Technical Rust protection

[coolbumble]

Hi Folks.
Has any owner of the current Fiat 500 had their car rust protected? possibly best done when new.
However I'm thinking of having mine done although it is a second owner 2010 sport has done only 19,000 miles. I am an older gent and love the little car (had it a year now) and as I only do 3/4000 miles a year its going to last me a long time !! (hopefully)
Although I have yet to get a formal quote an idea of cost I gather is approx. £600 plus and the car is thoroughly cleaned underneath injecting a wax protector in the chassis and a protective rubber coating on the outside of the chassis Can take 2/3 days to complete.
The company I understand is of good repute.
Your opinions and experience appreciated
Regards
Ian

 

[jrkitching]

possibly best done when new.

That.

Back in the days before galvanised bodyshells, the rule of thumb was that rust treatment had to applied within at most three months from the date of first use to be effective - Ziebart would not guarantee the work if done after this.

On a 7yr old car, to say it's closing the stable door after the horse has bolted would be the understatement of the year; in terms of providing protection, it's the equivalent of putting on a condom as your child is about to start university.

The bodyshell is galvanised and likely to last the life of the car (in so far as other costly parts will likely need replacing before it rots to the point of failing an MOT). The components bolted to the bodyshell are another story, particularly the sump & rear beam (the latter is a £1k+ repair if done using new parts).

I'd certainly consider having the rear beam professionally cleaned and corrosion proofed; whether going much further would ultimately show you a return on your investment is probably questionable.

 

[John202020]

If you're keeping it for the long term consider replacing the front shocks(rusted through to the point of leaking)/springs(rusting) /drop links/bump stops/top mount cups, control arms (Lemforder brand), rear shocks/springs, all small screws in the bumpers for stainless ones, remove and grease the Torx head bolts, bumper to outer wing fixing, remove and grease the caliper (bracket ) bolts, if drums on rear check and replace (mine had unbelievable corrosion ) wheel cylinders too, sump (now rather than later),, all going off what I've had to replace on our Sept 09 car, remember its only a matter of time before the wires to the rear hatch fail too(as I've just had to fix)
If you drive over a speed hump and you can here any noises from the front its a good bet the lower control arms are failing, ours sounded really bad "rubber squashing type noise" passenger side was so loud I didn't hear the also failing drivers side so do both together. Brighter bulbs in the headlights Phillips Extreme +130% are very good; http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Headlight...884949?hash=item5d5352aa15:g:WRIAAOSwD0lUgu7z
If steel wheels remove rust and paint or simply replace with new or alloys

 

[jrkitching]

If you're keeping it for the long term consider replacing the front shocks/springs /drop links/control arms (Lemforder brand), rear shocks/springs all small screws in the bumpers for stainless ones, remove and grease the Torx head bolts bumper to outer wing fixing, remove and grease the caliper (bracket ) bolts, if drums on rear check and replace (mine had unbelievable corrosion ) wheel cylinders too, sump (now rather than later),, all going off what I've had to replace on our Sept 09 car, remember its only a matter of time before the wires to the rear hatch fail too(as I've just had to fix)

All of that, and much more, will be well past its best on an 8yr old 500; much of the deterioration is caused more by time than by mileage, so having a low mileage car won't save you from most of the repair costs.

IMO unless you are doing the work yourself, running a 500 in its later life could cost you more in garage bills than the depreciation on a new one. Take a look at some of SB1500's threads in the Panda section to get an idea of how the problems (and costs) can mount up on a 10yr old Fiat.

In the OP's position, I'd seriously consider putting the money they're considering spending on corrosion proofing toward trading up to a basic, but new (not Fiat), car; think Twingo/I10 or similar. It'll quite possibly cost you less in the long run.

 

[Mila]

Depends where in the world you live. 6 year old fiats here looks to be in amazing condition because here in Australia we don't salt our roads. Salt is the biggest killer.

Few months ago I drove a 2008 500 with 133k kms. Drives amazing and nothing was replaced apart from radiator and rear hatch wiring. Knowing the owner he took good care of it.

 

[jrkitching]

Depends where in the world you live. 6 year old fiats here looks to be in amazing condition because here in Australia we don't salt our roads. Salt is the biggest killer.

Of course. I was writing from the perspective of someone living in the UK as that is where the OP is based.

IMO the 500 is not adequately corrosion proofed for use in a region where salt is used on the roads in winter. The core bodyshell is fine but much of what is bolted to it is not.

 

[John202020]

Britain has a almost worst case conditions lots of damp days, salt, rain etc, unlike Europe where its warmer or cold AND dry add lots of areas like me, close to the sea.

 

[jimboy]

Aye! you're no wrong there, 80 odd % moisture in the air & that's summer time up here.. Great driving roads by the way, but that's another story.

 

[John202020]

If you , can , fix it yourself then parts are not a bad price, just the sheer number of bits to replace, I noticed low clutch fluid and wrongly thought it was the slave (turns out it is the pipe going to it) but the whole part was only £17 delivered

 

[puntofan01]

I have a 9 year old Fiat (08-plate, but not a 500,) and I think the underside is in pretty good nick, so I'll ask my mechanic to rustproof that come MOT time in march.

 

[TrevC]

I've read in several places that a car's useful life is now considered to be 10 years - beyond that it is not economical to keep repairing, unless of course you are an enthusiast or lucky.

 

[John202020]

I've read in several places that a car's useful life is now considered to be 10 years - beyond that it is not economical to keep repairing, unless of course you are an enthusiast or lucky.

I think you could be right, you don't see many "old" cars now like I once did 04 is old and I suspect modern cars will be too expensive to fix as they get older rather than not possible to repair, complicated electronics that are a mot failure like say radar brake assist will kill them off meaning only "rich" will be able to afford to drive, possibly?

 

[alexGS]

Depends where in the world you live. 6 year old fiats here looks to be in amazing condition because here in Australia we don't salt our roads. Salt is the biggest killer.

Few months ago I drove a 2008 500 with 133k kms. Drives amazing and nothing was replaced apart from radiator and rear hatch wiring. Knowing the owner he took good care of it.

Absolutely - 500s are surviving very well here too ours still drives like a new one (the new steering wheel two years ago helps with that new-car feel). We haven't even had the wiring problem.

I think before rustproofing it would be necessary to steam-clean and closely inspect the original coatings for any flaking - if found, it would need to be cleaned off first. Just adding a layer is more likely to cause problems than prevent them, in my opinion.

-Alex

 

[John202020]

Australia = warmer = more flexibility for plastic coated wires?
My dad's car is up to 314,000 kms but that's a dying breed.

 

[Michael Dranfield]

Sorry to say but I have to agree with john 202020 modern cars contain massively overcomplicated electronics which is now much more likely to deem a car beyond ecconomical repair than structural rust.
If you want to extend the life of your car at no cost there's a very simple thing you can do ,take it to one of the high pressure car washes and clean out underneath the wheel arches and bottom edges of the sills ,these are important area's where mud builds up and go in noticed.do this on a regular basis ,say once every 3 months.

 

[TrevC]

Even quite old cars now don't look rusty, as they used to after about 5 years in the 70s. But with, say, a 10 year old diesel Focus you may be due a new DPF, EGR valve, DMF etc. Even having a new timing belt and waterpump would be a substantial chunk of its £1500 - £2000 value.

 

[John202020]

If you want a car to last you need a, galvanised body, Japanese made, chain driven camshaft AND petrol ideally with very few electronic "aids"

 

[coolbumble]

Hi All and many thanks for your comments and info. My best option is probably to change it in a couple of years as underneath it looks ok and a recent service nothing came up.


Your mention older cars in my collection I have a 1925 steel bodied B10 Citroen Saloon which is concour's They don't make them like that anymore !!
Regards
Ian

 

[p6baseunit]

Generally the bodies are very well protected. My three year old twin air only was showing a little surface rust on the rear suspension beam, so this was cleaned and rust proofed in the summer... at the same time the rear drums were painted with high temperature paint.. I should also say that at this time, with 20000miles on the clock, the rear shocks were replaced. The front suspension was refreshed, with new struts/shocks, top mounts, drop links and the front brake discs were replaced yesterday with the service. I have spent a £1000 this year keeping the car in good condition and the underside of the body is spotless due to Fiats own protection.
I would save your money for servicing and repairs, as some of the suspension parts don't last long!

 

[coolbumble]

Many thanks for that info re your twin air. I think that reads a good solution as the rear suspension beam and rear drums are vulnerable. Just had my MOT and all ok ! In just 19000 miles I've replaced a CV join and the front shock absorber mounts. Fiat don't get any better but somehow we stay with them !!
Regards
Ian