97 Rust Problem

[harvey]

Hello, I own a 1997 Ford Explorer XLT that has started to rust. We have taken pretty good care of the car since new but here in the rust belt ,they use plenty of salt in the winter and that does not help. Since the car has over 136,000 miles on it I realy don't think it is worth having the body parts replaced and repainted. I was thinking that I could maybe find some Eddie Bauer fender flares and running borads that would cover the rusted areas. The dog leg behind the rear door on the drivers side is whare the problem is. If I could stop the rust with something like POR 15 and add the flares ,you would never know it was rusted underneath and it would look good for a few more years. Would adding the Eddie Bauer flares and running boards be difficult. Are they hard to come by? Any idea where I might find them used?

Thank you for any assistance you might be able to provide. I think the old Explorere is worth the effort to keep it on the road a while longer. It has been a pretty good car for us all these past ten years.

R. Lamp