Rust Preventative Measures

[Eric5899]

My ordered '19 GT went to production last week so I'll have it soon. I'm in Illinois and will limit snow/salt exposure but want to keep it looking good for many years. Trying to think of things to help that goal while it is new. Maybe ceramic coating on the paint then Krown rust prevention spray underneath and inside the panels. Anything wrong with my logic? Other things I should consider?

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[Blue Horse]

My ordered '19 GT went to production last week so I'll have it soon. I'm in Illinois and will limit snow/salt exposure but want to keep it looking good for many years. Trying to think of things to help that goal while it is new. Maybe ceramic coating on the paint then Krown rust prevention spray underneath and inside the panels. Anything wrong with my logic? Other things I should consider?

Move to Florida,problem solved.

 

[Muligan]

..... or a car bag and park it for the winter......

 

[ripto]

In summary of the above posts, uproot your life completely, or put away your $40K car for 6 months of the year.

I have heard of sprays or rubber coats you can spray underneath. I have never done any of that to my vehicles and never had an issue though. I've lived in the northeast my whole life. Cars are made for these environments.

 

[Zooks527]

Cars are made for these environments.

Say that to someone who own an older Tacoma. Mine got a free new frame, but a buddy of mine had a forced condemnation due to frame rust (although Toyota gave him far more than the truck was worth in compensation).

 

[gnatsuM]

For mine, I put Suntec film on most panels primarily for rock chips (will also aid in rust prevention). Covered whole car in ceramic. Had Rustcheck applied and have the electronic rust inhibitor added from the dealer at the final sale. I also wash it once a week (touchless or do it myself). That's about all one can do other than not drive it in the winter.

My previous ride was a F150, annually had rustcheck and had the electric rust inhibitor, no rust after 7 yrs of ownership in this salt environment.

 

[66Bronc1]

Move to Florida,problem solved.

Yes Florida has no salt but a brutal sun that literally burns paint off of cars. But still I would take Florida over the salt belt and is the reason I moved here as I love cars and the Mustang with RWD is perfect all year round! I paid my dues though and lived most of my life in Massachusetts.

The salt always concerned me and yes it eats metal really bad. With my many years of experience here's my take. The steel body panels in the car are galvanized and will not rust that easily- unless they are damaged or the raw steel exposed. What will rust really bad are all of the axle brackets, components, suspension parts and drive shafts underneath the car. And frames on trucks and SUV's that have frames. The metal parts and frames are usually poorly painted or not at all. And the exhaust if it's not a good grade of SST. Only some after market systems are better SST. I primed and painted everything underneath the car- brackets, suspension parts, etc. that were steel. Frames I undercoated. For the body parts, floors that are galvanized, I left them alone. For the outside of the car wax it every 2-3 weeks to protect the paint from salt. And wash, wash or rinse the salt off. I rinsed the salt off of the undercarriage at least once a week, some times two or even 3 times if the roads were very salty. I used either the manual car washes or my hot water faucet in my garage at home. It's a lot of work and I kept my cars and trucks looking pristine all winter doing this- they never had any rust- anywhere. I usually drove my trucks on the "salty" days- for 4WD and they also sat up higher to rinse the nasty salt off underneath. But I got very tired of it and moved to Florida

 

[MechEngFord]

Be curious what you decide, I live in Detroit area and also ordering a 2019 GT. I looked into Krown as well as a preventive measure for the winter time. I'm going to be daily driving it so it's going to get some wear and tear overall. My opinion is cars are meant to be driven and it's not a showpiece to just take out for it too look nice. At least that's how I feel, if I'm spending $40,000 I want to use it as much as I can. Plus I'm not planning on keeping it for a decade or something... new car lust is strong when you work at Ford lol.

 

[Rock&Roll]

Good luck. The whole cars are meant to be driven thing is okay if you want a rusty piece of crap wich is what my 9 year old truck is becoming. I didn’t own it for 8 of those years so I’m quessing the previous owners never washed it underneath. Looking underneath these Mustangs they don’t look like they will do well with winter salt and grime. I know some people can’t afford a second car for a beater but I love owning a truck for the winter. Dog likes it also. I do drive my Mustang every chance I get tho just not in salty slush crap.

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