keeping it all alive

Given the TDI engine habit of lasting many many thousands of miles, what is need to keep the rest of the car alive that long? Assuming I only drive 20k miles a year the engine will still have plenty of life in it after 10 years, but in what state will the rest of the car be after 10 New England winters? And what can I do to help it continue to give me service for many years after that?

helou Phoenix,

up here the corrosion is probably the biggest problem. Because the weather is all the time changing, warm&cold, below 0c&above 0c. If you have something 'broken' on the engine you can allways fix it, but if the car is 'rotten' there isn't that much to do if get's too bad.

My beloved Polo is one year old 45000km on the ticker. No problems what so ever. And I'm going to keep this car for a long time. So rust protection is the key to happiness . It's quite expensive but you have to get that done every five years or so. They spray rust protection stuff under the car. they also drill small holes on the car body and spray the stuff inside (on places that you can't see of cource) and cover the holes with small plastic caps. I hope that this isn't again some Finnish oddity and they do these rust protections also over there??

Terveisin,

I just spent a pleasant too short weekend with family in SE PA, one with a diesel Rabbit with >430,000 miles on it. There are three parts-hulks, one of which still runs, available for essential parts replacement.

That said, I just noticed that the stealership's monkey-canic broke the connector atop the brake-fluid reservoir. Looks like one part of the secret to longevity is to avoid the stealerships like the plague.

Terveisin,

Aftermarket rustproofing became very popular in the U.S. back in the late 70s and 80s. A big player was Ziebart. They used the method you describe. As time went on, many people felt that this system caused more problems than it cured. Sometimes existing drain holes were plugged so drainage could not occur properly. Also, every place a hole was drilled to allow access for the application wand, bare metal was exposed which was not properly sealed by the plastic cap and rust occurred there too. Also, the process added a considerable amount of weight to the car and was expensive.

I had a 1980 Accord treated this way and was not happy with the results over the long term. It was during that period also that manufacturers were learning better techniques to prevent cars from rusting. I don't think any one has their cars "rustproofed" here anymore. At least not in this region. I think these shops have pretty much closed now.

-Mel

I meant to add that I think the best thing you can do to a modern car today to make the body last is keep it clean. Especially keep crevices flushed and clean where dirt, debris, leaves, etc. accumulate. Especially around wheel wells and behind wheel well liners, if appropriate.

-Mel

Putting in a little time every year to properly touch up stone chips will help some. For some models rust in some places will be inevitable, for example the hatches of golfs (or any hatchback) are a weak spot here in the salt belt. A garage will help some. Waxing won't hurt either.

Some VWs are "lemons" as far as their paint quality, but in general you can feel confident that your VW's body will last better than any Japanese counterpart. We've generally sold our VWs after 11 years, and they've had a few years left in the body after that (and several years left on the engine).

Having an experience with my Toyota, I know the popular spots for rust. Especially the four wheel caps. I removed all the plastic protection shields and painted it underneath with Black Varnish or better: rubbercoating. And don't forget to spray some wax coating in the interior of the body panels and the inside of the doors.
The bottom of the car is normally enough protected.

Greetz, Tomasso

[ November 20, 2001: Message edited by: greentdi ]</p>

as things rust, paint and seal them.

Thanks guys, just trying to get a 13th and 14th year out of the tiring Camry my wife drive. I am trying to avoid having two car payments sucking my paycheck dry! And if I can get a replacment TDi give as much service and last even lobger I'll be a happy owner.