Surface rust around strut brace

[MilanoChris]

Not so much of a detailing question, but more about cleaning and car care.

I have some surface rust around my Mugen strut brace on the body of the car, near the top mounts. I tried cleaning it off this weekend but only got half a job done. I'd like to know of a decent abrasive cloth/brush and cleaner to use please?

Not after £90 items Autoglym/detailing world bodily discharge level of cleaning items, something cheap off Amazon will do if it does the job.

I've already replaced the bolts for the Mugen brace and once I've worked out the size for the standard brace I'll change them over.

Thanks.

 

[hondamad2204]

If you not fussy about looks, some wire wool or abrasive pad / wet and dry, and then tape a nice shape around the strut tower and slap on some undercoat, then underseal, or buy a tin of champ white on ebay to freshen it up abit

Im assuming you have tried removing the brace and tried compounding and polish?

 

[MilanoChris]

Mate you'll laugh but I used a household sponge and glass cleaner, it got rid of most of it but the last stuff is a bit more stubborn.

Whatever I do I want it to be cheap, hence me getting all the bolt measurements as well and getting them ordered in small batches to freshen things up a little.

 

[Liam]

Bilt hamber deox gel is really good for this sort of thing as it only reacts to rust and doesn't harm paint. Layer it over the rust a few mm thick and cover with cling film, remove after an hour (I think it is), wire brush/ wire wool if needed, repeat till you're happy. Then paint as per Jimmer's advice. It also works really well on those pesky stone chips that turn ginger before you can touch them in!

It's a shame Honda were so tight on the seam sealer as there's a lot of seams/ brackets in the engine bay that seem to trap water, rust, and look crap in no time.

 

[MilanoChris]

Cheers Liam, I'll have a look into it.

It's the same on Evo's as well, 40k mile engine bays look awful!

 

[p1tse]

Must be that brace. I'll have it

As above try some car polish first and see how you get on.

 

[CaLi]

Nice glove warmer

 

[MilanoChris]

Nice glove warmer

Haha, it did well! They'd got wet somehow.

 

[Damien2809]

bleach is excellent for removing surface rust! bit of blue tack or playdo, create a pool and poor it in, leave an hour and most if not all should be gone.

 

[GIBLETS]

Chris, hard to tell from the photo's but are the strut brace flanges Aluminium?

If so it looks like Galvanic corrosion, maybe worth considering repainting the tower tops putting something between the two mating faces to act as an isolator.

 

[carl hammond]

Chris, hard to tell from the photo's but are the strut brace flanges Aluminium?

If so it looks like Galvanic corrosion, maybe worth considering repainting the tower tops putting something between the two mating faces to act as an isolator.

What could be used between the two mating faces to act as an isolator as anything like foam would just sit and stay wet / damp if water or dampness was to get near it again causing the issue?

Silly as it sounds maybe smear Vaseline or something similar over the surfaces first?

 

[MilanoChris]

Chris, hard to tell from the photo's but are the strut brace flanges Aluminium?

If so it looks like Galvanic corrosion, maybe worth considering repainting the tower tops putting something between the two mating faces to act as an isolator.

I'm not sure what material it is.

 

[GIBLETS]

What could be used between the two mating faces to act as an isolator as anything like foam would just sit and stay wet / damp if water or dampness was to get near it again causing the issue?

Silly as it sounds maybe smear Vaseline or something similar over the surfaces first?

I'd probably look at either having the end flanges powder coated or if aesthetics are important masking them off and painting the mating face with something like plasti-cote to provide a thick layer, you could also look at cutting a thin plastic/ptfe based film to the footprint of the flange to segregate the surfaces.

You still have the bolts to deal with though but they don't normally pose a problem.

It looks like the corrosion Chris has encountered has occurred over quite a long period of time with a lot of moisture being present between the surfaces, probably caused by something initially rubbing the paint away on the strut tower giving the steel body and aluminium flange direct contact.

 

[carl hammond]

I'd probably look at either having the end flanges powder coated or if aesthetics are important masking them off and painting the mating face with something like plasti-cote to provide a thick layer, you could also look at cutting a thin plastic/ptfe based film to the footprint of the flange to segregate the surfaces.

You still have the bolts to deal with though but they don't normally pose a problem.

It looks like the corrosion Chris has encountered has occurred over quite a long period of time with a lot of moisture being present between the surfaces, probably caused by something initially rubbing the paint away on the strut tower giving the steel body and aluminium flange direct contact.

Cool thanks for the info and advice as I am about to fit the same strut bar and want to pre-prevent such issues where possible