[druva]

Hello All,

I have Santro (Year 2001). I am pretty happy with the engine. (I dont have any major problems and have driven only 40k).
Chennai weather and frequent parking on the open (at my office) has led to rusting. I asked the Hyundai service center and they said they will have to replace the body frame and quoted me 50,000/-.

Now, I am not sure what to do.

Is there any way to remove and repaint? I checked some of the car mod options listed in the forum. Most of them are doing performance enhancements. Can some one suggest Chennai based workshops which are capable of doing this.

Or should I opt to sell? If so, how much will this dent my resale value?

Will car insurance cover this?

Thank you all for your responses

[musicmanaman]

Druva, Is Hyundai Service Center telling you that they will change the complete body shell for 50k? please clarify, what they will do for 50k.

In my opinion any good local machanic will take care of the body rusted bits and then do the paint touch up's for about 20k, for this amount your car should be back to good shape.

On another note, do Hyundia's rust faster than their Maruti counterparts, experts please advice.

[iraghava]

Can you post some pictures of the rusted areas? Would help in giving you the correct advice.

[rranjith_kum]

my santro had previously got fucot anti rust coating ... but that was 3 years ago ... my tailpipe has been rusted and its little bit in eaten away in the end section what do i do ?

[esteem_lover]

I am sure your car can be done up in less than half the cost , that is if you are interested in keeping your car.

[mithun]

Originally Posted by druva

Hello All,

I have Santro (Year 2001). I am pretty happy with the engine. (I dont have any major problems and have driven only 40k).
Chennai weather and frequent parking on the open (at my office) has led to rusting. I asked the Hyundai service center and they said they will have to replace the body frame and quoted me 50,000/-.

Now, I am not sure what to do.

Is there any way to remove and repaint? I checked some of the car mod options listed in the forum. Most of them are doing performance enhancements. Can some one suggest Chennai based workshops which are capable of doing this.

Or should I opt to sell? If so, how much will this dent my resale value?

Will car insurance cover this?

Thank you all for your responses

More details needed before commenting.

[Jaggu]

please post pic so that others can help

[iraghava]

Originally Posted by rranjith_kum

my santro had previously got fucot anti rust coating ... but that was 3 years ago ... my tailpipe has been rusted and its little bit in eaten away in the end section what do i do ?

Anti-Rust coating is not applied to the Silencer or any other parts of the engine, drivetrain etc. It is only applied to the underbody.

For the rusted silencer, please replace it with a new one or get an FFE.

[V-16]

I'm surprised that a Santro has rusted, that too in Chennai. Well if and when you do a repaint or a touch up job, ask your paint guy to spray "Wurth" anti rust coating to the rust prone areas. Its great and has a track record to prove itself.

[druva]

Sorry. I had to travel and did not have net access. (both time and location)

Originally Posted by musicmanaman

Druva, Is Hyundai Service Center telling you that they will change the complete body shell for 50k? please clarify, what they will do for 50k.
.

They wanted to replace 2 doors (9,000 each) and hatchback door (12000). They also said the engine compartment has started rusting and would require replacement. I ndont know what exactly would be replaced. But the technician showed me the rust inside.

Can you post some pictures of the rusted areas? Would help in giving you the correct advice.

Will do so tomorrow. To me the rust looks minimal. However the technician closed the door with a bang and there was movement on the sheet for 2 doors. Other 2 doors did not have such an impact.

[druva]

Door Exterior (2 doors and hatchback have similar rusting, though only 1 per door)

[img=http://imageshack.us/thumbnmail.png]
Somehow this alone is not getting loaded


Door Interior (one door)




Engine compartment




I hope this gives idea about the extent of rust. Question is should I replace the frames as suggested by Hyundai or should I just ask them to repaint.

[adheesh]

Get your rust treated at a local garage and then proceed with treating your car with wurth which is available at rs.947 /bottle (Non-Aerosol)

[chetanhanda]

Guys, does coating the underbody compund the problem or in some cases make it worse ? What happens in case when the underbody is coated , and due to some usage(or incorrectly applied coating) some moisture seeps into the coating.
Wouldn't this coating be even more destructive my keeping the moisture trapped between the metal and the coating.. ?
If its not coated atleast there is some chance of underbody getting dried out etc.
Anbody experienced this or any suggestions ?

[adutta2k]

Originally Posted by druva

Door Exterior (2 doors and hatchback have similar rusting, though only 1 per door)

[img=http://imageshack.us/thumbnmail.png]
Somehow this alone is not getting loaded


Door Interior (one door)




Engine compartment




I hope this gives idea about the extent of rust. Question is should I replace the frames as suggested by Hyundai or should I just ask them to repaint.

Hi Guys,

I am also facing similar problem with my 2007 Alto Lxi which otherwise is in pristine shape. Last week I took it for routine servicing and the service advisor lifted the car on the ramp and showed me the rusted portions of the underbody. The sides below the 2 doors have started getting rust and it is gradually moving up and the front driver side door has already got rust towards the bottom

I usually take a lot of care for my car and I dont know how this happened but on asking the service guy if anything can be done he said that underbody protection can "prevent" further rust but it cannot "rectify"what has already occured. I am thinking of visiting 3M and take their advise. Can the fellow bhp-ians give some advise? Now I am not in a big favour of getting this repaired (if at all possible) outside of Maruti service centres because I am afraid it will affect the resale value of the car.

[prithm]

Originally Posted by adutta2k

Can the fellow bhp-ians give some advise? Now I am not in a big favour of getting this repaired (if at all possible) outside of Maruti service centres because I am afraid it will affect the resale value of the car.

You will need to first attack the rust. Get it scrubbed with metal wire brush and then apply rust inhibitor. After that is done, you will need to go for a double coat of underbody rust proof paint. I will suggest for a bitumen or rubber based coatings. 3M has standard solution for this, but depends on the depth of rust and parts that it has affected. If its spreading towards the footwell, make sure you remove carpet from inside and check if it has reached insides too.