After storing your car for a long time, you may discover every driver’s worst nightmare: car rust. Rust is never good, but depending on the type, it may not be all that bad. Knowing what these different rust types are will help you figure out the best way to treat it…
Car Rust: Removal Assistance
Surface rust
The first type of car rust is surface rust. This kind of rust also tends to be the most common. Surface rust will usually first show up in paint nicks, scratches, and cracks. However, it isn’t the end of the world for your car.
Like the name implies, surface rust is only on the surface level of your car. At this stage, it hasn’t penetrated the actual metal yet. That means it’s pretty easy to clean up and prevent it from getting any worse. You just need to make sure to take care of it quickly!
Scale rust
Scale rust is the second type of car rust. At this point, the rust may start to become an issue. You can generally tell when you have scale rust by seeing “bubbles” form under your car’s paint. There may also be “pitting” in the metal. By this point, the rust has begun to penetrate the actual metal itself.
While scale rust is still fixable, it’ll take more work. Now, you’ll have to use something like a wire brush to clean it off. This’ll be followed with some sandpaper to smooth the surface again, before applying new paint and primer. It may be safer to have a professional take a look at the rust, just to ensure it’s fixed properly.
Penetrating rust
Finally, penetrating rust is the worst kind of car rust. Now, not only has the rust entered the metal, but it’s actively eating away at it. You’ll probably find that entire sections of the car now have pockets or are flaking due to the rust. In fact, it may not be safe to drive depending on where the rust is.
By this point, your options are going to be limited. If the rust is on a car panel, you may need to get the entire panel itself replace if it can’t be repaired. As for parts, it tends to be safer to get new, non-rusting replacements. This is why the best thing to do is try and prevent rust before it occurs!