Do C5's rust?
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From: West Norriton PA
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The frames will rust and the aluminum parts will pit if you expose to them to salt and do not rinse the salt off. Trust me went thru this with a 99 FRC. It did not rust thru but it was a mess to clean up.
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Have never seen a C5 with rust on it. Have seen some of the aluminum components corrode though.
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From: Destin FL
Rust does NOT seem to be a big problem but that doesn't mean there is none. Rust is iron oxide. Since we can't escape the oxygen in our atmosphere, any component which has iron in it will eventually rust. The hydroformed and galvanized frame rails mentioned above are steel (iron impregnated with some carbon atoms) coated with zinc (galvanized). If the plating ever starts flaking off (and there are a multitude of things that can start that), then the steel will rust. The body panels are not metal - no problem. And most of the engine components are aluminum. But there are still alot of steel components in the car and they will rust. Just take your wheels off and you'll find lots of them in/around the wheel well areas (mainly suspension components). Again, as I started off. Not a major problem on Corvettes.
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From: Horncastle Lincolnshire, England
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Having read "All Corvettes Are Red", the designers and engineers were paranoid about weight to get the car down to its target weight. I guess using iron components other than where absolutely essential wasn't an option
Can't say I've seen anything on mine thats rusted although its not out in the rain much
Can't say I've seen anything on mine thats rusted although its not out in the rain much
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From: Down the Shore New Jersey, Elev.3 feet
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Anything that is steel will rust at some point in its lifetime.
When people ask if my dog bites my reply is usually ....anything that has teeth .....does "bite".
So like I said anything that is steel will rust.......
When people ask if my dog bites my reply is usually ....anything that has teeth .....does "bite".
So like I said anything that is steel will rust.......
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I don't think you need to worry about it all. Minor surface rust won't hurt your car. Just flush the bottom when you wash it and enjoy.
There is some minor pitting on some of the aluminum components under my 2000. Mine came from Illinois, so I guess it was driven in the snow. Anyway, I would guess it would take decades to actually impact the operation of the vehicle, maybe never during it's operational life. (That's a far cry from the C3, rust on the frame rails can be a big problem on those cars.)
Has anyone actually seen or head of a C5 damaged so badly by corrosion that a part needed to be replaced? I never have.
Seems to me like quality materials were used to construct the frame and suspension components...
There is some minor pitting on some of the aluminum components under my 2000. Mine came from Illinois, so I guess it was driven in the snow. Anyway, I would guess it would take decades to actually impact the operation of the vehicle, maybe never during it's operational life. (That's a far cry from the C3, rust on the frame rails can be a big problem on those cars.)
Has anyone actually seen or head of a C5 damaged so badly by corrosion that a part needed to be replaced? I never have.
Seems to me like quality materials were used to construct the frame and suspension components...
Last edited by 71vetteinva; Dec 27, 2008 at 10:26 AM.
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