Frame rust in Los Angeles

I have my 2022 tacoma trd off road for almost 5 months now.
Should I worry about frame rust living in Los Angeles?
There is no snow or salty roads here, only rain.
I pressure wash undercarriage of the truck when I wash the truck every 3 weeks or so and let it air dry to remove any debris. Is that enough to prevent rust?

 

Rust, no. Street crime, yes!

 

Somtimes if the area doesnt dry up, you might have a chance of surface rust. Kinda like the AC drain leaking onto the frame area.

 

That should be fine. My 1st gen (2003) that I bought in 2014 lived in the Bay Area all its life and the frame still looked brand new other than it was more of a matte finish. No rust or any issues and I bet it was NOT washed every 3 weeks.

 

You need to worry about tailgate theft, catalytic converter theft and car theft in LA. Your frame will never get any rust. Keep that thing in a garage as much as possible, if you can.

 

If you frequently drive close to the beach (aka the salt water really) then it might get a bit of surface corrosion on the thin paint parts of the undercarriage or the bare metal exposed by road debris over the years, but I wouldn’t much worry about it if I were you.

You'll get varying opinions on the topic, but it’s really always an economics question: will it be unsightly enough or deteriorate enough to justify X action (and $$$) to prevent it? In LA, not driving on the beach regularly, I’d argue it clearly wouldn’t be worth the investment. Wash it like you do and you’ll be fine.

BTW, surface corrosion is a bit unsightly, but actually ends up being protection from further corrosion and doesn’t create any structural issues, so don’t sweat a little surface corrosion.

- A guy who has a degree, certifications and nearly two decades of experience in the corrosion industry.

 

Your truck will be stolen and/or hit by uninsured motorists long before you need to worry about rust. Enjoy the traffic!

 

Probably get car jacked before your first spec of rust.

 

it costs so little, to protect something so expensive... why wouldnt you do it? over kill? maybe... protecting a 40-50k "investment"... worth it. look at it this way, if you dont do it, and it rusts... told ya so. if you do it, and nothing happens... you are covered by preventative maintenance. take some pride in your ride. Ski

 

I live near the beach and I've owned a bunch of Tacomas (also pre-Tacomas) and never had any rust on any of the trucks. What everyone else said about other issues.

 

I woolwaxed it the very first day.

Super easy to do. Got a six-pack of Woolwax spraycans and got is done in an hour before it saw any moisture. Shot it in the boxed sections and anywhere else Water might accumulate or not be welcome.

Because I will spend time in the mountains, I don't do beach or salt water, but some dirt off road can be corrosive.

It is a coat of wax. It will be impermeable to Water. It will last forever in the friendly CA weather...

It is too easy not to do.

 

I've been driving Toyota truck in L.A. for over forty years and have never seen any frame rust at all. Twenty-five years ago you had to worry about people stealing your truck but not so much today as they're much more difficult to take now. I had catalyst stolen about twenty years ago. Today we have a rampant epidemic of catalytic converter gangs all over the southland and two groups being busted right on my street in the last two months. I just installed guards and hopefully they will act as enough of a deterrent, but that's the only thing I would worry much about currently.

 

SMH

 

My exhaust has a good amount of surface rust along with the exposed metal on parts such as the drive shaft and rotor area. It looks bad but it’s just surface and effects nothing.

 

luckily for you rust wont occur to your truck in Los Angeles , also washing your undercarriage every 3 three weeks might be excessive unless you run over dead possums or alive very often?lol Enjoy your truck just don’t forget to lock your tailgate and install a cat shield

 

hmm 805 huh, i use to live around that area. None of my vehicles never had rust in those areas you described. Unless you live next a beach or have gone where it snowed.

 

I live about half a mile from the beach. If I leave any exposed metal I can guarantee it’ll be completely rusted in the morning.

My 2016 isn’t rust belt bad it’s pretty rusty. Mostly just surface stuff though.

 

I would be more worried about living in California than rust on my truck.

 

One year of Chicago area rust=Ten years of Covina area rust.

 

Well said! .