salt is bad for metal, which cars are made of. Thank god they don't salt the road here.
Winter Madness
Now that winter is at it's worst, I'm getting very worried about my car. Snow is caking up and freezing to ice inside the wheel well and all into the brakes/suspension. I seriously can't see anythink inside my wheel well accept white snow. When I get out onto the freeway my steering wheel starts goin' crazy and it feels like my wheels are falling off. I scraped most of that crap out so it wouldn't do that anymore, but I feel like all that snow/ice/sand/salt in there is just destroying my Camry slowly but surely. Obviously there is a ton of salt buildup all over the car, which really concerns me since there are spots of rust starting to creep out from under the car. Drives me crazy I swear. It's like watching my kid slowly die, pretty much.
So I guess I'm not sure as to what my question really is, except is this all as bad for the car as I feel like it is? I'm not wealthy enough to put my stock wheels back on and buy new tires for them, so I use my 17's with all-seasons. Is the snow and salt really as hard on cars as people think it is?
I love Minnesota, but I HATE winter. :wink2:
So I guess I'm not sure as to what my question really is, except is this all as bad for the car as I feel like it is? I'm not wealthy enough to put my stock wheels back on and buy new tires for them, so I use my 17's with all-seasons. Is the snow and salt really as hard on cars as people think it is?
I love Minnesota, but I HATE winter. :wink2:
1 - 20 of 24 Posts
could you hose down the car before you park it and before you leave?
No we have to turn the outside water off in the winter otherwise the waterpipes would freeze and crack. Maybe carwashes? Even though right afterwards it gets hella dirty anyways.
u can try those armor all car wash wipes to just clean the salt off
Hey that's a good idea. I might try that every couple days.
oh yeah i forgot. one winter in cali our pipe burst while on vacation cos it managed to get very cold.
super soaker time. or could you turn on your outside water for a short amount of time?
super soaker time. or could you turn on your outside water for a short amount of time?
rust will almost always start from the backside of the panels (doors, fenders...) before the outside painted surfaces. wiping the outside of the car off wont prevent it from rusting, you need to wash all of the nooks and crannies under the car and behind places to at least put up a fight. check out some photos in this link http://www.toyotanation.com/forum/t173093.html (scroll down a little) of the underside of my car. the outside has zero rust, a rarity for living in the rust belt.
plus if you use a cloth or wipe to wipe down the rims and/or car without washing it, itll put fine scratches on the surface. salt isnt smooth or soft to drag across a painted surface.
plus if you use a cloth or wipe to wipe down the rims and/or car without washing it, itll put fine scratches on the surface. salt isnt smooth or soft to drag across a painted surface.
i doubt it will scratch and if they do scratch it will be so unnoticeable....if it does scratch all u need to do is use nufinish scratch remover or meguiars
Every 3 weeks I give my camry a good washing at the car wash. I use the pressure washer to get under the car and all the hard to reach areas to prevent salt from causing rust. For a $1.50 you cant beat saving your car from rusting out.
I'm guessing your talking about the self-serve car washes right? Was the $1.50 just for the under carriage pressure wash, or the entire car?Tuner571 said:Every 3 weeks I give my camry a good washing at the car wash. I use the pressure washer to get under the car and all the hard to reach areas to prevent salt from causing rust. For a $1.50 you cant beat saving your car from rusting out.
Haha my car was last rust proofed in 97 and now my car is taking the toll, even though the key areas were treated 'quarter panels, fenders etc...' all the other areas are rusting its very sad 
.
.
you need to rustproof every year....
I forgot to last year, and I'm paying for it now...I actually have some rust building under the paint on my driver's door....I'll have to pick up a new door and get that painted coming summer....
and don't worry about the snow and ice...cars were designed to handle that
but if you're running 17s in the winter with all-seasons, first thing that I would recommend is- don't. if you have performance oriented all-season, don't. They SUCK in the snow, especially deep snow. You may have been lucky so far, but I wouldn't push it. Go get some winters.
I used to run my potenzas in the snow, but then gave up after sliding through a couple stop signs and went home to put on my winters/steelies. Now I have 17" winters which are amazing- but even then, when I had 225 wide ones, they tended to roll on top of the snow at high speeds...not too good even for winters.
The reason why your steering and everything goes weird though, is because you have ice/snow buildup on your rims. With aftermarket and bigger rims, the snow and ice stick easily and it throws your wheels off balance.
I forgot to last year, and I'm paying for it now...I actually have some rust building under the paint on my driver's door....I'll have to pick up a new door and get that painted coming summer....
and don't worry about the snow and ice...cars were designed to handle that
but if you're running 17s in the winter with all-seasons, first thing that I would recommend is- don't. if you have performance oriented all-season, don't. They SUCK in the snow, especially deep snow. You may have been lucky so far, but I wouldn't push it. Go get some winters.
I used to run my potenzas in the snow, but then gave up after sliding through a couple stop signs and went home to put on my winters/steelies. Now I have 17" winters which are amazing- but even then, when I had 225 wide ones, they tended to roll on top of the snow at high speeds...not too good even for winters.
The reason why your steering and everything goes weird though, is because you have ice/snow buildup on your rims. With aftermarket and bigger rims, the snow and ice stick easily and it throws your wheels off balance.
it wont be bad enough to scratch into the paint, but i dont like even having swirl marks on my car. if your clearcoat was in mint condition, even clean cotton towels on a clean surface can leave fine scratches. thats why microfiber towels are nice. im still cringing at the thought of taking a wet towel to clean off a car covered in salt.nuchieboy said:i doubt it will scratch and if they do scratch it will be so unnoticeable....if it does scratch all u need to do is use nufinish scratch remover or meguiars
Yeah I know I got all the snow and ice out from inside the wheels. Definately ruined my MPG for a while. My car actually gets around VERY well in the snow with my Yokohama tires with barely any tread. I do not have enough money to buy new tires otherwise my stock 15" steelies would be on with some brand new Blizzak's.Eye8Pussies said:you need to rustproof every year....
I forgot to last year, and I'm paying for it now...I actually have some rust building under the paint on my driver's door....I'll have to pick up a new door and get that painted coming summer....
and don't worry about the snow and ice...cars were designed to handle that
but if you're running 17s in the winter with all-seasons, first thing that I would recommend is- don't. if you have performance oriented all-season, don't. They SUCK in the snow, especially deep snow. You may have been lucky so far, but I wouldn't push it. Go get some winters.
I used to run my potenzas in the snow, but then gave up after sliding through a couple stop signs and went home to put on my winters/steelies. Now I have 17" winters which are amazing- but even then, when I had 225 wide ones, they tended to roll on top of the snow at high speeds...not too good even for winters.
The reason why your steering and everything goes weird though, is because you have ice/snow buildup on your rims. With aftermarket and bigger rims, the snow and ice stick easily and it throws your wheels off balance.
What is needed to "rustproof" a car for winter? Rust is definately starting to creep up on me. There still isn't any but I can tell it's comin'. I CANNOT drive a car with ANY rust. I would rather spend a grip of money on a new paint job and body work than drive a rusty car.
go to whatever automotive place that offers oil rustproofing- it's the most effective type
they usually have to drill holes, but it's in discrete places and they can't get into all the body panels otherwise
they usually have to drill holes, but it's in discrete places and they can't get into all the body panels otherwise
Google "electronic rust protection"....never tried it myself and not sure what it does on exsisting rust but heard that it prevents new rust from forming.
Ghettosled's right, never wipe the car down while it's dirty, you will do more damage than cleaning. Take it to the self service car wash on a nice day. But never use the self service brushes. Bring a bucket with a wash mit and soap and clean it the right way. :thumbup:
Ghettosled's right, never wipe the car down while it's dirty, you will do more damage than cleaning. Take it to the self service car wash on a nice day. But never use the self service brushes. Bring a bucket with a wash mit and soap and clean it the right way. :thumbup:
It just sucks gettin' a carwash when you just get the car very dirty immediately after. But it's okay, I'm getting one tomorrow morning after my work meeting. My car is white right now from all the salt, can't even see the blue...
EDIT: Thanks for all the responses. I appreciate the time as always gentlemen.
EDIT: Thanks for all the responses. I appreciate the time as always gentlemen.
Yea, its one of those self-serve car washes. The $1.50 is for the entire car and with the time left over I spray the whole underside of the car making sure to clean out the fenders and under the doors really well.geoff5093 said:I'm guessing your talking about the self-serve car washes right? Was the $1.50 just for the under carriage pressure wash, or the entire car?
haha, ya. I just got a carwash yesterday and after driving for a few hours it looks worse then before94CoupeV6 said:It just sucks gettin' a carwash when you just get the car very dirty immediately after. But it's okay, I'm getting one tomorrow morning after my work meeting. My car is white right now from all the salt, can't even see the blue...
EDIT: Thanks for all the responses. I appreciate the time as always gentlemen.
1 - 20 of 24 Posts
- This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Toyota Nation Forum
ToyotaNation Forum is a community dedicated to all Toyota models. Come discuss the Camry, Tacoma, Highlander, 4Runner, Rav4 and more!
Full Forum Listing
Top Contributors this Month
View All
sdspeed
506 Replies
1990Toyota
405 Replies
93celicaconv
211 Replies
