Rust Checking

[Unforgiving]

Hey all. A3 owner here living in Canada , with winter soon approaching the big question I keep turning over in my mind is do I get my car rust checked or crown rust. Treatment. They drill into the door sills which i am not keen about having my beautiful spotless sills drilled and plugged. I currently have one of those electrical doo dads the dealer installed hooked up to the battery that’s supposed to prevent it but not sure how much faith I have in that.

Any other 8v owners have their car treated ? Worth it ?

Thanks


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[rowlands57]

I live in the NY 'salt belt' and just keep my car as clean as can be in the winter. Unless your car has been in an accident the factory treatment should still be in place. My experience with extra rust proofing is that it can clog drain holes and cause more problems than it solves. Granted that is very old experience from when I worked in a shop a LONG time ago, but I don't suspect much has changed. Treating exposed areas with Fluid Film may be an option, but I'd leave the hidden areas alone.

[Thenewjs23]

Key is to try and no let salt sit on the car. Get a pressure washer or get a car wash soon after the salt is gone.

[Unforgiving]

I hate winter lol


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[Spinnetti]

I would not get aftermarket rustproofing - likely to make it worse. Audi has treated (Galvanized) steel and the bodyshell is not nearly as prone to rust as pretty much anything else. The non-bodyshell stuff is about the same but that's generally not an issue. Also lots of the underbody stuff is aluminum these days, so also no issue.

[steve111b]

Started with Krown years ago. Go to the shop and look at the parking lot. If the pavement is covered in oil - do not go there. If your car is treated there it will be dripping oil for weeks or months. I ended up going to a rural Krown location that had no oil on the pavement around the shop. I asked that the operator not drill holes.

With my Audi A3 I went to a local shop that had the approval of the Audi dealer. I have been going there for about ten years. Every two years I get an oil spray. They always say that the job is best if they drill holes, but I always say no.

Sold my A3 after 8 winters in a severe Winter climate (Ottawa). There was no damage to the paint work (never waxed the car). After one Winter (9 total) with the new owner the paint was peeling away from the rockers behind the front wheels. My assumption is that the new owner did not take proper care of the car.

A lot will depend on your location and use, but I always get a car wash at least once every three weeks. It did happen often that getting a car wash would cause problems. With temperatures way below freezing (for two or three weeks running) the windows and doors would freeze shut after having the car washed. I try to time my washes so that the temperature is close to the freezing point.

In Ontario I suspect that all road crews now use brine. This is way worse than old fashioned road salt. The brine generates a cloud of salt spray that hangs in the air above the road and gets sucked into every nook and cranny of the car.