Does waxing a car do a lot to prevent rust? Can't figure out why our car has so many rust spots
Posted by pat441@reddit | askcarguys | View on Reddit | 12 comments
We bought a 7 year old Camry last year with virtually no rust spots on the paint. In the last year that we've owned it, it has developed a lot of rust spots. I don't know if its because we park it outside, we don't wax it or because its rained a lot last year? But it was parked outside at the dealer for months and it didn't seem to develop any rust in that time. Could anyone suggest something we could do to prevent rust?
matureMentorNJ@reddit
Are you parking on dirt n not a hard surface?
pat441@reddit (OP)
I was parking on a driveway on concrete. But I left snow and ice sitting on the car a lot this winter and wonder if that contributed to the problem. There is also some rust on the trunk lid
outline8668@reddit
Too late now all you can do is try to mitigate. Look into products like 3m cavity wax which is applied from the inside of the pinch weld so it may creep into the weld seam and help seal out moisture. In the wide open areas underneath you may try coating with fluid film or similar however my experience has been it's those seams along the bottom of the doors and around the wheel openings that are the problem areas.
pat441@reddit (OP)
Thanks for the reply. I actually already had the bottom of the car rust proofed and I took it to the car wash after winter to wash off the rust. But its the top of the car that I don't know what to do with. Are we supposed to wax it after taking it through an automatic car wash? Or does the car wash automatically wax it? Does wax make a lot of difference at preventing the paint from rusting?
outline8668@reddit
No wax just helps keep the paint looking nice. The corrosion protection products are underneath. Usually if you're seeing that it's starting from the back side and working it's way out. The only exception to this is maybe stone chips or other unrepaired damage.
pat441@reddit (OP)
does that mean that I can't just fix the rust with a touch up pen? It needs to go to an autobody shop? I don't know if its clear in the picture, but the rust is on the paint just above the top of the windshield.
outline8668@reddit
You can but it will only be a temporary repair. A full repair would involve removing the windshield.
pat441@reddit (OP)
That doesn't sound good. Any idea how much that would cost? Would it be very expensive ... like $500 or more?
outline8668@reddit
Significantly more and they will not guarantee the problem will never reoccur.
pat441@reddit (OP)
do you think its not worth fixing then? I was hoping to keep the car for another 10-12 years ...
outline8668@reddit
The car will go another decade with a little bit of rust. I would just wash the rust stains off as best as possible and touch it up with a pen. It may help slow the degradation and will look a little nicer.
Confident_Award_7675@reddit
Rust usually comes from the inside out