Cosmetic/rust prevention question

[Sigmundr]

Being in southern Idaho, our highway department finds that salting every road when it gets cold is the best course of action to prevent icy conditions. Now, all that salt has a tendency to cause some nasty corrosion trouble.

I picked up my explorer from a gentleman who had parked it for several years. I knew there was some rust on both sides by the doglegs. The driver's side is the worst. I did what I could to try and prevent any further rust, but it has eaten through.

I plan on getting a new dogleg for both sides from raybuck.com. However, I would like to prevent future corrosion. That rear panel doesn't seem to have a protective boot or anything to prevent all the slush and road gunk from collecting on that 1" ledge right in front of that back tire. Without some kind of protective covering I'm probably only a few seasons away from dealing with similar problems.

Do you guys know if there is supposed to be a boot there to begin with that I might pull out of a junk yard, or is this something I may need to look for in after market products? Something like splash guards or running boards that have guards built in?

I'll add a picture or two when I have enough light to get a good shoot.

 

[Wolfie_85]

There might be something out there, but I haven't seen it. You could probably make your own, but my best advise is to keep it clean and clear of buildup. When washing, pay attention to that area and get all the salty stuff and crud out.

Another step is to use a rust inhibitor and coat the unseen parts with it and some paint, just so you have no bare sheet metal. I face the same project.

 

[the_don]

http://www.theruststore.com/Rust-Converter-Aerosol-P292.aspx?gclid=CJTPkcDN2MQCFcVhfgodqngA8A

 

[FR-425]

 

[Anime]

The ledge isn't usually the problem, the water and salt get in through the holes for the plastic side skirts, and the drain holes don't do much, so what you get is rocker panels that get rusted away from the inside out.

You can either ditch the side skirts and cut away all the rust, welding in new rockers or sheet metal in place and doing a full prime and paint job, that will hopefully keep things rust free from then on.

You can also just cut away the entire rocker panel and paint the underside of what's left, which leaves no place for the salt and water/snow to go and sit and start rusting the metal.

 

[2stroke]

There really isn't much you can do other than to wash it. I don't do anything more than spray it down with water. I don't scrub unless its really dirty, and I try to do it once a week or so when the roads are sloppy. I've never tried those rust removers. What are those, some kind of cold bluing like I use to touch up spots on gun barrels? You can make drain holes all you want, but the frame, shackles, body mounts, and everything else important is still just as susceptible to rusting. The best option is to just park it for the winter, but a daily driver is going to rust. Washing it often will delay it, but you will have to weld panels in if you want a daily driver to stay looking nice.