Fender Rust

So back in september i had to roll and pull my fenders and ended up chipping paint because i used a hair dryer instead of a heat gun, did the job except for chipping the paint.

 

As like everyone else who owns a subaru, i enjoy the snow, but with snow comes the salt, i never got around to covering up the bare metal and now 3 fenders are showing signs of rust starting.

 

Has anyone ran into this problem and fixed it before it got out of hand? ive been looking around for a solution but some people say if you sand it you'll spread the rust more. I would like to either sand it or clean the spots and just paint over with clear coat and then OEM paint.

 

Any advice on how to tackle this before the rust spreads like wildfire? Thanks gents.

 

-Mike

Is the rust deep in the metal or just on the surface? Hopefully it's only on the surface by now, otherwise you have to cut and re patch and at that point you are better off bringing it to a good body shop

What's the ad say...uh oh, better get Maaco.

 

I had my buddies restoration shop/body shop repair the rust around my windshield.

 

To do it right can be expensive. Or you could just get a bottle of touch up paint, sand or use a good knife to scrap away the rust and paint it.

 

Other lesson learned, have a body shop roll the fenders...or god forbid...buy wheels that fit without having to roll the fenders.

 

Sorry.

I used a dremel to clean up my rust and repaint. I got right down to fresh metal. If you don't get rid of it all, it's a waste of time and will come back.

Thanks for the quick replies!

 

At this point it is only surface rust, which I bought inhibitor for to just remove the rust this weekend and spray on a primer then coat it with the touch up paint Subaru supplied me with. I will definitely have to get down to fresh metal, did it do the trick for you so far rob?

 

I know, max capacity I learned my lesson, but I just wanted to fit in

 

I will follow up on the approach that I took and if worse comes to worse I will take it to my body shop over spring break!

 

Thanks again for the replies

Just got a legacy gt wagon, it's pretty clean at 120,000 but has one spot of paint bubbling at the drivers side rear leading edge of the fender. About the size of a quarter. Want to get this repaired before it looks like all the other ones in chicago. I can not stand a rusty looking car.

The benefits of yearly rustproofing cannot be overstated.

^agreed.. update: razored the rust off, used steel wool and vinegar, then rust dissolver, let it dry and then primed it plus a clear coat. It will last me..... hopefully.... quick fix only because it was surface rust.. fewf

Glad I never rolled my fenders, glad I live in FL.

I don't pretend to be an expert at metallurgy, but I'm pretty sure you don't want anything acidic (like vinegar) near bare steel.

I believe he was using it to etch the surface. I did find a post with a repair done in another forum. The repair looked nearly like new check it out - http://forums.nasioc.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2300476

 

This gives me hope

 

Since my paint is bubbling that mean it rusted from the inside out and will have to be patched. ... was hoping for a quick touch up

I don't pretend to be an expert at metallurgy, but I'm pretty sure you don't want anything acidic (like vinegar) near bare steel.

 

Thats exactly what I thought but I used baking soda/water mixture as a base to neutralize the "acidic" content of vinegar. As Jeremy said, it was only to etch the surface to allow the paint to adhere and also remove some rust.. it was worth a try because if no one tries it then how will we ever have answers! So far so good. Definitely will keep this updated for those of you who have questions