Rust

[Randy Woods]

Hi everyone, I'm looking at an 04 sport trac with 50 000kms/31 000 miles.

It has some rust inside the engine compartment on the passengers side.

I was wondering if this was a common place for it to rust. As this is the only one i've looked at so far [Broken External Image]:

 

[TracN Jack]

Randy,



Have you run a carfax on the VIN number?

with that amount of rust that high up in the engine compartment i would be concerned that this is possibly a flood recovery vehicle. Some of these are showing up even in the California market... Good luck on your shopping

 

[TRACket Paul]

Good call, Jack. That rust is a big red flag, you should pass on that one.

 

[Richard L]

Randy,

You are right to be suspicious. That is not a location you would normally find rust. If could be that the vehicle was flooded or damaged in an accident and the fende, and inner fender were replaced. and a poor paint job slapped on. You need to check all over the vehicle for signs of rust. That might involve removing the taillights, some of the interior trim, like the door sills and and carpet/rubber mats and check for rust in areas that would not normally be exposed to water.



I would not rely solely on CarFax. They are notorious for not having a complete history of every vehicle.



My wife wrecked our 2001 Sport Trac when it was about 3 months old and did nearly $3000 in damage to the front end. A few years after the repairs I got a CarFax on it and sure enough they had no history about the vehicle and nothing about the accident??



...Rich

 

[EddieS'04]

I just looked at my '04, that I bought new. I have a small amount of rust in the same place. The screw heads on the blower housing are not rusted like those, though.

I would try to find out where that trac came from...

 

[Randy Woods]

Thanks everybody for getting back to me. I looked at an 03 with 30 000 kms 18 600 miles on it and it is just starting to rust in the same spot. So i'm thinking this is a common spot for rusting in my part of the world (Manitoba, Canada). I did a Carfax and it came up clear. My wife works with a guy who used to work for a car dealership and he found out for me that the car is a Manitoba vehicle. I think I will keep looking though. To bad to because I really liked the colour. Doesn't really show the dirt.[Broken External Image]:

 

[Daniel Park]

the hood looks F'ed up, unless it's open

 

[Gavin Allan]

Aftermarket repaint job or repair? Why is the ground strap painted?

 

[Gary DiPietroSr]

This is from my 04, no rust. I don't think it's normal to have rust.



[Broken External Image]:

 

[Randy Woods]

The 03 I looked at had a white powder and the paint was starting to peel where I've drawn the arrow, and yes the hood is unlatched :lol: had to take the picture somehow. [Broken External Image]:

Gavin, I don't know why the ground wire is painted I didn't notice if it was on the 03.

 

[Gerry Mac]

Randy,

Call Bob Friesen at Landau 772-2411. He owns the place with his brother. Don't talk to anyone else. Tell him Gerry gave you his name and number. He is TOTALLY HONEST. If there is a late-model ST to be had he will get it for you at the right price. I know he still has a couple of 05 sitting and likely will go for a song. You can trust me on this one, Bob is first-rate, I have known him for many years.



Gerry

 

[Kevin Palmer]

The simple fact that the ground wire is painted would lead me to think there has been some sort of repair in that area....

 

[Randy Woods]

Gerry



The 03 I was looking at, was from Landau and the salesman mentioned the new 05's.

I think I'll have to go with used though.

Randy

 

[Gavin Allan]

My '03 adrenaline has NO RUST in that location. I'd say flood vehicle.



Check under the seat cushions for stains, etc.

 

[Mark Stuvetraa]

Here's a recent news report regarding this topic...

 

[Tom Schindler]

Would any of those cars end up in Canada?





Tom

 

[Johnny O]

Rust in that underhood area is "normal". The first Trac I looked at a year-and-a-half ago was a used '03 and had rust there so I shyed away from it. Got a brand-new '05 which I assure you has never been underwater and it's got rust on the radiator support in the same place in less than a year. Comes with the territory when you live with both road salt and a fair bit of rain.

Only way around it is to get a new one and have it rustproofed (mine is just undercoated).

Both my Rangers got rust repair under warranty for the seams at the bottom of the tailgate and doors.

 

[Rod Helstad]

I just checked my 03 with 97K on it, and it also has a bit of rust in the same spot. Also, my ground strap is painted the same as the body, but it has never been in a body shop for any reason. Rod

 

[Richard L]

Hmmmm????

I have had two Sport Tracs. a 2001 and a 2003 and neither has shown any rust there. Of course I live in Waco, Texas and not subjected to the snow and salt used in northern states and Canada.



My guess is that you need to look under the wheel wheel. You may need to remove the plastic wheel housing to see, but I think you will see a ridge or ledge that traps water and crud that seeps down between the fender and the inner fender panel. Thats why the rust stains are dripping down from the bottom of the seam under the hood.



It might be a good idea to loosen the fender bolts, flush that area out and put in a rust converter, repaint the area, and put body puddy sealant in the seam inside the fender well.



...Rich





...Rich