You know it's rusty when...

...the antenna lead is rusted into the radio!

Sounds about right for a Minnesota car.

My friend had a DD that was so rusty you couldn't wear the front seatbelts, because they were needed to hold up the rear floor pans up by the anchor points... I wouldn't get in the car.

When the only two tools you need are a vice grip and a torch.

I rode in a turbo sundance that was so rusty the door gaps actually widened when you floored it. It amazes me to find anything atleast 5 years old that hasnt started rotting apart in ohio. If the guy who paid for the quicker state undercoating on my wagon was still alive id hug him!

My dad bought a 1976 Accord brand new. By 1980 you could see through the front fenders and the car returned to it's elemental state in around 1982.

Cars are better today than they used to be.

KyAllroad wrote: My dad bought a 1976 Accord brand new. By 1980 you could see through the front fenders and the car returned to it's elemental state in around 1982.

My parents bought a new 1977 Accord that was recalled for rusting front fenders. It survived until about 1982 as well when it was sold (with rust).

The worst car I've ever seen was a TR6 parts car that my brother and I dragged out of a barn. It spent 10 years stored over wet hay. There was a diaper filling a hole in the floor pan that must have been there when it was put into storage. The frame was almost completely rusted in half. I'm amazed the car didn't break apart while we stripped it of any usable parts. The original wiring harness and engine are curently in my restored TR6, so it was good for something. Come to think of it, I'm using the bonnet from that car on my current project.

You know it's rusty when the car makes its own thermite in a vain effort to weld itself.

I never knew oil pans could rust through until I owned an Ontario car.

In reply to SkinnyG:

The trans pan on my mom's jeep is due for a new one, despite being behind a 4.0 that's probably been oiling it to some degree since 50,000 miles or so. The rear brake lines for instance are fine (under a coat of grime), until the transfer case or so, noticed that when one blew out (with me driving, thankfully) the other week and I had to pinch it off to limp home.

When you buy the biggest tub of Never-Seize and you know in your heart its not enough.

I was under a Jeep liberty yesterday that both the trans pan and the oil pan were so rusty they were weeping oil through the pans. I showed the customer and politely declined to clean up the rust and paint them as they asked. (was to B traded in this week. ).

The worst one was a 70s nova??? that a customer drove in and asked us to pull the motor for them so they coukd re build it while we stored the car. I un bolted the trans and took the motor mount bolts out. Removed all the other wires and plumbing and the rad and went to lift the motor out and the frount clip of the car came away from the rest of the car. The attachment points where the frount sub frame attached was completely rotted.

Needless to say the car was a total loss. The customer was really really upset.

I'm a huge 80's k car fan. Grew up with Mom driving a 84 black 2.2l turbo chrysler lazer. We never had money, but we had a mechanic that patched the unibody (rusted in half)somehow put in sheet metal to keep the water from splashing up through the carpet. I remember when it was real bad and we would go though a big puddle of water and the carpet would lift my feet up about about six inches. Rough times come to think of it. 20ish years ago now.

Back in about '79-'80 my uncle failed the NY state inspection due to a hole rusted through the trunk of his old beater. He got a bucket of chicken to think about what he was going to do without his car. Inspiration struck and he used the chicken bones and roofing tar to patch the hole (and seal out the carbon monoxide). Drove back to the inspection station where the laughing tech passed the car and he got his sticker.

My parts Subaru - when I pulled the seat belts out I could see the garage floor through the bottom of the B-pillar.

SkinnyG wrote: I never knew oil pans could rust through until I owned an Ontario car.

Pretty common here.

dean1484 wrote: The worst one was a 70s nova???

Ooooh! Ooooooh! I had another buddy with an early-'70s Nova that wasn't as bad as the guy with no seatbelts, but not good. We were cruising around one Saturday night and I was following him. Suddenly I saw sparks coming from somewhere on rear. I moved over to look and I realized that the lug wrench was poking out through a rust hole right behind the wheel arch and the tip was dragging on the ground. I was blowing the horn to warn him when the wrench caught on a manhole cover or something and can-openered the whole rear rocker from wheel to bumper.

We hit a small whoop on a sandy trail in Plymouth Ma in my friends CJ7 and both our legs went through the floorboards up to our shins.

Thank God for tetanus shots. There was blood.

Driving home fro work in an 85 ( I think) Escort that my Uncle had given me. Hit a bump in the road and the passenger side rear strut came up through the carpet. That was an interesting ride home.

On the other hand my 03 SAAB has lived outside since we have had it, about 7 years, and it is nice and clean underneath. In the winter I try to hit the car wash once a week and that seems to be working.

ebonyandivory wrote: We hit a small whoop on a sandy trail in Plymouth Ma in my friends CJ7 and both our legs went through the floorboards up to our shins. Thank God for tetanus shots. There was blood.

Thank god for ground clearance, or there would have been broken legs!

In high school I replaced upper control arms on my 77 Granada because they snapped right by the ball joint. The car was towed home for the first one, the second time it happened I replaced it on the side of the road the next morning.

I used "Great stuff" foam insulation to fill rust holes in the rear wheel wells to pass inspection on an 84 S-10. I probably should have trimmed the excess sticking out from the body before going back for the re-inspection, but they passed it anyway.

The last snow of the year last spring I mover over to let someone merge and backed into the guardrail. I thought I'd be able to through a trunk lid and some tail lights on but much of the trunk floor and inner wheel wells had disintegrated.

I had to junk my 1967 Fiat 850 Spider when I hit a speedbump in a parking lot and I couldn't open either door.

Poor thing had just about rusted in half.

Rusted_Busted_Spit wrote: Driving home fro work in an 85 ( I think) Escort that my Uncle had given me. Hit a bump in the road and the passenger side rear strut came up through the carpet. That was an interesting ride home. On the other hand my 03 SAAB has lived outside since we have had it, about 7 years, and it is nice and clean underneath. In the winter I try to hit the car wash once a week and that seems to be working.

My 79 capri managed to shoot a coil spring through the passenger rear and out the hatch on a nitrous launch. That was when i finally decided the body wasnt worth saving. Makes alot of racket.

ebonyandivory wrote: We hit a small whoop on a sandy trail in Plymouth Ma in my friends CJ7 and both our legs went through the floorboards up to our shins. Thank God for tetanus shots. There was blood.

That's one of my worst fears. Happy to know it doesn't automatically end in losing both your feet.