...so m-b have repaired/replaced corroded panels on my w210, what next?

[ennio]

following a warranty claim my 1998 w210 estate has a new bonnet, 2 new nearside doors, 2 repaired surrounds on offside doors, repaired tailgate (around catch and number-plate), 4 repaired wheel-arch lips...think that is all...oh no new front subframe and also brake pipes which i paid for during 2005

plainly i would like the rust to stop: after the subframe was replaced i had it waxoyled.

from now on i intend to regularly clean the wheel-arch lips (wonder about a nylon washing-up brush), and to use a touch-up stick for stone-chips.

is there anything else i need to do keep the car rust-free?

i wonder about waxoyl but wouldn't know where to put it:
- do the wheel-arch liners come-off to clean/waxoyl inside there
- do people "inject" it into doors and sills, and if so does this require holes to be drilled
- inside the tailgate sound like an obvious place also
- then there's the structural bits, the various A/B/C posts, or will these all have some m-b waxy stuff in them.

wonder if anyone can advise - thanks if you can, and if not thanks for reading this far

 

[guydewdney]

theres someone somewhere who advertises a 'come to you entire under chassis waxoil service' on the web.

cant remember the name - but its a good serice (brother in law had a TVR done and was impressed)

 

[jberks]

Not sure you can stop it.
I must admit that the areas that MB have done on mine have not returned, but new ones keep popping up from time to time and she's booked in yet again for patch on the rear N/S door and to do the drivers sill that they approved but missed last time (did the F O/S wheel arch instead! - not bad really as I only mentioned it when I dropped it off).
No doubt there'll be something else along soon ....
I see it as an excellent opportunity to test drive new and interesting mercs and as I do 500 miles a week, regular week long trips to the bodyshop help to keep the mileage down. Had a couple of E320CDIs (lovely), a C200cdi coupe(not impressed) and a C200k (quite pleasant) so far - I wonder what I'll get this time...!

 

[big x]

Well, now that everything looks good with the body it might be the time to sell the car on and buy another model that doesn't have such bad rust issues.
In due course the front spring perches will snap and the rear subframe mounting points might be rusting too.

adam

following a warranty claim my 1998 w210 estate has a new bonnet, 2 new nearside doors, 2 repaired surrounds on offside doors, repaired tailgate (around catch and number-plate), 4 repaired wheel-arch lips...think that is all...oh no new front subframe and also brake pipes which i paid for during 2005

plainly i would like the rust to stop: after the subframe was replaced i had it waxoyled.

from now on i intend to regularly clean the wheel-arch lips (wonder about a nylon washing-up brush), and to use a touch-up stick for stone-chips.

is there anything else i need to do keep the car rust-free?

i wonder about waxoyl but wouldn't know where to put it:
- do the wheel-arch liners come-off to clean/waxoyl inside there
- do people "inject" it into doors and sills, and if so does this require holes to be drilled
- inside the tailgate sound like an obvious place also
- then there's the structural bits, the various A/B/C posts, or will these all have some m-b waxy stuff in them.

wonder if anyone can advise - thanks if you can, and if not thanks for reading this far

 

[paulcallender]

is there anything else i need to do keep the car rust-free?

Apart from stripping a car to the bare metal shell, replacing any rusting panels with new metal and very carefully painting it, using modern techniques and body protection products (eg underseal, etc), once corrosion starts, it does not stop. All is not lost, though, you can keep on top of it and it should corrode more slowly (and remain presentable) for a good few years. Witness 30 or 40 year old Mercs, they tend to be rusty.

 

[jberks]

Wheelarches raise an interesting point. I was cleaning mine out recently - took a lot of mud off the inside of the lip. But I did start to wonder whether I was actually doing more harm than good. Once dry, the mud (when thick enough) could actually keep the moisture off the metal, effectively protecting it. When cleaning them, you have to rub off all the mud and crud off, which could scratch the paint and actually encourage corrosion.
Thoughts?

 

[blassberg]

I'm a mud-is-good fan

 

[andy_k]

interesting thought and if the mud were "clean mud" and you were 100% certain of the quality of the paint below then I'd agree it would act as protection but if the mud is a cocktail or road salts, fuel and oil residues, dog and other animal faeces (all of which are common on our roads) etc and the paint on our cars unable to resist even a mild attack by a sparrow then I suspect that cleaning them and applying a coat of waxoyl is a wise precaution.

Andy

 

[paulcallender]

Rusting is an electrolytic process. If the mud were wet, or even just slightly damp, then it provides the ideal conductor for the process of oxidation to occur. If its dry, then it would not stick to the bodywork. It would slightly scratch the protective coating (lacquer) when it came off at speed.

Keeping your car clean and dry is the #1 preventative maintenance you can do on the most expensive part of the car, the bodywork.

 

[tom7035]

Whatever happened to zinc anodes which were once popular as 'bait' for the electrolytic process Paul mentions? All the 'tinworms' were supposed to rush to the zinc leaving the steel alone and all that had to be done was replace the anodes now and again! I wonder!

 

[Lacy]

Hmmmmm.....

They were known as 'sacrificial anodes' and were used on boat hulls. In order to work they need to be immersed totally in water........now it's unlikely that your merc will remain totally immersed in water.....even if you live in Manchester.......

 

[Lacy]

Hmmmmm.....

They were known as 'sacrificial anodes' and were used on boat hulls. In order to work they need to be immersed totally in water........now it's unlikely that your merc will remain totally immersed in water.....even if you live in Manchester.......

 

[Lacy]

Sorry for double post folks......very tired......

 

[liverpool mercedes]

keeping rust at bay

when i get a new (second hand car) i clear all mud off the wheel arches and put thick grease into the arches by hand seems to work for me.also waxoyl all over the hidden bits ,sadly it can,t help my rusting e210 .i really would love to paint all the rust spots/scabs /bright pink and park it outside mb head office with a sign on the roof aclaiming mb quality! . :mrgreen:

 

[philharve]

Waxoyl on top of paint

I wondered about the application of Waxoyl, or similar, being applied on top of paint in areas where moisture collects and rust starts. So I asked a professional bodyshop owner. 'No problem", he said. He added the best places to apply Waxoyl are those out-of-the-way-places where it's unlikely to pick up any road dirt. Road dirt can contain a host of chemicals, apart from moisture, that can initiate corrosion. Inside cavities, box sections or around door seals being typical examples. Waxoyl is tacky and attracts road dirt which can build up.

I have successfully used Waxoyl in other areas but not were lots of mud and road dirt collects. Inside wheel arches, used in conjunction with plastic liners, is a good example. Such protection can be good for a decade or more.

I don't let mud and road dirt collect because it can harbour moisture and chemicals such as salts that attack the metal. I once thought that a good coating of dried mud presented a barrier to moisture, but it's not true. I've replaced a couple Mini rear subframes which seemed design to collect mud and road dirt by the bucket load.

I have heard that some people use a liberal coating of old engine oil to repel moisture. I've never actually coated the internal body sections of my previous cars with engine oil because it's too runny. However, I have done the next best thing and not cleaned those areas where oil spray naturally collects, e.g. the engine bay. Result? In 17 years rust never broke out in the engine compartment. Perhaps it was the heat produced by the engine that drove out moisture that prevented rust from starting.

I had a couple on Minis early in my driving career and when rust started around the front wings, as it inevitably did, the offside wing corroded first. The nearside wing was next to the radiator which heated the nearside bodywork thereby slowing the onset of corrosion.

My Celica had, in effect, a series of interconnected cavities running front to back along both sides through which some of the heat from the engine compartment could pass. Amazingly body rot was never an issue. Rain water and aging window seals was its downfall. Excluding moisture, providing excellent drainage and ventilation and using waste heat in cavities seems to keep the old tin worm at bay. Sticky coatings, such as Waxoyl, to protect metal surfaces can only help to increase corrosion resistance.

I've never looked inside the body cavities of an M-B and have often wondered whether wax injection is used during the assembly process? What other techniques do they use to resist the rust bug? Rust resulting from poor application of paint is a separate issue.

REGARDS Phil

 

[dogsbody]

..so Mb have repaired/replaced corroded panels on my W210, what next.

I bought a w210 a few months ago, and it seems fine, but I have noticed a few rush patches on the bonnet round the rad grill... So how long is the MB warranty, as Ennio has had his 1998 sorted under warranty?

 

[maddog]

I bought a w210 a few months ago, and it seems fine, but I have noticed a few rush patches on the bonnet round the rad grill... So how long is the MB warranty, as Ennio has had his 1998 sorted under warranty?

They will almost certainly be stone chips in that location , in which case you are on your own