Ageing tow vehicle

[gtochris]

The '02 Tahoe in my sig was something I bought with my dad in 2003 for a great deal, he has since used it as a Daily as he retired and doesn?t drive nearly as much as I do. I use it for towing and moving things (has moved me 3 times now without a moving truck!), Currently it has 79,000 miles.

Even with routine maintenance and the fact that I'm a detailer and keep it looking showroom condition (light pewter paint, one of the easiest colors) , the snow belt has done no favors to this thing,:facepalm: the underbody is rust everywhere! (frame rails (fully boxed- rusting out), cross members, hitch), brake lines rusted out last year and needed replacing, parking brake system rusted off and needed replacing, just this year the rear "dog legs" started to show signs of surface rust and now the right front fender must have gotten a slight chip in the paint- enough to allow water in, it too started to develop rust bubbles that are expanding aggressively.

It's sad, I take care of my toys and vehicles to the highest degree but this one is getting away from me, I feel the demise of the large SUV coming and this is a relic and representative of an era of cheaper gas, but since everyone?s needs are changing and towing/ moving isn?t very important anymore it might be for sale before it looks any worse.

I guess I'm just kind of sad with nearly 10 years of memories and realizing this probably isn?t worth the work, bothered it has deteriorated so much given the light use and extra care/ maintenance, and best sold while it still has decent miles and before any serious rust takes over, especially the frame.

 

[Slide]

Re: Ageing tow vehicle

Sad fact of life when you're driving through road salt daily a couple months a year. My roommates have '07 and '08 Silverados and they are starting to show a decent amount of underbody rust. The tailgate on the '07 was actually rusted out when he bought it 2 years ago - the dealer replaced it as part of the sale.

I just bought a brand new '12 F-150 last week and the dealer recommended an underbody rust prevention coating. I'll be doing that in September or October.

 

[gtochris]

Re: Ageing tow vehicle

Sad fact of life when you're driving through road salt daily a couple months a year. My roommates have '07 and '08 Silverados and they are starting to show a decent amount of underbody rust. The tailgate on the '07 was actually rusted out when he bought it 2 years ago - the dealer replaced it as part of the sale.

I just bought a brand new '12 F-150 last week and the dealer recommended an underbody rust prevention coating. I'll be doing that in September or October.

My partner runs an autobody shop and occasionally they do "por-15" on a new vehicle for a customer, I'm skeptical if the manufacturer would respect that for prevenative rust maintenance if a warranty issue came up?

 

[AlmostFamous]

Re: Ageing tow vehicle

My '02 Yukon is the same way. It's got rust all over the rear wheel wells. The frame has heavy surface rust too. It runs and drives great though. Maybe some day, a car company will build a car that doesn't rust after 10 years. Or maybe that's the intent!

 

[dockwrecker]

Re: Ageing tow vehicle

I've got an 03' avalanche that started to show frame rust. A quick media blast and a shot of Por 15 and good as (no make that BETTER) than new. You'll get really ambitious about cleaning up what you've got the first time you go car shopping and see that it now costs 40k to buy the same truck you have right now.

 

[Pony]

Re: Ageing tow vehicle

This is a great market for used cars if you did decide to sell. I bought an an 04 Silverado for 14k 4 years ago. The KBB is still 13k on it. It is still is great condition.....a little cust on the inside bottom of the doors....underbody I am sure lookes like any other truck in Wisconsin.

 

[sublauxation]

Re: Ageing tow vehicle

Hearing an 02 being referred to as a relic from the era of cheap gas makes me feel old. When I worked on a lot in the 90's it was still pretty common that a 7 or 8 year old truck would have holes in it and need paint and body panels replaced...so things are getting better. It is a good time to sell though since for some strange reason there seem to be fewer older tow worthy vehicles on the road.

 

[PS94]

Re: Ageing tow vehicle

Not to start a brand battle, but I think it's GM. I had an 08 Escalade EXT, and it ended up getting 2 new fenders in 2011, not quite rusted through, so the rust through protection didn't kick in....I hated to look at her and paid for it out of pocket. My 2003 F-350 still looked mint when I sold her earlier this year.....

 

[gtochris]

Re: Ageing tow vehicle

I've got an 03' avalanche that started to show frame rust. A quick media blast and a shot of Por 15 and good as (no make that BETTER) than new. You'll get really ambitious about cleaning up what you've got the first time you go car shopping and see that it now costs 40k to buy the same truck you have right now.

I think we will do a quick body shop sand down/ re-shoot on areas prior to trade in/ an e-bay sale (yes I would disclose to a private person). As for a replacement, we arent towing campers/ horse trailers/ heavy boats long distance anymore, a V8 4x4 isnt needed, I think he is hooked on getting a new Subaru Forester and I'll likely replace my 2002 Honda Civic (with 175,000 miles) with a used V6 AWD Escape, newer Grand Cherokee, or something similar.

 

[98Shabah]

Re: Ageing tow vehicle

Maybe it's a combination of location, auto manufacturer, and not being able to rinse the underside of salt during the nasty months? I bought a 1997 F150 brand spankin new (st louis), had it for 3 years then sold it to my father, he drove it around STL for a long time then moved to Omaha and drove it up there for almost 3 years before retiring to arkansas in 2007.. Last year he sold that truck to a friend of mine, the paint still looks amazing and the underside has only minor surface rust on the frame and suspension components, the body, bottom door seams, etc are all rust free, and that is a 15 year old truck with 160,000 miles! I will say though that both my father and I are religious about getting the salt off as soon as possible after a snow.. A quick wash and a good undercarriage rinse.

 

[R Socey]

Re: Ageing tow vehicle

I have an 87, f-250; I keep my vehicals for a long time - having my 3rd engine built right now. New vehicals are way to expensive. I didn't know that them chevy's had rust problems. My Ford truck has some issues I plan to totally redo, but my 93,98 crown vics have none! The metal on all is more substancial than newer ones.

 

[jkust]

Re: Ageing tow vehicle

Living in MN where salt is used liberaly, it seems each vehicle I've ever owned has their one or two spots that will rust regardless of how much you wash them. The issue here is that when it's too cold the car wash shuts down and when it warms up a bit, it is either broken or ther is a mile long line. In my town they only allow very few carwashes or gas stations and no self washes. I will only go through the single existing touchless wash so keeping your car clean is truly a challenge. Even if you want to be diligent, they make it difficult. My oldest car is a 2000 GM/Oldsmobile minivan and it is almost bizarre that there isn't rust anywhere even on the underside, under the doors, the frame etc, all except for the one spot in front of the rear wheel. They all rust there no matter what. Even the break lines are nice and so for some reason that particular GM has weathered well. As for the the frame of a truck, i've never seen even a two or three year old truck that isn't starting to rust. Best car I ever owned rust wise was an 89 Beretta GT way back in the day and I could've sanded it down to bare metal and it still wouldn't rust. It's completely unrustable body confounded me and my friends. I always thought where cars were concerned right around 1990ish cars in general started holding up better. The old 1970's and early 80's cars I owned were just unmitigated rust heaps that you rarely see in a 1990's or 2000's car. That said, given how much easier credit is now days, you rarely see people hold onto their old vehicles and truly I rarely see even a 10 year old vehicle on the road now.

 

[Home Cookin']

Re: Ageing tow vehicle

My 95 Tahoe is holding up well, but of course I'm not in the roadsalt area. We have salt air but I don't drive it on the beach any more (but I can tell tales about "beach trucks").

I had a 1980 landcruiser with terrible rust problems from the inside out--and though it went on the beach afew times a year, no road salt to speak of. The problem, it was said, was cheap Russian steel used during a few years. They'd look great until you ponked your finger through a side panel or the roof peeled off.

Point is, in addition to other factors, substandard parts and paint can make a difference, too.

Meanwhile I had an uncle in Wyoming with a fabulous car collection. There, nothing rusted and the cereal never got stale.

 

[sutor623]

Re: Ageing tow vehicle

I bought a 2006 Acura from Chicago, in 2009. It had lots of corrosion and rust starting. Sold that thing almost as quickly as I bought it. I won't be buying any vehicles from the northern East coast again.

 

[jkust]

Re: Ageing tow vehicle

My 95 Tahoe is holding up well, but of course I'm not in the roadsalt area. We have salt air but I don't drive it on the beach any more (but I can tell tales about "beach trucks").
QUOTE]
Funny, a few years back I sold my 1997 Bonneville SSEi (supercharged) 50th anniversary edition at 99,000 miles. I bought it with about 50k maybe three years prior and all the way until the end it looked like it had a frame off restoration - completely clean because I bought from a southern state and brought it to MN. I got nice comments on it quite often because here we just expect a 10 year old car to be well weathered. I sold it in two hours of listing it for an absolutely outrageous price all because of its southern roots. My wife laughed and even Facebooked the price as a joke until it sold for the full amount. I tried to buy my last tow vehicle from down south too but they were always 2wd. My point is don't buy a car from MN.