‘Rust never sleeps’: New research highlights importance of car maintenance
Posted August 25, 2018 4:29 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
VANCOUVER (NEWS 1130) – It may still be August, but is your car ready for another winter on the roads?
Some new research out of the University of Windsor highlights the often-overlooked importance of rustproofing your vehicle.
Researcher Dr. Susan Sawyer-Beaulieu says the difference between a treated and untreated car starts to get significant once they hit seven years old and only compounds from there.
“There was really no significant statistical difference in the amount of corrosion on treated versus untreated vehicles up to the age of about six. But between the ages of seven and 15 years, the amount of rust seen on treated versus untreated vehicles jumps significantly.”
Once they hit that age, untreated vehicles had about 6.8 times more visible corrosion, around 3.6 times on the often-overlooked underside.
Sawyer-Beaulieu says people typically ignore the underside of their vehicles.
“The underbody parts are subjected to greater, much more abrasive conditions, greater exposure to dirt and gravel, water and road-threat chemicals. So on untreated cars, the underbody parts can have up to four-times more corrosion.”
Researchers didn’t observe any major difference in corrosion on vehicles up to the age of six years, but from seven to 15, the amount of rust seen on untreated versus treated cars jumped significantly.
An estimated 12-14 million vehicles reach the end of their useful life every year in Canada and the U.S.
