Road Salt
Thread Starter
MBWorld Fanatic!
Joined: Aug 2002
Posts: 2,302
Likes: 0
From: Pencil-f'ing-Vania
MB C230K
Road Salt
Being from the sunny South and new to the NorthEast, I have a question about road salt. It's applied often and liberally here and in addition to the damage to the paint I'm concerned about the damage to the undercarriage. My brother the car guru always used to warn me against car from snowy areas and coastal areas because he said the salt always lead to chassis rust, if you didn't see it, you just hadn't found it yet. So my question is, should I just accept that I'm going to get a certain amount of damage? Or is there something I can do to protect my car. When I'm in a hurry I'll run the car through a brushless carwash, some of them have undercarriage washes that, frankly, I've always thought the benefit of which was dubious. Should I do this, just to get the salt off?
Newbie
Joined: Aug 2002
Posts: 20
Likes: 0
From: Midwest
Audi, Porsche
You might take some time to find out what exactly the road crews in your area are putting down to "de-ice" the roads. Many departments here in IL (state & county) use calcium chloride in liquid and granular form. This product does not affect metal surfaces like rock salt, and it performs better than salt at colder temperatures. IMO though, it creates more of a light/white film on the car, making me want to wash it off ASAP anyway!!
Member
Joined: Oct 2002
Posts: 120
Likes: 0
From: Chicago
I don't know about East PA, but here in NW Ohio, they use salt that rusts cars. I can tell from the relatively new looking cars (late 90s) with the rust in the wheel wells.
With my 01 CLK 430, I got a full undercoat, trunk, hood and door treatment for $250 and it comes with annual renewals.
I also rinse the underside and body panels with water (usually luke warm to keep from freezing) when my car looks salty (about 1x per week)
I'm also from CA and will return one day. I love my CLK and want to bring it back to CA with me, but not if it's all rusted out.
With my 01 CLK 430, I got a full undercoat, trunk, hood and door treatment for $250 and it comes with annual renewals.
I also rinse the underside and body panels with water (usually luke warm to keep from freezing) when my car looks salty (about 1x per week)
I'm also from CA and will return one day. I love my CLK and want to bring it back to CA with me, but not if it's all rusted out.
