[autocratic1107]

One of my friend who owns a Mobilio also suffered similar rusting issues. Even the door edges had serious rusting in his case, and he was quite frustrated. Honda's paint quality is highly questionable and do not justify the premium they charge from pricing front.

[fordfreak]

Thank you all for the replies and pointers! Replying to points raised, below.

Originally Posted by pravint

Did you do any repair work or repainting on these panels few years ago ? Such issues are common when repair work is not carried out properly.

I have only gotten my bumpers repainted at a trusted independent workshop. All other bodywork was done at the authorized service center (insurance claim). Some of the areas shown in my pictures have never been worked upon. Surprisingly, have seen this rust issue on a couple of my friend's vehicles too (both are the same year / generation of the City), mostly on doors.

Originally Posted by scuderiamania

Hi Fordfreak. Just to understand the situation, do get get the car washed everyday with water Hose? If so, I would highly recommend that you ask your cashwash guy to change the practice. To give you my example, my father had the habit of getting the car washed everyday. We are from Kolkata as well so weather / climate conditions will be same as yours.

We do have the cars washed on alternate days. Generally with a wet microfiber cloth followed by a dry-down using a dry microfiber cloth. They are also dusted down daily with a Jopasu duster. Our washer used to splash the wheels with a bucket of water, but taught him the correct way to clean about 4 years ago. Funnily, all our cars are used / washed / parked under identical conditions but haven't seen any rust issues on them (oldest being 13 years old and the newest 4 years old).

Originally Posted by outdoorlover

I think it is a very good move. I can also share my personal experience of usually dusting my car with Jopasu duster and when it is really dirty, using a waterless car wash (from a concentrate) which gives the car a beautiful shine. Posting below the details of the concentrate that I use; hope that helps

Thank you. Will try this concentrate and see how it works. Always up for saving water!

Originally Posted by davelok

I had a 2008 City when I lived in Mumbai. It developed serious rusting around the front and rear windscreens within a few years....This rusting issue, along with frequent wheel bearing replacements makes me think Honda isn't India-proofing its cars.

Originally Posted by Lavs

I feel Honda only boasts of high quality.
I have Amaze 2018 model and the doors have already started rusting from below....The engine and gearbox are fine, but mountings fail often.
It is sad state of affairs at Honda.

Originally Posted by autocratic1107

One of my friend who owns a Mobilio also suffered similar rusting issues. Even the door edges had serious rusting in his case, and he was quite frustrated. Honda's paint quality is highly questionable and do not justify the premium they charge from pricing front.

Sad to hear about the issues you all / your friend are facing. At one point Honda's body quality was something to boast about! Sadly, it seems that doesn't hold true any longer. Thankfully their mechanical bits are still bullet-proof (for now). I am planning on holding onto my car for another 3-4 years, so will be getting the rust repaired at the trusted independent body shop that I know. Hoping I don't have to deal with this again so soon.

That being said, the idea of buying another Honda car in the immediate future has gone out the window, for me. I really hope the folks at Honda's QC department wake up soon.

[Lavs]

Originally Posted by fordfreak

Thank you all for the replies and pointers! Replying to points raised, below.



I have only gotten my bumpers repainted at a trusted independent workshop. All other bodywork was done at the authorized service center (insurance claim). Some of the areas shown in my pictures have never been worked upon. Surprisingly, have seen this rust issue on a couple of my friend's vehicles too (both are the same year / generation of the City), mostly on doors.



We do have the cars washed on alternate days. Generally with a wet microfiber cloth followed by a dry-down using a dry microfiber cloth. They are also dusted down daily with a Jopasu duster. Our washer used to splash the wheels with a bucket of water, but taught him the correct way to clean about 4 years ago. Funnily, all our cars are used / washed / parked under identical conditions but haven't seen any rust issues on them (oldest being 13 years old and the newest 4 years old).



Thank you. Will try this concentrate and see how it works. Always up for saving water!







Sad to hear about the issues you all / your friend are facing. At one point Honda's body quality was something to boast about! Sadly, it seems that doesn't hold true any longer. Thankfully their mechanical bits are still bullet-proof (for now). I am planning on holding onto my car for another 3-4 years, so will be getting the rust repaired at the trusted independent body shop that I know. Hoping I don't have to deal with this again so soon.

That being said, the idea of buying another Honda car in the immediate future has gone out the window, for me. I really hope the folks at Honda's QC department wake up soon.

Now that you plan to get it repaired, please get all cavities (Door insides, fender insides) and rusted areas treated with Converust (converts rust into protective coating) as rust starts from inside. Then another coat of Cavity Wax over it. You can buy these from Amazon or Tufkote.
You can use cavity wax spray for any new car to prolong it's paint and avoid rust.
This should last for the remaining years you plan to keep the car.
All the best.

[Sameey192]

We have a 2014 SV petrol Manual, similar rusting locations with our car as well, Honda made a pathetic product in the name of 4th Gen City. Horrible build and design errors. They used bad quality rubber door seals causing water pockets to build in doors and eventually cause such rust. Along this the window seals too had poor design easily allowing outside water to flow in and further aggravate the issue.

[Sangwan]

Originally Posted by fordfreak

Also, anyone else facing something like this?

I have a 2016 White Honda City V(Diesel) back in India and there is no rust on my car none whatsoever. I really suspect the water quality being used on your car. Also, I am curious, do WB cars have rust issues or North East cars aren't prone to rust which can be the case for cars on coast?

[chandrda]

I bought a used Honda BRV Petrol last April. The BRV has been maintained well and was in excellent condition. But there are a lot of rust points I noticed. In the engine bay, on edges of the doors, sill plate area and around few bolts.

The rust on one of the door is a bit bad and other are manageable. I am planning to address all the rust issues once for all, but for now I am controlling it with spray/oils.

Never had thought that Honda would be a rust prone vehicle. I have a 2003 Fiat Palio GTX and have been using it as a beater car for last 7 years. Palio is always parked outside, but not a single rust issue I have faced.

Regards

[Redex]

Hi,
the rust around the screen looks like it may have been caused by damage from fitting a replacement screen, scratching the paint through to bare metal. May have been caused by a water trap.
The wheel arch damage looks like badly repaired damage earlier in the life of the car. Some areas appear to have paint covered body filler. Maybe a photo problem but it also looks like poorly prepared filler that has been over painted.
Why is there no stone chip compound on either rear seal sections ? Why don't the stone chip compound edges line up on the point wheel arch. All these point to previous repairs.
If you have had the car from new and not caused any damage, maybe it was used as a test drive car and damaged/repaired before you got it.

The extent of rusting to other surface areas shows the value of dealing with scratches as soon as they happen. Either repair immediately or paint over the bare metal with lacquer or nail polish to prevent rust from starting. Anything that is not porous. If a damaged area gets rusty before being repaired, it is virtually impossible to remove all rust. It will reappear through the repair showing as bubbles in the paint work. Rust perforation through a panel needs to be cut out. Rust treatments rarely work.

Regards Neil

[fordfreak]

Originally Posted by Sangwan

I have a 2016 White Honda City V(Diesel) back in India and there is no rust on my car none whatsoever. I really suspect the water quality being used on your car. Also, I am curious, do WB cars have rust issues or North East cars aren't prone to rust which can be the case for cars on coast?

The water quality in our area is very bad (high iron). But still leaves me wondering why my other vehicles are not facing the same issue. There are 9 other 4th gen Honda City's' (pre-FL & FL combined) in our apartment complex, all ranging from 2014 to 2018. I have noted at least two others in much worse shape than mine (don't know if they had any repairs, etc.).

Originally Posted by Redex

Hi,
the rust around the screen looks like it may have been caused by damage from fitting a replacement screen, scratching the paint through to bare metal. May have been caused by a water trap.
The wheel arch damage looks like badly repaired damage earlier in the life of the car. Some areas appear to have paint covered body filler. Maybe a photo problem but it also looks like poorly prepared filler that has been over painted.
Why is there no stone chip compound on either rear seal sections ? Why don't the stone chip compound edges line up on the point wheel arch. All these point to previous repairs.
If you have had the car from new and not caused any damage, maybe it was used as a test drive car and damaged/repaired before you got it.

The extent of rusting to other surface areas shows the value of dealing with scratches as soon as they happen. Either repair immediately or paint over the bare metal with lacquer or nail polish to prevent rust from starting. Anything that is not porous. If a damaged area gets rusty before being repaired, it is virtually impossible to remove all rust. It will reappear through the repair showing as bubbles in the paint work. Rust perforation through a panel needs to be cut out. Rust treatments rarely work.

Regards Neil

Hi Neil,

We've owned the car since new, so know the complete history. The rear windscreen was never replaced and no repairs have been done in that general area. The left and right sides around the rear quarter panels have been previously repaired at the authorized Honda service center (minor fender benders). The rust near both rear wheel arches was already present and was taken care of when the surrounding panels were fixed (not sure if they replace the panels or repair them, when claiming under insurance). I honestly did not notice the missing stone chip compound edges!

I am left doubting the quality of the practices followed at body shops (even authorized ones) while carrying out repairs. The car looked absolutely perfect when I had gotten in back after repairs. All the work was supposedly carried out as per manufacturer guidelines + I had claimed insurance.

It was definitely my mistake for leaving the initial rust unattended for a few month (learning a lesson the hard way now). But am perplexed by the rust on untouched areas.

Appreciate your detailed inputs!

[lionheart_mm]

This is a pretty common issue for the 4th gen city here in the Middle East. I thought India might not have this problem due to different climatic conditions.

[jono213]

I highly suspect that the issue you’re facing is localised to a few cars and definitely not the entire fleet of 4th gen city’s.

We’ve had our 2017 F/L city for close to 6 years now without any mechanical or body related issues.

Although if I were you, I’d get all the seals replaced.

[raycers_honda]

Do not buy a Honda if you live by the coast/sea. Please do not. I had the type 2 Honda city (first gen face lift) and the ivtec city (2nd Gen). Both had excellent driving manners , road manners, excellent handling, vfm for money in all other departments except for one, that is body quality. In both generations I have had extreme rust issues which were so bad that I had to drive literally with buckets in the dickey. The edges of the doors would rust and just crumble like a biscuit. During the monsoons I could hear swish and sway sounds of the water movement when I brake or come to a stop. The floor board would always be damp and the car would always smell musty.
And this is just within 3 to 5 years of ownership. Yes the engines were dynamically bullet proof and reliable but then you can’t just have a engine, you need to have some sheet meal around it.
If you want a rust bucket, then please buy a Honda. I thought they would get better when I went in for the second gen city but things got worse.
Well Honda lost out on a customer, not me. Now I’m with a VW with zero rust even after 8 years of ownership.

[Redex]

Hi,
looks like the rusty wheel arches were caused by a bad repair. I think they must have just filled with body compound and painted over the damaged and rusted areas. We call that a "bodge up" repair. That corrosion is severe and must have started straight after the repair. You need to get "all" of the corrosion cut out and replaced with new metal properly treated and protected. Both on the outside and inside.
Regards Neil

[wheelspinner]

Hi,

I was considering two used 1st owner 4th gen Honda City cars from Cars24 as the first car I am going to own and maintain:

- 2015 82k running, claimed all original paint: belongs to some "Shamanjwali Metals Pvt Ltd" which is involved in mining (not 100% sure, based on my personal research). I'm guessing it could be a company lease. Service history looks clean (upto 75k at Honda, however one service record in between shows it was driven 16k without any servicing), had suspension maintenance recently.
- 2014 65k running, 14 repainted parts: belongs to a private individual but the car has been in and out of Honda ASS very frequently which got me suspicious. Is it a normal service history to go to ASS in intervals of 200-1000 Kms?

After discounts, both of them would work out to the 3.7L range. Worth it? I don't have a budget issue but I am a very frugal person, so I hate spending money unless I get the right value for things. I would hate to do 40k repairs on this car or spend a lot of time on it. I'm quite busy with my work these days, I barely have time to do anything else apart from sleeping, eating and a few outings. Max I would probably spend 30k right after purchasing as I heard Hondas are quite reliable and low maintenance. If so, is it the right choice? Also, I would hate to liquidate some of my investments to splurge on a depreciating new car which is why I was looking for a well maintained high mileage Honda City

Going half-way through this thread, it seems there are a lot of problems such as rusting (which is really common in Kolkata). Both have lots of small scratches, and small dents (hallmark of cars driven through in Kolkata traffic).

What are the issues to test specifically in inspection and 7 day trial before return period ends?