[Surprise]

I was told by the person who cleans my car regularly that the right hand side front post is getting rusted. Opened the front door & lifted the black beeding to found the color of the metal to be brown (instead of black).

Metal pieces were easily removable by tapping the finger over it. During nights the car is resting on covered parking and under the tree in office (mostly) during day times.

Car is 1 yr old. How serious is this problem?

[Rudra Sen]

Serious enough. Especially when you're saying metal pieces were easily removable by tapping the finger over it.

Check if there's is any place close to area is holding water. Take the car to service center and tell to find out the source.
One year old car shouldn't have this kinda issue. Not for rusting...

[dustDevil]

As far as my knowledge goes water is a reason.... but not the only reason! it might be a mix of moisture, semi-exposure of the metal surface (forms a concentration cell).... maybe electrical leakage can sometimes cause rusting..... too many things to be checked out if the rusting has been this rapid! When u go to the service centre, get the best service-man to check this out

[varunroy]

Much more serious than that. The paint technology is so good these days that even if water collects inside door panel there should be no corrossion unless some one has deliberately scrapped off the paint from that portion.
you may have noticed that most cars have their hatch doors caved in due to some bang-up. Very rarely would you see the paint flake off from these areas.If the pre-treatment is good the adhesion of paint is so so great that it sticks to the surface like S**t.

I know of an Indica, whose owner complained to the repairer about the extreme difficulty in driving his car after it is dark because of the huge population of mosquitoes bitting into his skin, literally.The Engineers checked the entire car for some cavities from where these insects could be getting in. They even replaced all the door edge beedings. Nothing changed and the Guy put up his agony on the web. Someone suggested that he check the inside of his door pads & running boards. Can you beleive that due to water stagnation the mosquitoes were breeding right inside his car. They would have noticed this earlier if there were any signs of rusting.

One should avoid using Sythetic covers to save their cars from getting messy because the moisture or humidity cannot escape and this could lead to internal corrossion. It does more harm than good. Could be used occassionally but I personally feel it scratches the car each time you cover or remove them.

I think you should write to Suzuki and I am sure they will come running to your aid. Better still, post pictures on the Forum and send them the link.

So long....

[Surprise]

Thanks for your replies. I had contacted the dealer and was promised that they will pick the car up on Monday and get it inspected. Will keep you updated on the proceedings.

[tabrez02]

ofcourse i had heard the sea side vehicles get corroided very fast but not in just 1 year.

[Sankar]

Seaside vehicles does get corroded compared to the vehicles kept not near the shore.... but it doesn't usualy happen within an year.

Im sure you would've checked under the other door beadings after you noticed the rust. But if you haven't i suggest you check the other beadings thoroughly.

OT: What type of primer does the manufacturers use? I've heard that Zinc primers give excellent corrosion resistance.

Originally Posted by varunroy

Someone suggested that he check the inside of his door pads & running boards. Can you beleive that due to water stagnation the mosquitoes were breeding right inside his car. They would have noticed this earlier if there were any signs of rusting.

OT: Guys don't forget to check the drain holes under each door during the rainy season. If it's blocked by debris water will be trapped inside the doors and cause corrosion.

I had this problem on my front left door (all three holes were blocked!) and luckily i noticed it the next morning after the rain, was able to hear the water splashing inside. I cleaned the holes with a screw driver and let the water out, then removed the door panels again cleaned the holes from inside then wiped the inside of the door as good as i could and then after it dried i sprayed the inside panels with a coat of WD40, just in case.

[srasania]

If it's rusting..shouldn't this be taken care by the company under Standard Warranty?..since car is only 1 year old,and this shouldn't be happening..
-sr

[HotChillyPepper]

I have used all my vehicles just 1 km air distance from sea, but never faced a problem as mentioned here. I seriously doubt the quality of metal sheet used. Check it up with the dealer and listen his version of story before any conclusion.

[low_bass_makker]

Surprise It will be very helpful to post the pics of the same to clearly see what the problem is....

[muni]

@surprise..yeah the pics would be real helpful for the SWIFT owners to have a precautionary inspection.

[naveendhyani]

the super fast rusting cud also b because of saline water in case of boring water used for washing the car. still one year is too early as all of us have agreed here & the company should take responsibility for it.

[Surprise]

Sorry I could not take photo's of the same.

Service guy from the dealer had a look at the car. He is confident that it has occured due to washing the car with saline water & not wiping it off properly. Saline water getting stayed behind the beeding could be the reason for the same.

I countered him saying that we had 40 cars in our office and all these cars being washed with the same water and we dont face such problems with either of the cars (also its the same person who cleans all the cars).

But I suspect that could the real reason for the same. I had seen the cleaner pours bucket full of water on top of the car & wipes it off with a dry cloth, hence more chances are there of saline water getting behind those beedings. Also I had checked with other cars in our office and could see the traces of rust in small brown dots in a 6 months old car.

Anyway the dealer took my car to get it inspected in their factory. I got a call few hours later & they confirmed that they will get it repaired as no extra cost as Maruti has asked to goahead with the work.

I asked them how they are going to address this issue & I haven't got any proper reply from them. I insisted not do touch up with paint and return the car. Honestly I dont know what would be the right solution to get it repaired. They said it will take 4-5 days to get it repaired.

PS: Rust is present on both the posts