A question about rust
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Burning Brakes
Joined: Aug 2000
Posts: 1,211
Likes: 6
A question about rust
I saw a 1996 Impala SS for sale yesterday. I know this isn't a Corvette but it is at least in the same "family" as our favorite car! Anyway, the car has only 25,000 miles on it. That's the good part.
The bad part is that the owner lives on the ocean (here in Fla.)and the car has been sitting out in the elements now for 5 years and the rust is starting to appear. Mainly on brackets and the exhaust but also on parts of the undercarriage as well as all the suspension for the emost part. The body paint (black) is oxidized but shows no rust yet. There might be something rusting out near where the windshield comes down to the hood area but i can't tell for sure. the radiator support is rusting through already.
My questions are these:
1) is there a method to slow down the rusting process?
2) no matter how low the price may get (he's asking 10K) is it even a remotely good idea to buy it with the understanding/acceptance of the fact that the car won't see an old age, but that could be a fun car for say 5 years or so? (before the rust is really bad) :flag :chevy
The bad part is that the owner lives on the ocean (here in Fla.)and the car has been sitting out in the elements now for 5 years and the rust is starting to appear. Mainly on brackets and the exhaust but also on parts of the undercarriage as well as all the suspension for the emost part. The body paint (black) is oxidized but shows no rust yet. There might be something rusting out near where the windshield comes down to the hood area but i can't tell for sure. the radiator support is rusting through already.
My questions are these:
1) is there a method to slow down the rusting process?
2) no matter how low the price may get (he's asking 10K) is it even a remotely good idea to buy it with the understanding/acceptance of the fact that the car won't see an old age, but that could be a fun car for say 5 years or so? (before the rust is really bad) :flag :chevy
Racer
Joined: Sep 2001
Posts: 304
Likes: 0
From: honolulu HI
Re: A question about rust (marky mark)
i live in hawaii and am familuar with the rust devil..check the underside really carefully and know that if its bad u will have some future problems and expensise..for 10k u could get a pretty nice vette though..just a thought :cheers:
Melting Slicks
Joined: Apr 2001
Posts: 3,399
Likes: 278
From: Olmsted Falls, Ohio
Re: A question about rust (marky mark)
Of course with that type of rusting - sea salt air vs damp air is that the salt is a corrosive and acts much faster than just damp air, and it gets into everything. I used to live in SF, CA near the bay and it was a real problem.
On the other hand for 10k it's probably not a bad deal if the car itself is still in pretty good shape (don't worry about whether you can buy a Vette for that or not - that's not the point!) but I think you could get him down to 8-9k without too much effort, after all, it's not a collector car or anything yet, and may never be one. Does it have a 350 or a 305 in it?
[Modified by KenSny, 11:25 AM 10/7/2001]
On the other hand for 10k it's probably not a bad deal if the car itself is still in pretty good shape (don't worry about whether you can buy a Vette for that or not - that's not the point!) but I think you could get him down to 8-9k without too much effort, after all, it's not a collector car or anything yet, and may never be one. Does it have a 350 or a 305 in it?
[Modified by KenSny, 11:25 AM 10/7/2001]
Melting Slicks
Joined: Apr 2001
Posts: 3,399
Likes: 278
From: Olmsted Falls, Ohio
Re: A question about rust (marky mark)
Sometimes it's about what you need (or want) the ride for. If I was in need of another fun car it would not be a Corvette. It would be a hot-rod of some kind, a 55-57 modified Chev, a 5 window deuce coupe, wild flame paint job, etc. If I wanted a car for a daily driver, to haul the wife and kids - and still have something with some get-up-and-go, then the Impala SS could fill that need quite well. It's all about choices........
