Car Rust can be a serious issue for many Car Owners in New York City. With Rain, Snow and Ice covering the road of New York, this consistent moisture can wreck havoc on the structure of your vehicle, often in areas that can't be seen. The outer body of most cars is either made out of steel or aluminum. This is because they are strong and durable metals. Steel is inexpensive and has been used in vehicle production for over 100 years. Aluminum is a rapidly growing rival of steel because it is lighter and just as strong as steel. In this article, we'll be focusing on steel because steel is the most commonly used metal in vehicle production.
Steel is an alloy metal that contains small amounts of carbon, manganese, silicon, sulfur, phosphorus, and most importantly oxygen. The breakdown of the compounds found in steel is important in helping us understand why cars rust.
What is Car Rust?
Car rust is a brown stain that appears on cars when they begin to rust. Car rust spreads quickly like a rash and it is a very unpleasant sight. Car rust not only damages the body of your vehicle but also reduces the resale value drastically.
Car rust can signify the age of a vehicle and the impending end of a vehicle. Rust can lead to parts of the vehicle falling, breaking or facing mechanical issues as well.
Why Do Cars Rust?
Cars rust when the paint is peeled or chipped and then the bare body is exposed to oxygen and water. Steel already contains oxygen so all it needs to rust is water.
Types of Rust
- Surface Rust - These are little spots around the vehicle. It can be a simple dot or a small patch only visible on the body of the vehicle. This can be fixed by a painting job and body repairs.
- Serious Rust - This is when rust occurs on the bottom inside of the door, on the fender, on the area framing the tires, and other areas where rust is visible on both sides. This shows the vehicle is no longer safe and the cost to repair corrosions like these is very high.
- Frame Rust - Finally, we have frame rust. This is rust located around frames. Frame rust is dangerous because it can lead to parts of the rust simply falling off.
- If the car is older then it is more likely to rust than a newer one. It is important to note that this doesn't mean older vehicles are bad. Every car made with a metal is susceptible to rust.
- The absence of a good primer and paint job. Paint and primer help to protect the bare metal from the sun, water, and other elements. This significantly reduces the chances of rust.
- Your location is important. If you live in a large city like Brooklyn NY then you're probably going to be parking your car outdoors a lot. Rain especially rainstorms can damage the paint job of your car and expose the steel to rust.
- Ensure the paint job is top tier.
- Address body damages immediately especially if you're looking to sell the vehicle later on.
- If you live in a city like Brooklyn NY it might be difficult to find covered parking lots but if you can, it is advisable to park in covered spots.
- Try rust protection products. Aftermarket products like sprays oil sprays, and tar sprays are great for rust protection. Another rust protection product you can try is the Electronic Module.
- Finally, wash your vehicle bi-weekly and do not skimp out on wax coating. These help to protect your vehicle against rust and corrosion.