Can rust be cured?

[Sprint'n'Go]

Hi Folks,

I am currently in dispute with Autoglass over paintwork damage around the windscreen opening on my van.

I have been unfortunate enough to have a few windscreen replacements early on in the vans life and by the time the van was 18 months old there was visible rust bubbling coming from behind the screen seal.

When I approached Autoglass they reluctantly accepted responsibility and in my opinion did a slapdash repair (I examined the work before the screen was refitted and made my feelings clear!). Now 10 months later the bubbling is back as I expected it would be.

My question is, can such rust be permanently eradicated or once rust has occurred are you fighting a losing battle?

When the screen was first removed it revealed a lot of fine scratches where the blade used to cut the screen bonding had marked the paint and the bubbles were spreading from these scratches and not from the panel joints.

Once the new problem has been examined by Autoglass and responsibility accepted (they better had do ) they should authorise me to get 2 quotes for the repair. How do I ensure I choose a competent repairer so this problem doesn't reappear in another 12 months?

Any advice much appreciated.

I am just east of Manchester, any recommendations?

 

[Myros]

it's a losing battle

but you can make it a very long battle. It has always come back on any repair I've effected, but with variable timing.Sometimes years longer than it took to appear originally.
Haven't had too much of an issue with it merc-wise, but various Vws and my beemer were all colonised by tinworm at some stage.

 

[Sprint'n'Go]

but you can make it a very long battle. It has always come back on any repair I've effected, but with variable timing.Sometimes years longer than it took to appear originally.

I appreciate that there will be no permanent prevention as all vehicles will rust eventually.

As the damage 1st appeared when the van was 18 months old due to damage and not natural corrosion I would hope for any repair to last around 5-6 years by which time the van will be getting on in age and milage and would probably be suffering from the natural type of corrosion anyway.

Taking the windscreen out every 12 months and repainting is not an option even if autoglass were to pick up the bill each time.

 

[Myros]

have you tried Dronsfield's

they are just on your doorstep. This might be the kind of thing they are good at.

 

[jberks]

Any decent bodyshop should be able to sort it I would think. I agree you can't kill rust altogether but you can get damn close. The screen would have to come out, have the affected areas sandlblasted, rust treated and repainted, followed by resealing the screen. Then I wouldn't expect to hear from it again.

 

[Blobcat]

A sign to look for is the white bloom in the bottom corners of the windscreen. This indicates water is getting behind the seals and will most likely be starting to rust the windscreen frame where you cannot see it.

 

[Sprint'n'Go]

Any decent bodyshop should be able to sort it I would think. I agree you can't kill rust altogether but you can get damn close. The screen would have to come out, have the affected areas sandlblasted, rust treated and repainted, followed by resealing the screen. Then I wouldn't expect to hear from it again.

This is almost exactly what I thought, but how to choose a 'decent' bodyshop? They all claim to do a top notch job but we all know this isn't always the case. Dronsfields seem to specialise in spanner work rather than body repairs and this is a job that needs to go to the best bodyshop and need not go to a merc specialist.

A sign to look for is the white bloom in the bottom corners of the windscreen. This indicates water is getting behind the seals and will most likely be starting to rust the windscreen frame where you cannot see it.

Blobcat, I think the white bloom you are refering to is when the screen starts to delaminate and moisture gets between the 2 layers of glass. As far as I am aware the rubber trim around bonded windscreens is just that, a trim and is purely there to fill the gap. The sealing is done with the glue that sticks the screen to the body. Water will sit behind the seal but providing the paint is undamaged it should just run out the drain holes eventually(not ideal but it does work in most cases).

 

[jberks]

This is almost exactly what I thought, but how to choose a 'decent' bodyshop? They all claim to do a top notch job but we all know this isn't always the case. Dronsfields seem to specialise in spanner work rather than body repairs and this is a job that needs to go to the best bodyshop and need not go to a merc specialist.

Well, as you're not paying, how about your friendly local MB dealer? After all the 210's they've been doing, I would have thought they'd be the experts in anti-corrosion work!
Failing that it's down to recommendation I'm afraid. I've just been through this with a wheelarch scrape. As I didn't know anyone anymore (its been a long while since I needed any bodywork), I was tempted to use the dealer as the car is only 18 months old (aside from half the wheelarch missing!), but I was paying, and money is tight at the moment. So, after much head scratching, I called my indie and asked who they use / recommend. It turns out they had their own so as I trust their mechanics, I figured why not and booked it into Merc-care or AutoBodyCare as the bodyshop calls themselves. As it turns out, the work was A1 perfect but I was very nervous and it could easily have ended in tears. Ask around.

 

[television]

Just some points to remember, Sand and bead blasting can peen the metal over, trapping rust particles inside, Sanding removes the metal but can do a better job in the long run. there are various rust converters on the market but I have my doubts with them.
Once the metal is clean the only long term solution is to etch prime,before painting.It is more effective on alli, but does work on steel

Malcolm

 

[Blobcat]

Blobcat, I think the white bloom you are refering to is when the screen starts to delaminate and moisture gets between the 2 layers of glass. As far as I am aware the rubber trim around bonded windscreens is just that, a trim and is purely there to fill the gap. The sealing is done with the glue that sticks the screen to the body. Water will sit behind the seal but providing the paint is undamaged it should just run out the drain holes eventually(not ideal but it does work in most cases).

Agree it is the water getting into the lamination of the screen. However if the water is sitting there long enough to do that, then you can be sure that it is having a go at the metal you cannot see at the same time.
When I had my screen repaired the technician said he had come across a few Mercedes where the bottom corners of the screen surround had rusted out behind the seals. He had even seen screens cracked because of the rust build up. If I remember correctly we even had a post on here awhile back on screens cracking due to rust.