someone mentioned rust proofing...How do you rust proof a car?

[Intrepidation]

There are several things that can be done to rust proof a car. At the dealership they have machines that will spray a rubberized undercoating on the floor and in every crack and crevice to keep the floors from rusting. This has to be done on a relatively new car otherwise dirt and water can be sealed against the cars floor and defeat the purpose of the rustproofing.

If you're trying to rustproof car that isn't so new you can do different things as well. I like to clean out the body seams really well then spray the interior ones like the inside of doors with white grease or thick oil and the outside ones with undercoating from a can. If there is already a spot where rust has formed I like to use POR-15 which usually works well too. There are also places like Ziebart that can do all the rustproofing for you and do annual inspections to make sure the stuff is holding up.

I had to go through the whole rustproofing ordeal with my G. Marquis when I first got it. the bean counters at Ford decided to make the back of the rear wheel wells six inches too short so all of the stuff thrown up from the tires wound up pelting the floor of the trunk. While the rest of the body was solid the floor had holes you could drop small children through. First I cut out all the rusted metal around the holes, then I took some galvanized metal from some old fans and plugged the holes with them and finally I undercoated the whole mess from the inside and out. About a year later the thing is still holding up so I must have done something right.

Anyway, make sure to use quality products, do the work with plenty of ventilation, and Ford sucks.

I'd like to do it to our cars...neither one has rust on the underbody yet...but the Prizm is from Kansas... doubt it was rust proofed...the Intrepid may have been...I dunno.

[daves87rs]

Here's a rusty "modded" Cavalier that prowls the streets around ISU, known as the "Redneck ricer" This gives you an idea of the rust these cars see, but it can be found much, much worse (like 6"-8" rust holes in the doors).

Poor Cav.

[daves87rs]

Since you are in Orangeville, we share the same rusty climate. When a customer trades a vehicle in, without exception, I can tell without even asking whether they had the vehicle rust proofed or not. Nothing survives more than 8 or 9 years up here without some form of help, whether it is some meticulous owner who washes/waxes the vehicle religiously, or whether they had it undercoated when they bought it, or whether it has been garage stored and only has 35k km on it - a vehicle needs special treatment up here.

I have had bewildered people ask why their 1980s "anything" with only 80k km is starting to rot out. Whether driven a lot or not, our winters here are nasty. There are not too many places in the world where a vehicle has to endure 105 F in the summer and -5 F in the winter. That kind of swing is not good for the vehicle mechanically, nor the paint.

It's just like that in MI. Cars don't last very long around here...it's not too uncommon to see mid 90s cars with rust on them...

Or even newer than that!

I've seen:

02 Taurus

00 Cavalier

00-02 Focus (more than a few)

00s Caravans

04 Kia Rio

Most Neons..(expect the 03+)

All with rust..some with more than others....

If you don't take care of care of your cars here...it only takes a few years for it to show.....

Now you guys have methinking about undercoating now...

[Intrepidation]

I most certainly want to get the under body protected. On my car there is a rust spot about the side of a quarter on teh driver's door frame by the roof...I have no idea how it got there. I plan to have it fixed before winter too. My girlfriend's has a lot of smarll chipd from rocks and the like on the hood..since the car spent most of it's life driving down a dirt/gravel road everyday. Those areas go down to teh metal on the hood...I wonder if repainting it would be the best solution...and what it would cost.