Howdy.
After convincing myself for years that I'd never own a bay.. have picked up a single cab. It hasn't been driven in the MN winters.
I'm Not Looking for an Idiot Answer Like "Water and Oxygen=Ferrous Oxide"
Sincerely.... I know Bugs mainly due to plugged "weep holes" and bad window rubber.
QUESTION - what causes the lower perimeter of busses (especially single cabs) to rust.. are there common failure areas or preventable damage.
I'm aware the doglegs and lower perimeter are prone to rusting.
I'd like to stabilize this bus before it starts rusting down - will be an ugly daily driver.
Tim
==What Causes Lower Rust on a Bay?==
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aircooledtechguy
- Posts: 1709
- Joined: Sun Oct 28, 2001 1:01 am
Where I live in the PNW, vehicles seem to rust but not as bad a some may think. Here's a couple things I've notices about rusting cars and contributing factors. . .
1. If a car drives a lot of dirt roads (muddy roads) and does not get the mud cleaned off regularly, it's usually a rust bucket. The caked mud holds all moisture against the body and they rust away only where the tires kick-up water (wheel wells, rockers, dog-legs etc.
2. If a car is stored in a field w/ grass, it's usually rusted pretty bad. The grass holds the moisture from rain, due, etc and the relative humidity under and right near the car is much higher than a couple feet away. This usually causes the whole car to be equally rusted. In this case, the doors hinges are sticky and everything has a nice coating of rust. Storing a car on grass wreaks havoc on an electrical system over time too.
3. The "Blue Tarp of Death" Tarping a car is about the worst thing you can do for all the reasons of #2. Only thing different is now the tarp eliminated the ability of the moisture to escape the car. . .EVER!! Tarping a car on grass should be illegal
4. Bad under-coating. Under coating is O.K., but when it cracks or gets old and begins to peel, it allows road moisture to get between it and the body causing rust (the very rust it was put there to prevent. Either use a quality product like Line-X that won't chip of peal (easily) or every year get under and touch-up the rattle-can type.
I have several clients who live out in the San Juan Islands. They have a LOT of dirt roads out on the islands. Combine fresh salt air and mud and you may as well just splash battery acid on the outer 1 foot of the car. . .
1. If a car drives a lot of dirt roads (muddy roads) and does not get the mud cleaned off regularly, it's usually a rust bucket. The caked mud holds all moisture against the body and they rust away only where the tires kick-up water (wheel wells, rockers, dog-legs etc.
2. If a car is stored in a field w/ grass, it's usually rusted pretty bad. The grass holds the moisture from rain, due, etc and the relative humidity under and right near the car is much higher than a couple feet away. This usually causes the whole car to be equally rusted. In this case, the doors hinges are sticky and everything has a nice coating of rust. Storing a car on grass wreaks havoc on an electrical system over time too.
3. The "Blue Tarp of Death" Tarping a car is about the worst thing you can do for all the reasons of #2. Only thing different is now the tarp eliminated the ability of the moisture to escape the car. . .EVER!! Tarping a car on grass should be illegal
4. Bad under-coating. Under coating is O.K., but when it cracks or gets old and begins to peel, it allows road moisture to get between it and the body causing rust (the very rust it was put there to prevent. Either use a quality product like Line-X that won't chip of peal (easily) or every year get under and touch-up the rattle-can type.
I have several clients who live out in the San Juan Islands. They have a LOT of dirt roads out on the islands. Combine fresh salt air and mud and you may as well just splash battery acid on the outer 1 foot of the car. . .
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Pillow
- Posts: 2940
- Joined: Mon Oct 15, 2001 1:01 am
I agree with Nate.
Also I would like to add that to me it seems that the wheel well areas fail and start letting water into the rockers and from there it is down hill. Everyone sees the rockers rot out but they are not the first place to rust.
Compound that with dirt and the problems escallate quickly.
The floor pans rot from the top down due to water intrusion from the window gaskets.
Also I would like to add that to me it seems that the wheel well areas fail and start letting water into the rockers and from there it is down hill. Everyone sees the rockers rot out but they are not the first place to rust.
Compound that with dirt and the problems escallate quickly.
The floor pans rot from the top down due to water intrusion from the window gaskets.
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aircooledtechguy
- Posts: 1709
- Joined: Sun Oct 28, 2001 1:01 am
Umm , 'cause a bus is like any other car on the road. . . -
bmerge
- Posts: 33
- Joined: Sun Feb 27, 2011 1:30 pm
Re: ==What Causes Lower Rust on a Bay?==
MNAirHead,
I understand what you are saying as I have an essentially rust free 70 camper and I'd like to keep it that way too. I suspect that moisture/condensation accumulates on the inside of the bus and drips down the walls to any seam/low point and starts the process. What I have done is to remove all inside panels then spray inside the walls a NAPA/Permatex Rust Treatment product. The hope being that it might coat the seam where moisture might sit and "block" the process from starting and if minor rust has already started, the product would "kill" it at that point. Make ME feel better anyway. I'm spraying it also around the outside perimeter of the bus and on any exposed metal underneath before I touch up the old undercoating. What did you end up doing with your single cab? Brian
I understand what you are saying as I have an essentially rust free 70 camper and I'd like to keep it that way too. I suspect that moisture/condensation accumulates on the inside of the bus and drips down the walls to any seam/low point and starts the process. What I have done is to remove all inside panels then spray inside the walls a NAPA/Permatex Rust Treatment product. The hope being that it might coat the seam where moisture might sit and "block" the process from starting and if minor rust has already started, the product would "kill" it at that point. Make ME feel better anyway. I'm spraying it also around the outside perimeter of the bus and on any exposed metal underneath before I touch up the old undercoating. What did you end up doing with your single cab? Brian
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fusername
- Posts: 6806
- Joined: Sun Jan 28, 2007 11:26 am
Re: ==What Causes Lower Rust on a Bay?==
Holy thread revival batman. As for the run down idea, ill believe it. I am taking up a bay, frame is perfect, but where the body and floor meet there are massive issues all around
give a man a watch and he'll allways know what time it is. give him two and he can never be sure again.
Things are rarely just crazy enough to work, but they're frequently just crazy enough to fail hilariously.
Things are rarely just crazy enough to work, but they're frequently just crazy enough to fail hilariously.
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wildthings
- Posts: 1171
- Joined: Thu Jun 03, 2004 12:42 am
Re: ==What Causes Lower Rust on a Bay?==
Buses like other vehicles of their era where not galvanized and the paint on the undersides was horribly cheap. Combine this with road salts, acid rain, and hot sultry summer days and they will not last long. An average day in the east may cause more rust than a month in the west, even in rainy Oregon and Washington (at least away from the salt influence of the coast).