Rust spot over wheel well help

[farmernick]

I have a 2005 Dodge 2500 farm truck with about 115,000 miles. It's had a hard life but has held up well and I would like to run it till it dies. On my last wash I noticed two paint bubbles about the size of a quarter each. I bought some matching paint online and also primer and clear. I also have some por-15 available.

What steps need to be taken to properly fix these spots?

I have also been looking at putting a coating on the truck, would this protect it from further rust? The sealants, polishes, and waxes I currently have are
Dg 501, dg 105, m105 & m205, dp posi sealant, and collinite 476 & 845.

[Mike Phillips]

My guess is the rust spots you are seeing are like the tip of an iceberg. The problem is actually under the paint a the spots you see bubbling through are just a glimpse of a worse problem that you cannot see.

This is just a guess of course...


Perhaps one of our body shop guys can chime in with some more info..


One thing for sure, POR-15 is a very good product. I've used it for years and never been disappointed.

[lyodbraun]

Yup it's rusting from behind the paint, all dodges do this had it on my old 99 dodge, it's just a poor design on dodges, water sits in behind that area and eats away the metal/paint, just will get worse if no action is taken..

[farmernick]

Yup it's rusting from behind the paint, all dodges do this had it on my old 99 dodge, it's just a poor design on dodges, water sits in behind that area and eats away the metal/paint, just will get worse if no action is taken..

What action can be taken to either prevent or stops this?

[mainecarcare]

I just went through the same thing last month. What I did was I removed the bubbles with a knife and sanded the rust spots with 320 grit sand paper to get it sort of smooth, they say some rust should still be available for the por15 to adhere to. Then I used the starter kit from por 15, you need to be careful though, they say to let the prep and ready dry overnight, and also you want to apply the por 15 paint when it's not very humid( I think they say 50 percent or less). if you can get access to the other side and see if it's rusting there also, and treat that section also.

Note: I am not a pro but have done a lot of reading on this matter. I've done it only once to fix my explorer.

[BillE]

I'm going thru the same thing right now. On a Subaru, just above the wheel. It was only about an inch square, but I was able to discover where and how it did rust.

Used a Dremel to get back to solid metal. Didn't use POR, but another brand of rust converter. In past situations, I'd use an air brush...but when I went to find it I discovered that it had NOT made it to MN (8 years ago) when we moved (also realized that other tools failed to 'make-it').

Back to topic, I used an 'artist' brush to dab some primer on. Let that dry and 600 paper to smooth. Then (again with an artist brush), laid down 'touch-up' paint. It's taking more than one application of the paint to completely fill in the area (that was expected). When it (finally) gets filled; sand, compound, polish.

The touch-up paint, I had to have it mixed ($10/4oz) and being an Acrylic Enamel, it takes about 48 hours between 'coats.' Probably longer to harden enough to 'work out.'

I HATE SALT!

Bill

[Mike Phillips]

Thanks guys for chiming in with some info for farmernick,

What action can be taken to either prevent or stops this?

If you decide to tackle this issue, please post a follow-up to let us know how it turned out. This will also help others into the future...

[oldmodman]

I just did some touch up on a friend's old Volvo.

I used Eastwood Rust Converter on the rusty spots. I did sand the areas first but there was still rust down in the crevices around the front windshield. Then used automotive one step paint and a fine pinstriping brush to cover the converted areas.

The car is a heap but the touch ups did improve the appearance slightly. Plus it will stop the rust from destroying the A pillars.