When did the rust stop? (Or has it?)

Carabosse

Senior Member
Joined
Jul 14, 2002
Messages
666
Reaction score
2
Your Mercedes
C300 AMG Sport Line Premium Plus Coupe (C205)
As someone new to MB (but not to this forum!) I must say I am a little dismayed at the many discussions on rust.

Rust rarely features on BMW forums, and I would be surprised to find much on Audi forums.

So my question is what model years were worst affected and, importantly from my point of view, when did rust cease to be an issue?
 

Mcobinad

Senior Member
Joined
Jun 27, 2011
Messages
1,066
Reaction score
13
Location
Milton Keynes
Your Mercedes
W219 Designo Black paint, R500 W251, CL600 W216
Most distinguished honourable member, Carabosse! Model years affected were from 1996-2003. I think rust ceased to be an issue from 2005 models upwards! Anyway, I stand to be corrected. :D
 

S.Speed

Senior Member
Joined
Apr 12, 2009
Messages
5,066
Reaction score
13
Location
Lancashire
Your Mercedes
Older Citroen Now :-(
2003 BMW 330D (E46) = No Rust Lol

2003 C270 Cdi = No Rust
2004 SL500 = No Rust
2007 E320 Cdi = No Rust
2008 B180 Cdi = No Rust
2005 C270 Cdi = No Rust
2007 E320 Cdi = No Rust

I think it fair to say I haven't found Rust to be an issue !
 
Last edited:

Corned

Senior Member
Joined
Jun 25, 2012
Messages
1,470
Reaction score
5
Age
121
Location
East Midlands
Your Mercedes
2005 S211 E320CDI Avantgarde
We have had reports on here that 08/58-plate cars (2008) have had to be treated for rust, so we're not out of the woods yet. They were S Class and CLS too.

This applies only to cars by the way. The vans, of course, are a law unto themselves. I've seen two 60-plate (late 2010/early 2011) Sprinters with rusty rear doors.
 

television

Always remembered RIP
Joined
Mar 14, 2005
Messages
164,073
Reaction score
367
Age
89
Location
Daventry
Your Mercedes
2002 SL500, 216 CL500, all fully loaded
The 202,208,210,215,220 were all hit 1999 ish for the worst, but not all cars some around still like new while others rusted away. The last 129 could rust as did the 230.

It took the new models to get to the end of it like the 216,220,204 where the rear wheel arches were re designed. The rear door on an A class could just fall off while driving, we have had late ML's and others with rust right up to 2008.
 

SteveX

Senior Member
Joined
Oct 27, 2009
Messages
1,512
Reaction score
18
I'm sure there is a thread here somewhere about which years and models were galvanised, and I thought Carabosse was right, from about 2005 you were clear.

That's not to say that the cars won't rust, you just need to look after them. Arches are a problem on any car.

If the arches weren’t rolled from the factory on my 208 or 209 then the paint would have vanished off of them years ago along with lots of ground out tyres from bashing against it.

It is difficult to clean the rolled lip for sure, it's a very tight gap, but it's one of those things you have to do. It's the same with nearly all cars though tbh, even if the lip isn't rolled, you must clean all the crud out from under it and the liner at least once a year after the winter and seal it (I use waxoyl) or you will just be leaving moisture ridden rubbish sat against the body just waiting for a nick or small spot to get in. With the salt and all other crap off of the roads it will eat through the paint in time, crack and then the damage begins.

The first thing I do when I buy a car along with a service is give it a good clean inside and out, and that includes the inside of the arches and even wheels. I'm surprised also at how many people never clean the inside of their wheels and allow the lacquer and paint to be eaten away and corrosion to seep to the front surface from the inside.

It's like anything really, you wouldn't buy a nice £2k wooden door for your house, paint it once and leave it forever, If you don't clean off debris and crud ground in from the rain and air and retreat it every now and then, it will get in and rot it. It's the same with car panels - nothing lasts forever, you just have to play your part in helping to maintain such things.

You just can't expect a metal box to travel through 1000's of miles of tar, acid, water, salt, mud and dirt etc for 1000's of hours on end and last forever untouched.....

Cheers,
 
Last edited:
OP
Carabosse

Carabosse

Senior Member
Joined
Jul 14, 2002
Messages
666
Reaction score
2
Your Mercedes
C300 AMG Sport Line Premium Plus Coupe (C205)
  • Thread Starter
  • Thread starter
  • #8
Thanks for all the comments. They are reassuring(ish)! :)

Obviously any car can rust if neglected, but so long as Mercedes is - with more recent cars - no worse than its other German competitors that suffices for me.

Many years ago I owned an Austin Maestro: not perhaps one of British Leyland's finest efforts! However it was well looked-after and even at 13 years old it had no rust. I believe the car is still on the road: it will be getting on for 30 years old now.
 

television

Always remembered RIP
Joined
Mar 14, 2005
Messages
164,073
Reaction score
367
Age
89
Location
Daventry
Your Mercedes
2002 SL500, 216 CL500, all fully loaded
If only Mercedes had used wheel arch liners that fitted, even on the 124 the front liner has a gap at the bottom front that allow the front of the wing to rust badly, they mainly rust because of the build up of mud that can be more than 1" thick that can stay wet for months, but this would do nothing to stop the doors from rusting away on a 210. The wrong steel must be most of the problem, as one can often see the spiders forming under the paint, due to the chemical reaction of the gasses trying to escape from the metal, and this has nothing to do with any paint on the other side of the said panel. the interesting thing is that if one complains about a spider in the paint, Mercedes turn round and say it was caused by a stone chip, even in an area where it is impossible to get one. Looking through a magnifying glass there will be a head on the spider where the paint has split, but the paint still there, so no stone chip.
 

SteveX

Senior Member
Joined
Oct 27, 2009
Messages
1,512
Reaction score
18
I can only re-iterate that if looked after they should be fine.

Malcolm's point is valid, but on nearly every car I've owned the 911 and BMW's included the arch liner never stops all the gunk from working its way underneath.

Take my W208 as an example, lots of rusted examples, some worse than other, all with similar mileage and age, and some that weren’t rusted at all.

Given the fact age and mileage weren’t really a factor and they were driven in the same country they would have experienced mostly the same weather conditions. My W208 was an early 2000 model and not a spot of rust. I've seen many more cars of other Marques rotten at the same age or newer, all cars are affected.

True some may be attributed to poorer quality than others as not every one can be made identical, but ownership has a big part to play in keeping the salt and gunk out of places it shouldn't be and maintaining the car.

It's common place in the bike world to strip off fairing and clean out any gunk if you aren't just a fair-weather rider. It seems to be abnormal in the car world, people seem to just jump in a car, clean what is easy to get to and they can see and sod the rest. Years of that neglect will take its toll.


Cheers,
 
Last edited:

00slk

Senior Member
Joined
Dec 1, 2012
Messages
9,592
Reaction score
9,283
Location
Cambridgeshire UK
Your Mercedes
2002 SL55 AMG, 2005 E320 CDi, 2014 SLK250 CDi, 2003 SLK200
Rust, now there's a lovely thought and so glad of it too, as I spent most of my working life fighting the so called tin worm and in return it made me many friends in the automobile industry and enabled me to afford a finer life style lol.
As long as there are tin cars there will be rust, (mind you this is starting to improve) my 5 year old 450SE had rust forming in the inner wheel arch where it met the floor pan when I bought the car in 1983, I also owned a Hong Kong imported 450SEL that had seen better days (but that was 14years old)
Long live rust I say lol
 

grober

Senior Member
Joined
May 15, 2002
Messages
2,947
Reaction score
27
Location
Scotland
Your Mercedes
W204 C200cdi estate
Rust will be with us as long as cars are made of steel and the 2nd law of thermodynamics holds good.
: An isolated system, if not already in its state of thermodynamic equilibrium, spontaneously evolves towards it. Thermodynamic equilibrium has the greatest entropy amongst the states accessible to the system.
 
Last edited:

SteveX

Senior Member
Joined
Oct 27, 2009
Messages
1,512
Reaction score
18
Rust will be with us as long as cars are made of steel and the 2nd law of thermodynamics holds good.
: An isolated system, if not already in its state of thermodynamic equilibrium, spontaneously evolves towards it. Thermodynamic equilibrium has the greatest entropy amongst the states accessible to the system.

Longest words I've read today, had to stop and think for a few seconds, thanks for that :)
 

television

Always remembered RIP
Joined
Mar 14, 2005
Messages
164,073
Reaction score
367
Age
89
Location
Daventry
Your Mercedes
2002 SL500, 216 CL500, all fully loaded
My 1998 V70R is still like new and not a spec of rust anywhere, it not been cleaned that well in its life as it has been a workhorse but as said,, not a spec of rust anywhere and all arches like new
 

SteveX

Senior Member
Joined
Oct 27, 2009
Messages
1,512
Reaction score
18
My 1998 V70R is still like new and not a spec of rust anywhere, it not been cleaned that well in its life as it has been a workhorse but as said,, not a spec of rust anywhere and all arches like new

But it's a volvo, they are square metal boxes that are made to be driven through snow :)

Great cars though.
 


Chris Knott Insurance, see oursticky posts here!
www.ckinsurance.co.uk
Top Bottom