03 Accord rust spots??

Hey all,

I just purchased a used 03 accord, very happy so far. I previously
drove a 93 civic and like many others I saw on the road it had small
rust spots in specific locations, (10 O'Clock on the pass rear wheel
well, ect) (( incidentally if Honda had not put that rubber strip
around the inside of the sheet metal, it probably would have never
rusted at all))


Are there any problem spots that I should be watching for on my new
accord, given thats its an 03 and with our heavily salted roads here
in MI I want to make sure I keep it in the best shape possible.

Thanks

Dave

 

Usual rust spot on Hondas.

Wrong. Very wrong.

Lots and lots. Too many to list here.

Go across to Windsor once a year and get a Krown treatment done. Buy a
few spray cans of T40 for touch up. You're lucky you're near Ontario.

 

Not to get in a pissing match with you here, but I'd stick to my
statement that if that rubber strip had not been placed there in the
first place no moisture would have been trapped there and started the
rust spot. OR had the glue holding the thing in place stayed
forever, it would never have rusted either. BUT. It didn't and once
the rubber started to peal away just a bit, it caused the inevitable.
Unfortunately by the time I had purchased my last civic, and a previous
accord before that, the cycle had already started. I'm really hoping
to stay ahead of the game on this new accord. I've been looking at
others that I see in parking lots ect. but, I'd rather not have some
mom and her 2 kids ask me why I'm peaking under the wheel wells of her
car.



I know you said that there are too many to list, how about this,
could someone just throw out the top 1 or 2 places that they have seen
rust starting to form?


Dave

 

There is a trick Honda never thought of: You have to keep the area clean
and well soaked with special oil. Do that, and the area will never rust,
because the rubber picks up the oil and acts as a preservative.

The oil I refer to is sold in Canada under the Krown and Rust Check
names.

Top three:
1) Rear edge of the wheel well lips where they meet the bumper
2) Rear bumper hangers at wheel wells.
3) Rear of rocker panel immediately ahead of the rear wheel well lip.

Common secondary locations:
1) Top corners of windshield
2) Trunk/hatch lid rear edge.

 

Tegger,

thanks a bunch!!!

I'll be watching those spots closely. I'm from Ontario originally, so
trips that way are pretty common for me. I'll make sure to look up
that oil you mentioned.

Thanks again!


Dave DeJonge

 

Unfortunately the only way of stopping the Top Three is annual
treatements with the "drippy" rustproofing, which, as far as I know, is
only available in Ontario.

You can buy spray cans of Rust Check at Canadian Tire and spray cans of
Krown T40 at Home Hardware. These I use for touchup, like spraying every
week or so along the inside of the rear wheel well lip. Krown T40 ids
better, as it's thicker.

You also have to be very diligent in touching up stone chips. If these
chips have been there for a while, you need to use rust converter (even
if you can't see any rust), and zinc primer.

Sandblasting from driving eventually means rust on the insides of the
rear wheel wells right at the front, just before it meets the bottom.
When rust begins here, you have to grind it back to bare steel, prime
wirth zinc primer, then paint. Both zinc and paint need to be separately
force-cured with the use of a hot-air gun prior to the next step.

The rear edges of the FRONT wheel wells also corrode under the plastic
splash guards. Treatment is as above, removing the splash guards to get
at it.

Keeping rust at bay up here is an exercise in diligence.

 

Down in the "lower 48," some practice proactive rust prevention by
spraying copious amounts of used motor oil on the whole undercarriage.

Probably a life term if the EPA catches you but effective.

In the end though, the rust still will win out but at least after
perhaps doubling the vehicles life span...

<G>

JT