MOT advisory 'corrosion throughout vehicle'
Discussion
You need to ask the tester for more detail because if taken literally, unless the car has some value then repairing will either be DIY or not economic.
If it's just surface rusting underneath then a clean up and underseal will get you along for a while. If it's heavy corrosion around suspension points, etc, but not yet showing holes or enough thinning to cause rejection, then it's more serious and welding will be required. All 4 corners and it's going to be expensive.
If it's just surface rusting underneath then a clean up and underseal will get you along for a while. If it's heavy corrosion around suspension points, etc, but not yet showing holes or enough thinning to cause rejection, then it's more serious and welding will be required. All 4 corners and it's going to be expensive.
Oh, it might be genuinely rusty then!
I have one and it is beginning to look a bit manky along the inner sills and the front wheel wells need attention at some point. In my case it hasn't been picked up on an MOT (in fact the tester said it was "pretty good for one of these") but it's just general surface corrosion.
Mazda 6's do rust badly in some cases but they appear to have changed something around 2005 so instead of rusting faster than the titanic they merely rust like a Sprinter van instead. One day if I can be bothered I'll get a wire wheel on all the rust and a pot of underseal which will probably last a couple of years until something else writes the car off anyway.
In the short term one of the reasons they rust is the stupid water absorbing arch liners so pull them all off and dig all the inevitable mud and crap out from behind them, clean them and put it back together. The arches, particularly rears, go first from the inside out otherwise.
I have one and it is beginning to look a bit manky along the inner sills and the front wheel wells need attention at some point. In my case it hasn't been picked up on an MOT (in fact the tester said it was "pretty good for one of these") but it's just general surface corrosion.
Mazda 6's do rust badly in some cases but they appear to have changed something around 2005 so instead of rusting faster than the titanic they merely rust like a Sprinter van instead. One day if I can be bothered I'll get a wire wheel on all the rust and a pot of underseal which will probably last a couple of years until something else writes the car off anyway.
In the short term one of the reasons they rust is the stupid water absorbing arch liners so pull them all off and dig all the inevitable mud and crap out from behind them, clean them and put it back together. The arches, particularly rears, go first from the inside out otherwise.
StoatInACoat said:
Oh, it might be genuinely rusty then!
I have one and it is beginning to look a bit manky along the inner sills and the front wheel wells need attention at some point. In my case it hasn't been picked up on an MOT (in fact the tester said it was "pretty good for one of these") but it's just general surface corrosion.
Mazda 6's do rust badly in some cases but they appear to have changed something around 2005 so instead of rusting faster than the titanic they merely rust like a Sprinter van instead. One day if I can be bothered I'll get a wire wheel on all the rust and a pot of underseal which will probably last a couple of years until something else writes the car off anyway.
In the short term one of the reasons they rust is the stupid water absorbing arch liners so pull them all off and dig all the inevitable mud and crap out from behind them, clean them and put it back together. The arches, particularly rears, go first from the inside out otherwise.
I have one and it is beginning to look a bit manky along the inner sills and the front wheel wells need attention at some point. In my case it hasn't been picked up on an MOT (in fact the tester said it was "pretty good for one of these") but it's just general surface corrosion.
Mazda 6's do rust badly in some cases but they appear to have changed something around 2005 so instead of rusting faster than the titanic they merely rust like a Sprinter van instead. One day if I can be bothered I'll get a wire wheel on all the rust and a pot of underseal which will probably last a couple of years until something else writes the car off anyway.
In the short term one of the reasons they rust is the stupid water absorbing arch liners so pull them all off and dig all the inevitable mud and crap out from behind them, clean them and put it back together. The arches, particularly rears, go first from the inside out otherwise.
you too eh?
If you are lucky it is just surface rust on the suspension and subframes but, like stoat says, they normally go from the wheel arches, down into the sills etc then you are fighting a losing battle.
Only way of telling is to get underneath.......
edit: btw, check for water in the boot well, water leaking in through a seam below the lights is common apparently (although not on mine).
Thanks all. Think I'll also try to remove as much corrosion as I can and see how it goes.
Seeing as you may well know the car, other advisory was ' rear anti roll bar dust cover leaking but not letting in dirt yet' (or something like that).
Are these easy to replace, rather like suspension units just unbolt and put the new rods in??
Seeing as you may well know the car, other advisory was ' rear anti roll bar dust cover leaking but not letting in dirt yet' (or something like that).
Are these easy to replace, rather like suspension units just unbolt and put the new rods in??
I looked under a 2005 Mazda 6 recently and was genuinely amazed at how rusty it all was. What I mean is just about every surface was covered in rust, unlike I have seen since Morris Oxford days! It was... rusty! crusty rusty, everywhere! while most of it was just on the surface, this one had a pair of rusty sills and on that basis was condemned.
walking around, it was a very presentable car, one owner, who had been coming with the car to the garage since its first MOT... the tester knew the car and said it had been getting worse each year he tested it...
walking around, it was a very presentable car, one owner, who had been coming with the car to the garage since its first MOT... the tester knew the car and said it had been getting worse each year he tested it...
I can't really remember the layout at the back that well but I vaguely recall spotting a droplink when I was stripping the rear brakes so could be that yours are knackered. Easy to change if you don't bother fighting with them and just saw them off. I know the track rod ends on the back of mine look like at artefact that Time Team have just dug up but MOT man doesn't seem to mind so all is well.
jondude said:
' rear anti roll bar dust cover leaking but not letting in dirt yet' (or something like that).
I suspect he said "anti-roll bar drop link dust cover" as anti roll bars don't have dust covers but the drop links do, as above an easy job to do, will take an hour or so to remove & replace (do both) with something like 14 & 16mm spanner.Thanks again all - I managed to get under the car and would say the advisory is fair but most of the corrosion does indeed look surface to me and a good clean with a wire brush should do it. Exhaust system seems to have taken most of it.
I'll have a go at the links too as they are not too expensive it seems and doable on a Sunday afternoon. (Famous last words....)
.
I'll have a go at the links too as they are not too expensive it seems and doable on a Sunday afternoon. (Famous last words....)
.
buzzer said:
I looked under a 2005 Mazda 6 recently and was genuinely amazed at how rusty it all was. What I mean is just about every surface was covered in rust, unlike I have seen since Morris Oxford days! It was... rusty! crusty rusty, everywhere! while most of it was just on the surface, this one had a pair of rusty sills and on that basis was condemned.
walking around, it was a very presentable car, one owner, who had been coming with the car to the garage since its first MOT... the tester knew the car and said it had been getting worse each year he tested it...
Yet some on here say that Jap cars have the mythical build quality of German cars...walking around, it was a very presentable car, one owner, who had been coming with the car to the garage since its first MOT... the tester knew the car and said it had been getting worse each year he tested it...
In fairness the Mazda 6 is a well built and engineered car made out of poor quality steel and rubbish underseal. I have looked at a LOT of 10 year old BMW's and VW's that have far more serious mechanical issues as well as very poor quality paint and similar levels of rust. Ford apparently still have this problem to this day! My Mazda has 170k on it now and has a bubble on each rear arch, a bit underneath and has cost approximately £200 a year to maintain including servicing. The interior still looks new and doesn't rattle either.
I do think that if its something the French can manage (and lets be honest they're still struggling to understand how electricity is supposed to work in a car) then the Japs and Germans really need to up their game. It's not good enough for a decade old car from any manufacturer to succumb to rust in my opinion.
I do think that if its something the French can manage (and lets be honest they're still struggling to understand how electricity is supposed to work in a car) then the Japs and Germans really need to up their game. It's not good enough for a decade old car from any manufacturer to succumb to rust in my opinion.
StoatInACoat said:
In fairness the Mazda 6 is a well built and engineered car made out of poor quality steel and rubbish underseal. I have looked at a LOT of 10 year old BMW's and VW's that have far more serious mechanical issues as well as very poor quality paint and similar levels of rust. Ford apparently still have this problem to this day! My Mazda has 170k on it now and has a bubble on each rear arch, a bit underneath and has cost approximately £200 a year to maintain including servicing. The interior still looks new and doesn't rattle either.
I do think that if its something the French can manage (and lets be honest they're still struggling to understand how electricity is supposed to work in a car) then the Japs and Germans really need to up their game. It's not good enough for a decade old car from any manufacturer to succumb to rust in my opinion.
A good summary that matches my experience too.I do think that if its something the French can manage (and lets be honest they're still struggling to understand how electricity is supposed to work in a car) then the Japs and Germans really need to up their game. It's not good enough for a decade old car from any manufacturer to succumb to rust in my opinion.
I am thinking of changing my 150k mile Mazda6 for a merc C class or 3 series estate. Frankly I cannot find one in as good nick as my Mazda mechanically and interior wise without going significantly newer. And yes, finding an old c class or 3 series without tinworm is not easy either.
We are currently looking at 5 series estates, maybe E90 but I'm not good with BMW model numbers? - around 2007ish anyway. A world away from the same era 3 series which my missus was quite disappointed with coming from the Mazda and 5's seem to be cheaper than 3's which is odd but good if you don't mind a big car. Still, a lot more potential for things to go wrong and part of me wants to keep the Mazda just to see how long it'll go on for.
It is bloody slow though.
It is bloody slow though.
Gassing Station | Home Mechanics | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff