Cars that don't rust
Discussion
My old Leyland Princess is 32 years old and I've had it for at least 20. It's never been garaged in that time and much of the paint dropped off leaving a dull grey metal that hasn't rusted. Unfortunately new paint appears to react pretty badly so it's been left bare.
Any suggestions? I'd prefer not to strip it back completely as whatever the coating is it's bound to be better than just about anything I could apply.
Any suggestions? I'd prefer not to strip it back completely as whatever the coating is it's bound to be better than just about anything I could apply.
Twincam16 said:
The Italians nailed the whole terminal rust problem back in the late '80s with the 'type 4' project - basically they were sick of Lancias, Alfas, Fiats and the like dissipating into little orange heaps on the floor so they had a word in Saab's ear about surviving Swedish winters (there's another that never rusts - old Saabs). The resulting Alfa Romeo 164, Fiat Croma, Lancia Thema and Saab 9000 were/are paragons of rustlessness.Oddly enough, ever since, despite bar-room wags still doggedly insisting that Italian cars go all rusty whenever it rains, the cars of the Fiat Group have had some of the best rust protection around. It's people failing to maintain the engines that kills Italian cars of the '90s and '00s.
As I said on the other (identical?) thread running, a lot of it is due to the gauge and quality of steel used. Saab traditionally use good quality heavy gauge Swedish steel which is a big help. As I understand it, Saab 9000s use much heavier gauge steel than the other Type 4 models. No idea of the longevity of the Alfa/Lancia/Fiat though.
My mk2 clio didnt have any rust on it when i sold it, 2 years ago now but its was 8 years old at the time.
Have seen several though that have the rear arches badly riddled with rust, and the bonnet looking like a spotty teenager. I guess its how you look after the car as well that will help it survive or rust away.
Have seen several though that have the rear arches badly riddled with rust, and the bonnet looking like a spotty teenager. I guess its how you look after the car as well that will help it survive or rust away.
Twincam16 said:
Robatr0n said:
The Fiat Tipo I appear to be using on a daily basis has absolutely no rust on it whatsoever. It's a 1992/K reg too.
The S2 has no signs of rust and it's an early 1991.
Both cars are galvernised.
The S2 has no signs of rust and it's an early 1991.
Both cars are galvernised.
The Italians nailed the whole terminal rust problem back in the late '80s with the 'type 4' project - basically they were sick of Lancias, Alfas, Fiats and the like dissipating into little orange heaps on the floor so they had a word in Saab's ear about surviving Swedish winters (there's another that never rusts - old Saabs). The resulting Alfa Romeo 164, Fiat Croma, Lancia Thema and Saab 9000 were/are paragons of rustlessness.Oddly enough, ever since, despite bar-room wags still doggedly insisting that Italian cars go all rusty whenever it rains, the cars of the Fiat Group have had some of the best rust protection around. It's people failing to maintain the engines that kills Italian cars of the '90s and '00s.
Fords of the 90's seem to be terrible in comparison!
Strange how some cars have a reputation for not rusting but occasionally you see one that's gone bad... As an example my brother had a 1996 Citroen Zx new and he passed it on to me afterward. I sold it because it was rotten!
The sills had holes, it had rot in all the seams, the chassis had holes in it, there was rust everywhere... I still see lots of very tidy ones around, I wonder why mine went so rotten? the rot seemed to come from inside out?
The sills had holes, it had rot in all the seams, the chassis had holes in it, there was rust everywhere... I still see lots of very tidy ones around, I wonder why mine went so rotten? the rot seemed to come from inside out?
Kitchski said:
405's, Xantias and BXs all resist it well. I'd nominate W202 Merc C-Class too, among others. Fords have been the worst by far in my experience.
All Citroen's BX/ZX on.....Punto.... And Japanese Grey imports.....(but you need to get these rustproofed before driving on the salty roads (until the government cuts) of the UKpetrolsniffer said:
Peugeot 205s
I woudln't say they're totally rust proof but I heard they were partly galvanized from 87 and fully from 89-90.
They're popular on the southcoast! when I look for others for sale or parts they're always in devon!
88/89/90 tend to be the best, the later and earlier cars tend to be a bit more rusty. Don't know why TBH, they were all galvanised apparently, but those three years still tend to be the best, for some reason.I woudln't say they're totally rust proof but I heard they were partly galvanized from 87 and fully from 89-90.
They're popular on the southcoast! when I look for others for sale or parts they're always in devon!
Maybe the quality of steel changed?
Either way my G reg ('89) is remarkably rust free for a car of it's age, certainly nothing structural anywhere, just a bit of surface rust here and there (famous last words...)
Steamer said:
Mk2 MR2s seem pretty good.. maybe a few bubbles on the top of the rear arches - although the red paint on the early ones seems to like turning pink!
A lot of them are having problems with rotting of the sills. Look great at first glance, but they rot inside out. By the time it's noticeable on the outside, it's already pretty extensive. 9 times out of 10 will cost more than the car is worth to fix.
They have lasted a fair bit better than Mk1's, but they will be just as rare in 10 years.
My old Citroen ZX was perfect oddly enough so was the 92 Camry and 97 Vectra.
Ug_lee said:
They have lasted a fair bit better than Mk1's, but they will be just as rare in 10 years.
Yes but now even the newest MK2s are 12 years old and there are still quite a lot of 20 year old H reg cars about.I think most will go through hedges backwards or be scrapped due to very expensive mechanical failures before they rot.
Twincam16 said:
Oddly enough, ever since, despite bar-room wags still doggedly insisting that Italian cars go all rusty whenever it rains, the cars of the Fiat Group have had some of the best rust protection around. It's people failing to maintain the engines that kills Italian cars of the '90s and '00s.
+1robsco said:
Twincam16 said:
Oddly enough, ever since, despite bar-room wags still doggedly insisting that Italian cars go all rusty whenever it rains, the cars of the Fiat Group have had some of the best rust protection around. It's people failing to maintain the engines that kills Italian cars of the '90s and '00s.
+1Same applies to the 156 we sold 18 months back - no rust on the panels or structural parts even at 10 years and 140k miles old. But the front arch liners were still present.
You do hear of 156s and other similarly aged Alfas getting rusty floors - this is more often than not traced to either leaking heaters or leaking door seals. If you get soggy soundproofing and don't fix the source of the leak, it doesn't matter how good your rust protection is, you'll eventually get rust in the panel.
My Cinq. Sporting track car is 12 years old and has yet to be welded, too. No rot on the body, either - and it has had a very hard life, judging by the number of dents and scratches in the paint.
Pug 306 has no rust anywhere, 152k and 12 years old.
However, the heater fan only works on full, the rear suspension makes odd noises, front suspension top mount bearing creaks sometimes, the steering wheel trim is falling off, the indicators speed up without warning, it stalls sometimes at tickover, the wipers bump the windscreen outer, the remote locking doesn't work.
Oh, and the fuel gauge has no idea what it is supposed to do either.
But, hey, no rust anywhere.
However, the heater fan only works on full, the rear suspension makes odd noises, front suspension top mount bearing creaks sometimes, the steering wheel trim is falling off, the indicators speed up without warning, it stalls sometimes at tickover, the wipers bump the windscreen outer, the remote locking doesn't work.
Oh, and the fuel gauge has no idea what it is supposed to do either.
But, hey, no rust anywhere.
My old Mk2 Golf (manufactured in 1989) was structurally mint with 247,000 miles on the clock.
Only rust on the body was a patch behind one plastic rear arch spat, tiny bubble on the scuttle and a few surface areas that had developed from stone chips.
The whole underside and arches washed straight back to the OG stonechip and paint:
Only rust on the body was a patch behind one plastic rear arch spat, tiny bubble on the scuttle and a few surface areas that had developed from stone chips.
The whole underside and arches washed straight back to the OG stonechip and paint:
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