512TR rust/corrosion an issue or not? Areas to check?

My neighbor has a '92 512TR, has had it for over 15 years. There is not a spec of rust on it, and it is shown in all sorts of car shows. I don't recall even the older Testarossas having any real issues with this if the car is properly taken care of.

My advise would be don't drive it in salty conditions, keep it in the garage (I'm sure this would be the case anyway), don't drive it in the rain often (most F cars aren't anyway), if it does get wet, chamois it off well, don't put it away wet, and finally wax it at least once a year and you should be fine.

 

correct me if I'm wrong but,

All Testarossa's are Aluminum..
All Frame members should be black rust preventitive coated.
The only rust I have ever encountered is on the outer flange of the ferrous Disc brake rotor..
Also the wheel bolts may pitt and rust.

Various hose connectors , ie snake clamps and hardware do show rust after time..
IMO...
The last thing you should worry about on these cars is " Rust"

 

They are made of aluminum, except the roof and doors (made out of steel for safety)

 

There is a thread somewhere here. It showed rust on the doors from water pooling up inside of the door.

 

exactly this problem I have
on the driver door

 

Member 'carguy' gives a more in depth description of problem areas in post 7 of this thread:

http://www.ferrarichat.com/forum/boxers-tr-m/143328-testarossas-rust.html

My theory is that TR's are fairly rust resistant. They fall prey to areas of the country that are not friendly to any car and or cars that get washed frequently. Thus I try to keep the washing to only a couple times a year and blow dry with a leaf blower. The rest of the year I just wipe it down.

 

I agree, nearly any car in the right conditions can rust. It is just a matter or taking care of it correctly so it doesn't. My neighbor daily drove his 512 TR for 5 years and about 50,000 miles with no issues. This was in FL, so no snow, but he got caught in many storms. He just as mentioned before, never put it away wet. Blow off, and wipe off any water before you park it. If you wash it, take it for a brisk drive and then wipe off what's left. Keep it waxed and garaged, and I see no issues. I follow this regiment for all my cars, yes it takes more time, but it is worth it in the end!

 

A friend of mine found serious rust issues with a TR (88' I think) he purchased (no PPI). I believe it had to due with tubular parts of the frame. He took it in for a service and when the mech put it up on the lift it was discovered. Mech said he didn't even want it on the lift because he doubted the structural integrity....not a call you want to get. They figured the car was in a minor flood or the owner drove it in winter weather once then just parked it. The repairs were over $10K.

 

How much over 10K? Sounds like the initial assessment was exaggerated.

 

Just telling the story as remember it as this was almost 10 years ago. I'm assuming the concern was areas of the frame where the load/stress shifted direction while the car was in the air. Point is a TR can have rust damage.

 

I have very little corrosion on my 45K mile '88. It's a Northern California car and it does get wet here but they don't use salt. As stated above, a lot of what I see on other F-cars is the white powdery corrosion on un-coated zinc parts (clamps, brackets, etc.)...but that's how it is supposed to work--zinc plating is sacrificial. And like many others I have removed as much of the unsightly Dinol rust preventative coating (the gold waxy stuff) as possible because it looks so much better without, so I'm actually creating a better environment for rust

There is a thread started by Melvok that deals with his efforts to re-apply rustproofing to his 512TR per the procedures in the Workshop Manual--that may provide some insight. Mel is not afraid to drive in any weather and his part of Europe gets plenty of rain--he and Turbo-Joe are the most frequent Euro-contributors here on the forum, I'm sure they can help. Robert Hayden (uzz32soarer) has a couple of UK cars imported to Australia, he also has a thorough thread on how he addressed rust on doors and sills (maybe the one above, I didn't open it).

Over the years I've found a lot of evidence that F did a pretty good job with their rustproofing methods on all gens of the TR.

Best of luck to you/your Dad on your hunt, please share the results with us!!

 

Thanx Tim ..... and SO correct !

Rust eats also tesrataossa cars .... look here for the Austarlian report.

And mine on preservations ... not difficult and remember WHY did the Factory write about it ?

 

Sorry for the above spelling guys ... I was too hasty/quick ...

 

So in post #18, that shows the spraying being done.

1- Is this done by the factory?

2- How often do they recommend to re-do this? I gather it depends on where you live and how you drive your car...

 

Illustration is showing factory procedure. Many shops have similar/same equipment to apply or re-apply the same or similar liquid treatments (at least in UK where I lived). The procedure is shown on pages L5-L7 of the Workshop Manual. As described, the Tuff-Kote/Dinol treatment is actually two different products: a penetrating type oil and a heavier waxy product which many of us have partially removed over time. Recommended frequency from WSM:

11 to 13 months (after delivery to 1st owner): General checking and partial Tuff-Kote treatment, if necessary
29 to 31 months: as above
47 to 49 months: Complete Tuff-Kote treatment
65 to 67 months: General checking and partial Tuff-Kote treatment, if necessary
83 to 85 months: As above
101 to 103 months: Complete Tuff-Kote treatment
119 to 121 months: General checking and partial Tuff-Kote treatment, if necessary

After a crash or in the event of partial or total painting a general check should be carried out together with second Tuff-Kote treatment

I didn't cross-check the 512TR WSM but I suspect it is similar (Mel's illustration is 512TR).

I know I don't follow the above schedule due to my location and driving frequency, and I do agree, it depends on the individual owners situation--use good judgement.

 

Agreed. I think Ferrari paid more attention to rust than Detroit did on your Boss...

 

We have seen that sills can rust through and what a dissaster that can give you ....

I wonder WHO has already waxed his sills ... as I did ... anyone here ... please helps us all here

 

Absolutely--enjoy it!!

 

And sills!

P