Frame Rot

But....but....for god's sake's


PLEASE CHECK THE FRAME......carefully....tap tap..


pics can be deceiving...rot crumbles to the tap.....

Some sellers are deceptive....



Find a friend with a 3/4 ton and a car hauler....
or worst scenario rent one at your destination....


best and most plentiful will be down here in the south......Kansas, OK, Texas, Arizona.......
down here even gramma has a pickup......traded her rav hybrid for a ridgeline.....

West of these states the prices sky rocket....

 

Honestly, these things are only good outside the rust belt. There’s a reason everyone swears by them out west and down south, but they’re thin on the ground up north. Sure, you can undercoat the frame and wash it religiously, but if you’re in a salt state, you’re fighting a losing battle.

I think it was shoddy milling practices, or perhaps impurities in the metal that causes these frames to delaminate from the inside, as opposed to more quality frames that will rust at the surface, but stay solid for decades.

 

the first hole

 

They out law zinc chromate in the mid 90's for industrial and manufacturing.....

this was everyone's main dip back then....


A lot of really good stuff they've out law......coatings and pesticides......


Frames pre 95 you better use respirators if you weld on them.....

 

And I'd still go to some frame shops.....

couple reinforcement plates and you may be good for half a decade or more....


yours doesnt even look that bad.......

 

Without treatment every year being exposed to winter chemicals a few years is all your going to get.

Lets face it 20 year old vehicles need constant maintenance unless one plans on doing a complete refurbish from the ground up all at once spending major money !

 

You were fortunate enough to get a free brand new frame yet neglected that one too? Fluid film is dirt cheap and takes half an hour at best to do it yourself

 

Potentially

 

Find a fabricator and have them cut it out and weld in a new section. Had the same section go on my 2003 and had it cut out and replaced.

 

Lots of western states get a lot of snow and use salt on their roads... and frames don't rust out like they do in the rust belt. I have a '78 Chevy truck and am doing a body swap using the Chevy chassis... and the frame is as solid as any new truck.

 

1.5 yr rust progression update

 

That's unfortunately a common spot. The way they designed the rear upper shock mount it basically holds moisture and dirt. It's a pretty easy fix as stated earlier in the thread. Safe T Cap sells a decent new rear shock mount as well for them.