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DPChallenge Forums >> General Discussion >> Advice on corroded car engine parts please?
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 05/26/2010 09:29:09 AM · #1
I just bought a used 2006 car. It's body is in very good condition, and runs like a charm, 58,000kms. One previous owner in Quebec, land of road salt.

But there are some items under the hood that are rusted or corroded. I'm no car or engine guy, but do you know if/how I can restore the ugly stuff under the hood? I'm guessing the way to go is to dremmel as much corrosion/rust as possible off, blow the rust dust off, then spray accurately with Rust Check, then with Rust Check Coating...??? This sounds like a ton of labour, though, and I'd have to pace myself at one or two spots per weekend.

I've posted on one car forum, but they are mostly tweakers who call each other names, recommend slamming the car (lowering), and they're just calling it a base model rust bucket. Except the one guy who called me gay. :-/







Message edited by author 2010-05-26 09:40:03.
 05/26/2010 09:36:33 AM · #2
Looks like your car was driven through salt water. Like shallow beach water. This may cause long term problems. Hope the damage is just cosmetic.
 05/26/2010 09:41:33 AM · #3
Originally posted by jimsapp:
Looks like your car was driven through salt water. Like shallow beach water. This may cause long term problems. Hope the damage is just cosmetic.

Yeah, I just added to my post above, the previous owner is in Quebec, land of road salt. But I live in Ontario, also land of road salt. We didn't have any snow to speak of this last winter, but they STILL salted the roads just to blow off the budget! >:-(
 05/26/2010 09:42:48 AM · #4
Ive seen a lot of cars from down east like that. I can only assume that the air is salty to a degree and causes this kind of rusting. Anyway, on the brackets and what not you can prob take them off and use something like CLR or sand blasting, to take the rust off and then prime, paint and re-install the parts. On a lot of the other larger or more difficult parts then you with have to use a dremel or get a wire brush wheel for your drill and attack it that way but again you will have to paint it somehow otherwise it will not take long to go back to all rusty. Also on the break calipers there are paint kits that you can get from most speed shops that uses a hi-temp enamel as you will need that because they get very hot, or you could use a high temp engine paint as well.
05/26/2010 09:48:32 AM · #5
Well, I dunno about the rest of it, but here's the root of the "gay" comment right here:



Is that REALLY your license plate? How utterly... *Slippy*... of you... Unless you're a proctologist, of course? New career?

R.

Message edited by author 2010-05-26 09:50:54.
 05/26/2010 09:53:24 AM · #6
Left ya a few comments :)
 05/26/2010 09:56:29 AM · #7
I'd suggest using some Topaz adjust on it.
 05/26/2010 10:02:03 AM · #8
All looks fairly cosmetic to me, nothing serious at all and pretty much as I would expect. As you say, best way is to sand the surface rust off, coat with a rust treatment and then paint over.

Calipers will need high temp paint, you can get specific caliper paint.

I'd leave the alternator well alone in terms of sanding etc but you could carefully paint with a brush with some fairly thick paint to make it look better ... you really don't want to drip paint inside though!

If it bothers you as you say, tackle one bit every weekend or something
 05/26/2010 11:14:53 AM · #9
Use pink paint.
 05/26/2010 11:24:23 AM · #10
How did you get rust on the gear shifter??

Never mind, don't want to know.

Message edited by author 2010-05-26 11:26:04.
 05/26/2010 11:45:54 AM · #11
Originally posted by Digipixer:
How did you get rust on the gear shifter??

Never mind, don't want to know.


LOL you would think most lubricants would keep the shifter from rusting :P
 05/27/2010 01:27:06 PM · #12
Found this on the interwebs... some choices:

"

1. Hydrochloric acid: (available as muriatic acid). Takes off corrosion
(not oily gunk), bubbling as it does so, but leaves the surface dark grey.
Use a stainless steel wire "tooth" brush ($1 at your local car parts place)
to expedite activity. Don't use it unless you really like this color. Avoid
the fumes.

2. "Etching formula mag wheel cleaner": Available in a spray bottle and
labelled "B" on the ABCDE specifier for automotive cleaning products, it
contains phosphoric and hydrofluoric acids and bubbles when applied. Use a
stainless steel wire "tooth" brush to expedite activity. Avoid the fumes.
Leaves a dull light grey finish which can be lightened up by wiping with a
paper towel/cloth immediately after brushing with the wire brush.

3. Wire brushes: You can get ones that fit in your drill and brush either
circumferentially or radially and in different
wire thicknesses. I recommend the softest wire for aluminum. Also get the
wire "tooth" brush (and more than one) I mentioned above. Look in the
welding section of your hardware store if you don't see them in the tools
section. You can also mount a wire wheel on your grinder for small parts.
Frankly, wire brushing (and blasting) are the only things I've found that
clean off corrosion and leave the surface bright. It's a lot of work and
can't get in the nooks and crannies but gives the best results. Clean
surface with solvent first to keep brush from simply smearing the crud
around.

4. Scotch-Brite pads: Available in about 6 by 9 inch sheets for a buck,
they work well on clean, smooth aluminum to brighten it up, don't do squat
for rough-finished aluminum.

5. 3M metal-stripper-wheel. This is a round plastic sponge, impregnated
with abrasive grit, which you chuck into your electric drill. These remove
tar, paint, rust from steel frames, tanks, panels. Probably a bit too
abrasive for use on alloy, though. With one of these wheels, you can remove
all the paint from,say, a gas tank without using any evil chemicals. It
also removes surface rust, leaving you with bare metal covered with a
network of fine scratches, ideal for paint adhesion. You then swab off your
part with "metalprep", wash it off with water, dry it thoroughly, and paint
away! That new paint will stick like glue!

6. Being the sort who hates paying more than $50 for a motorcycle I've run
into a lot of corroded aluminium and have had good luck with
scotchbrite(tm) pads (plastic wool) followed by Nevr Dull. Nevr Dull
doesn't have much problem cleaning up the scratch marks left by really fine
scotchbrite. This works pretty well on both smooth and sand-cast surfaces.

"
 05/27/2010 01:54:08 PM · #13
Have you used coke? eats the corrision right off (my advise is better then my spelling)
 05/27/2010 02:11:34 PM · #14
Originally posted by JustCaree:
Have you used coke? eats the corrision right off (my advise is better then my spelling)

Ha, I'll try that on a test spot before I look at any cleaners. The wife always has a case of the stuff laying around, though I don't drink it. I just have to be sure to leave her one for the morning or she gets rank.
 05/27/2010 02:13:05 PM · #15
Originally posted by Strikeslip:
Originally posted by JustCaree:
Have you used coke? eats the corrision right off (my advise is better then my spelling)

Ha, I'll try that on a test spot before I look at any cleaners. The wife always has a case of the stuff laying around, though I don't drink it. I just have to be sure to leave her one for the morning or she gets rank.


my daddy taught me that ... many moons ago...
 05/27/2010 04:48:06 PM · #16
I'd just leave it alone, but if you want to make it look pretty, you should make nice with those guys who called you gay.
 04/16/2011 01:40:35 AM · #17
Automotive batteries don\'t last forever, so if you notice your headlights dimming, it\'s been 3-7 years since you got a new
 04/16/2011 05:25:32 AM · #18
Por-15

This stuff comes highly recommended from the east coast members of a mini-truck enthusiast website I frequent.
 04/16/2011 09:45:33 AM · #19
Originally posted by jamesgoss:
Por-15

This stuff comes highly recommended from the east coast members of a mini-truck enthusiast website I frequent.

Old thread, but spring is here and soon it'll be warm enough for me to obsess. I'll look into it, thanks!
 04/16/2011 09:54:19 AM · #20
Originally posted by Yo_Spiff:
I'd suggest using some Topaz adjust on it.

I was thinking the EXACT same thing!
 04/16/2011 10:54:44 AM · #21
Originally posted by JustCaree:
Have you used coke?


I know Slippy's posts can be a bit odd, but accusations of drug use just aren't warranted here.
 04/16/2011 10:56:06 AM · #22
My advice is to go open about 20 other similarly aged car's hoods...

This is normal, it even happens in the desert, albeit slightly slower.

Take the same route you did with the new paint job, as doing something like this is more likely to negatively affect the car's value than it is to help the car's value..

If you really, really must do something here, then the only real "solution" to this problem is to either remove the pieces and then refinish them (you'll want to use high-temperature black paint), which will take a bunch of time and effort, or you could replace them with aluminum/stainless replacement parts, some of which may need to be custom machined, which will require both lots of time and effort, and lots of money too.. :)

BTW: How the hell did you get a geology degree without just knowing that all bare iron oxidizes - no matter what.
 04/16/2011 11:12:43 AM · #23
Originally posted by Yo_Spiff:
I'd suggest using some Topaz adjust on it.



Originally posted by Cory:
My advice is to go ...

... to Car Talk, where you can ask your question of people who specialize in knowledge about cars, not cameras ...
 04/16/2011 11:38:31 AM · #24
Originally posted by MattO:
Originally posted by JustCaree:
Have you used coke?


I know Slippy's posts can be a bit odd, but accusations of drug use just aren't warranted here.


Coca-Cola, not cocaine.
 04/16/2011 11:39:06 AM · #25
Originally posted by alohadave:
Originally posted by MattO:
Originally posted by JustCaree:
Have you used coke?


I know Slippy's posts can be a bit odd, but accusations of drug use just aren't warranted here.


Coca-Cola, not cocaine.


Sarcasm, not serious.
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