Oh no, that is nothing. Take a look at Dodge, Chevy, and Ford pickup trucks. Ive seen holes and snapped frames within 7-10 years.
Rust repair advise on North East 200 series (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter Raptor62
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- 200 series rust
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EverywhereBear
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Sorry, I should have clarified, no shop wanted to take on fixing the rust.
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- #23
That's even more surprising.
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I can see that, I'm from the northeast and I remember my friend's parents growing up actually having the dealer fix rust issues under warranty because they rusted so fast.
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Thanks man I will, Im going to pass on this 200 series more than likely unless the dealer drops the price dramatically but I'm definitely going to put more effort into keeping my 80 series rust-free.
Here is one thing I even forget sometimes. Shops charge a standard rate per hour. They have a book for every vehicle and the time required to do the job. It's an average time that leans a bit to more time needed. As soon as they see major to moderate rust they just say no. I understand it from the mechanics perspective. A 2 hour billable job turns into 12 hours because a bolt snapped. Try explaining that to the customer. Even if you warned them it could happen they are going to fight you to the death for ripping them off. In fact I would trust a mechanic even more if there was rust and he pointed out each bolt that was questionable and the worst case scenario. Also mechanics keep a schedule. Those hours estimated are also other peoples vehicles as well. If your brake job has a time of 1.5 hours and it takes 10 that means the shop is compromising the schedule for at least 4 other paying customers with less headache.
Smaller indy shops will generally be a little bit more forgiving if your willing to give them time. If you approach them with full discloser. I got a rust bucket that I love. I'll pay you to take a full look all around for the job and let me know ish when you can handle it and about how long it will take, bill me for broken bolts I know it's a PITA.
Interesting. Ive never been turned away and my 100 chassis is ocean environment rusty. They just get to it.
Where do you live again?
Unfortunately it's all to common in the lower 48. Especially the lower lower 48. Up north, at least around me, they are more willing and have a lot more experience dealing with rust. Show it to a mechanic in AZ they are going to tell you it's totaled.
Alaska but I’ve had plenty of service done in Ohio, Minnesota, and Michigan.Where do you live again?
So you are saying in the rust belt you found a mechanic that is willing to work on a rusted vehicle. This also implies that everyone else will have the same result. In fact it implies a lot. To me it it sounds like you are stating it is ok to purchase a vehicle with a lot of rust and there will be no issues having it serviced anywhere by anyone with no added cost or time from the service manuals provided by the government for fair practices regarding mechanics rates? And there will be no issues for the common driver, not the gear head, having a rusted vehicle repaired or serviced?
I going to go on a stretch and say both of us are in the same camp. We have a rig and have had one of some time. We do our own work. You know damn well if it was clean it would be much easier. The point is- going back the the OP- that thing has a lot of rust. It is going to be an issue for the layman. And that truck would be a horrible introduction to the LC platform. Clean older 200's or 100's are a great place to start. If your first one is a rust bucket there will be no joy doing anything with it.
A severely rusted/rotted vehicle is exactly the same as the same vehicle with no rust. The hours are the same. The bill is the same. There is no difference? Correct?
I going to go on a stretch and say both of us are in the same camp. We have a rig and have had one of some time. We do our own work. You know damn well if it was clean it would be much easier. The point is- going back the the OP- that thing has a lot of rust. It is going to be an issue for the layman. And that truck would be a horrible introduction to the LC platform. Clean older 200's or 100's are a great place to start. If your first one is a rust bucket there will be no joy doing anything with it.
A severely rusted/rotted vehicle is exactly the same as the same vehicle with no rust. The hours are the same. The bill is the same. There is no difference? Correct?
Pretty significant for miles and year. I'd wait for something else. Your patience will pay off in the long run.
Good luck.
What I am saying is that, in areas were vehicle chassis rust is typical, dealerships and independent shops just deal with it. They have to. Take a look at any 5 year old Ford, Chevy, etc. Rusty but somehow still on the road. A mechanic is fixing that vehicle. Only an enthusiast does his own work these days. Landscapers, plumbers, etc have no time to work on their own vehicles.
On my own crusty 100 I have noticed no really difference in service cost from my clean 200. Now, if my rusty 100 was in Seattle, LA, or Phoenix it may be different. But in Anchorage, Whitehorse, Calgary, Fairbanks, Minneapolis, etc mechanics just fix it.
The OP is in Virgina, where they most likely salt the roads in the winter. Any clean, new vehicle will have chassis rust after a couple of winter seasons. And the mechanics have experience with this because they live with it every day.
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Hard pass on this one.
Even if a mechanic is dealing with all the work on it, you're going to spend thousands of dollars more dealing with rusted parts. Case in point - if your LCA cam bolts are rusted (which I am virtually certain they are based on those photos) it's not just the $600 for a pair of LCAs but also several hours of labor for the shop to sawzall the old ones off. So my $100 alignment will cost you $1000+ ($100 for the alignment, $600 for LCAs, at least $300 for labor to replace them... possibly double that)
In short, it's likely cheaper in the long run to pay more for a rust-free vehicle from the south than to buy a rusted northern truck
Even if a mechanic is dealing with all the work on it, you're going to spend thousands of dollars more dealing with rusted parts. Case in point - if your LCA cam bolts are rusted (which I am virtually certain they are based on those photos) it's not just the $600 for a pair of LCAs but also several hours of labor for the shop to sawzall the old ones off. So my $100 alignment will cost you $1000+ ($100 for the alignment, $600 for LCAs, at least $300 for labor to replace them... possibly double that)
In short, it's likely cheaper in the long run to pay more for a rust-free vehicle from the south than to buy a rusted northern truck
