Second to your home, your vehicle is the largest purchase you will make in your lifetime. As a result, it’s important to take as many steps as possible to protect your investment. While having regular maintenance will make sure the engine, transmission, and other important mechanical parts operate properly, it’s also important to make sure the exterior of the vehicle is free of rust and in the best possible condition. Continue reading to learn more about the top climates that cause rust and what you can do to combat it.
Damp Climates
Rust doesn’t need special conditions to form. It only needs a cathode, anode, and electrolyte. Since water is an electrolyte and the metal on your vehicle acts as the cathode and anode, vehicles are highly susceptible to rusting in damp climates. Even if your vehicle is under cover, enough moisture in the air can cause your vehicle to rust.
Coastal Regions
Although living near the ocean offers breathtaking views and quick access to the beach, it can also expedite rusting on your vehicle. As previously stated, water is an electrolyte, but it isn’t the best at carrying electrons. On the other hand, salt is significantly more effective. While your vehicle may slowly rust under normal humid conditions, the rusting will be expedited if you live in coastal regions near salt water.
Cold Climate and Icy Roads
Salt effectively lowers the freezing point of the ice and causes it to melt at a much lower freezing point. As a result, it’s used on roads either before or after a snowstorm to melt the ice quicker and make the roads drivable. After the ice melts away there is nothing left but the salt and, as stated above, it represents a significant rusting hazard to the undercarriage and body of your vehicle.
Dry Regions
Unfortunately, your vehicle is a rust magnet. Even if you live in a dry climate, your vehicle isn’t completely immune. Simply put, iron oxide forms relatively easily on vehicles in any environment or region. In dry climates with lots of dust and dirt, your car’s paint and finish is susceptible to chipping, exposing the underlying metal. This can give rust the opportunity to spread on your vehicles body. While moving to a dryer region may reduce the likelihood of your vehicle rusting, your vehicle will still be susceptible to rust.
How to Protect Your Vehicle From Rust in Any Climate?
No matter the climate, rust protection is a great solution to combating rust. This advanced process offers protection for the underside of your vehicle, including the highly vulnerable floor panels. It also features a unique self-healing barrier that also protects mechanical parts, such as your sensors, brake lines, and gas lines. This type of advanced rust protection allows you to protect deep crevices while penetrating and displacing condensation between your metal panels for an additional rust barrier.
In addition to the undercarriage of your vehicle, the body panels are also highly susceptible to rust. To prevent body rusting tiny access points are made to gain access to the rust-prone interior panels. Then, the rust-inhibiting solution is applied to the interior.By lubricating these hard-to-reach areas, your equipment will work longer and be able to better resist rust.
When it comes to the structural integrity of your vehicle, rust is your worst enemy. Over time, rust can and will compromise the structural integrity of your vehicle by deteriorating the vital metal parts. This makes rusting a serious matter of safety. While you may be able to see some rust, there are countless hidden places and crevices you don’t see that need protection as well. Different climates pose different types of risk to your vehicle, so make sure to take the appropriate rust prevention technique to help protect your car against the environment!