BMW has some rusting issue.

I have seen a lot of threads talking about rusting issues. How about a fresh new one.

For those living up-north (Canada, NY,Maine, Vermont, and others northern states) this seems to be a common problem. (We don't really care about hearing how great Florida and California is!!!)

Many people have put up their ideas on why and how this occurs.

A specialist from Mercedes explain it to me and it makes a lot sense. Mercedes have the same issue.

Have a look at this amazing video on YOUTUBE. It is the complete making of an E46 from start to finish in 23 minutes. : ''Making of an e46''



Notice the metal treatment and rustproofing that occurs between 6:33 and 8:00. That is why German car are so dam good. I'm not sure how many car makers would do that. But there is a major flaw in this process.

The flaw is not so much into the dunking of the car into the product but more into how the panels are made a few steps before.

German like to triple fold the edges of their paneling. This makes for stronger edges. This creates an internal chamber that does not get treated when the car is dunked into the chemical products. Some does get in....but not in all the places. That is why they all rust at the same dam places. FRONT OF THE HOOD/REAR OF THE HOOD/BOTTOM OF THE DOORS.

These untreated areas often accumulate condensation and salt. They are literally trap zones. The rust begins from the inside and work its way outside. This means that when you see the rust after a few years......it is too late. You have to basicaly change the panel.

If you do like I did for the past 3 years and have the paint shop take over the job over and over you will have the problem come back year after year. The hood needs to be changed. and the doors need to be removed, flip upside down, cut out the bottom rotten part,rebuilt it, and RUSTPROOF it every year until the end of the life of the car.

If you do not have this problem yet........better get started on the rust proofing because by the time it will appear. It will be too late.

BMW, as always, does not admit to the faulty production. But since their 1999-2001 mistake. The 2002 and above are made slightly different and the dunking process has been slowed down to allow complete immersion of the car. These models have less of this rusting problem. 99-01 have 6 years guarantee of rust. 02 and above 10 years. A law suit would be good but then again...only affect northern clients and we are a minority.

Here are a few pics. Most of you will recognize the areas affected.

You guys put salt on your roads. It's seriously brutal on anything from metal to paint to corrosion inhibitors. Sucks to see rust on your car and nice to hear some reasoning behind it.

Hooray for California not using salt on their roads for environmental reasons.

Prior to my wife getting her Lexus LS, she drove an 02 Benz S which had some rust issues. They were repaired by the dealership along with the replacement of a possibly faulty dash panel under a recall in 2006. The rust was really a problem along the bottom of the doors and along the trim as well as where the car had been nicked by rocks etc. Couldn't believe how much rust was found on an 80K car...

Originally Posted by mkodama

You guys put salt on your roads. It's seriously brutal on anything from metal to paint to corrosion inhibitors. Sucks to see rust on your car and nice to hear some reasoning behind it.

Hooray for California not using salt on their roads for environmental reasons.

up in bigbear they doo

Originally Posted by spikester550

up in bigbear they doo

Really? I thought they replaced it all with sand by now?

Hmm, good thing my car is unusable for snow trips anyway.

Yes indeed they have replaced a lot of it by sand now. But its a 2001....so. Has a bit of salt history in its cracks.
But when it is really cold they still use salt.

The rust on the hood is from stone chipping.. Once chipped and not covered up, rust is what you will get. Rather than pondering the whys and wherefores, start fixing them, at least on the easily accessible parts.

No matter how the car is made, it will rust, break, and get damaged. You just have to accept eventually you will have to throw it away. This is the main reason I would not spend money on excessive maintenance, because it's just a waste. Money towards a newer car with less rust would be far better spent.

Originally Posted by GoingNuts

The rust on the hood is from stone chipping.. Once chipped and not covered up, rust is what you will get. Rather than pondering the whys and wherefores, start fixing them, at least on the easily accessible parts.

No matter how the car is made, it will rust, break, and get damaged. You just have to accept eventually you will have to throw it away. This is the main reason I would not spend money on excessive maintenance, because it's just a waste. Money towards a newer car with less rust would be far better spent.

+1

Don't be dumb, any rock chip that exposes metal will begin rusting. Leaving these chips only get worse if they go untreated, esp if you drive on salted roads.

Metal is metal and only acts as such and if you think any other manufacturers do a better job than the Germans and Swedes rust/weather proofing their vehicles then you deserve a

1. So how do you explain 99% of the rust is inside the hood. Its all coming from inside out. You should see the inside. Its rotting outwards. Same thing with the bottom of the doors.
2. If it is from stone chips then how come it only happens to the area on top of the headlight. No where else on the hood. I have hundreds of stone chips all over this 9 year old car but yet it only rust there. It just happens to have one of those folds right there. Have a look inside your hood.
3. Are stone chip also hitting all BMW on the bottom front corner of their doors. Sounds like Stone chips all got together one night and voted on where exactly they would all hit the top corners of the headlights.

Your explanation is too basic. There is no depth to it. We are talking about a BMW, not civic.

That why i took the time to explain it in details before. Because too many people jump to basic conclusions.

Originally Posted by BMW PRIVILEGE

1. So how do you explain 99% of the rust is inside the hood. Its all coming from inside out. You should see the inside. Its rotting outwards. Same thing with the bottom of the doors.
2. If it is from stone chips then how come it only happens to the area on top of the headlight. No where else on the hood. I have hundreds of stone chips all over this 9 year old car but yet it only rust there. It just happens to have one of those folds right there. Have a look inside your hood.
3. Are stone chip also hitting all BMW on the bottom front corner of their doors. Sounds like Stone chips all got together one night and voted on where exactly they would all hit the top corners of the headlights.

Your explanation is too basic. There is no depth to it. We are talking about a BMW, not civic.

That why i took the time to explain it in details before. Because too many people jump to basic conclusions.

Are you the original owner of the vehicle? If not, how sure are you that the car hasn't been hit and repaired in the front with a hood that could be aftermarket? Btw, wheels kick up rocks at the doors and fenders too.

Did you buy it with the rust there? If not, have you been power washing under the vehicle and hood regularly to prevent the salt for causing 99% of this corrosion/rusting?

The rust at the door is caused by rain or snow water being discharged at that location. If there is paint weakness in that area. It will rust from inside out.

The rust under the hood is probably produced by water also. Someone, at some stage, probably enjoyed washing his engine bay. If it looks bad from top of the car, go have a look from underneath. The horrors will not bear thinking of.

The started of this post is from Montreal..... just ignore him, all us other Canadian's do. I've never had any rust in any of the cars I've ever owned......and I've lived in Canada many many years. This is why we take care of our cars....as I'm sure everyone does in every country. My family has owned BMW's for many years, ever since I can remember...... I've never seen any rust on any of the cars ever. It's in how you take car of it.

Be aware that excessive rust is a sure sign that the car has not been maintained and thoroughly kept clean over the years, a dirty car will eventually become a rusty car.
It's not water that causes rust, it's the salts and minerals that are deposited onto the car and over time they will eat through the paint and into the metal.
Keeping your car clean and taking care to wash it thoroughly (especially the unseen areas) and regularly will greatly minimize any risk of rust appearing.

As a Canadian I must say that North Vancouver never gets enough snow and salt to even consider rust an issue, but Montreal gets buried in the stuff, eastern Canada uses salt because there is no cheap alternative, its either salt or the stuff turns to ice and you cannot move. If you can get a can of Krown rust proofing spray, just spray in the bottom of the doors through the drain holes, it displaces the water in the door bottoms and keeps rust to a minimum there, also on trunk lid and hood seams, works great, do it twice a year, spring and fall. The top of the hood around the kidney grills and over the headlights also likes to rust up here, it is covered by the warranty but a little Krown oil spray in there also keeps the rust away. Hope it helps.

Originally Posted by cancell

Are you the original owner of the vehicle? If not, how sure are you that the car hasn't been hit and repaired in the front with a hood that could be aftermarket? Btw, wheels kick up rocks at the doors and fenders too.

Did you buy it with the rust there? If not, have you been power washing under the vehicle and hood regularly to prevent the salt for causing 99% of this corrosion/rusting?

No i bought it used and as you say it was never rust-treated before because previous owner where Dealer Leasers so did not really care about rust proofing it or caring for the car. They simply returned the key and what was left of the car after 3 years of lease. I should of rust-proof it right away but every one was telling me that BMW don't rust. By the time i noticed it....is was too late...its eating away INDISE-OUT. let me say that again for those who still argues with me!!!....ITS RUSTING INSIDE OUT. I will post pictures from inside the metal once we open it up. Sensitive heart be warn. it will hurt to see this. And by the time it happens to you guys...think of me. By the time you see it, its too late.

Here a few PIC of Montreal Winter's. Some of you will understand. That's why We have XI up here. To get the &*?"*&() out of the snow bank. Rustproofing should be done every year right from the starts. Wish I could of purchased it new and keep it good.

wtf is that guy doing on his bicycle

Ontario rust is the worst. On the western side of Canada, it's not bad at all.

My previous 323i was a rust bucket. Everything. Every door panel, in 09 showed visible corrosion. The doors were so bad. Perhaps I'll post up some pics.

I'll never by an eastern car again. Pop your hood, and look underneath near the front. It'll be corroded to ****.

i don't have any of those symnptoms listed above, reg car washes tend to work for me :-)

As for the hood that is caused by rock chips. And the fender/rocker area, behind the splash shield, there is a rather big void that lets leaves and crud collect behind it. This lets moisture to get trapped in there and rust. Add road salt to that ...........................
If you can see rust on the outside, it started from the back side (rust perforation). I think BMW has a 10 year rust perforation warranty, I really don't know much about it. I never actually seen rust on a BMW (later model) before.