Prevent rust problems o 308?

After a wash, always take your car for a spin; it'll blow the water out of most of the seams.

Rust usually starts where there is an accumulation of dirt in combination with water. The spot behind the rear wheel-arches, just above the waistline is a good example. It's rather difficult to seal properly without leaving any space for the ingress of water and dirt.
A second hot-spot are the doors, and this is made worse by the design, or lack thereof, of the rubber that seals against the glass. At the rear-post of the small glass, no allowance is made to let that post pass into the door, leaving some rather wide gaps between the post and the rubber, where water gushes in when you wash the car. The problem is compounded by always present dirt in the bottom of the doors, it stays wet and the buubbles cannot be avoided. I have cut the rubber on my car in order to attempt to obtain a better seal.
Of course you need to make sure that all your drain-holes are clean and open.

Ferrari only got reasonably serious about rust-protection in 1984 (I think), but there is some evidence of them doing some work in that direction on my '82 as well. A proper waxoil, Dinitro or Tectyl treatment would go a long way.l

 

On my 308 GTBi, I found that the coating on the bottom of the inside of the doors was no longer doing anything useful. I cleaned it all out and covered it with POR-15. That should help with any rust conditions on the doors.

 

I use compressed air to to get the water out of the cracks and crevasses on my car. I'm on my third ( I'm keeping this one) 3x8 and they all had rust at what I think is refered to as the C pillar where the buttress meets the rear quater panel.

 

Dehumidifier in the garage helps a lot too (unless you live in Arizona!)

 

Yes, often due to sloppy workmanship after re-sprays: there is supposed to be a thin line of sealer where the fender meets the C-pillar, which is often forgotten.
Also have a look at the horizontal part of the fender (hidden by the decklid when closed) where it meets the C-pillar. Water accumulates there at the joint, and it has nowhere to go to.

 

Mine has the sealer at the seam between the two panels. The problem area is actually about 2" above the seam on both sides of the car. IIRC my last 328 had the same problem in exactly the same place. As for the area under the deck lid, I know what you mean. Thats another area I get with the air compressor. There are so many areas on these cars where water hides from the chamois cloth. Before I started using the air compressor, I would wash the car, dry it off and then the next time I drove it, trapped water would leave spots all over the car. Water loves to hide around the door handles, mirrors and louvers.

 

I have had the early car lower door rust issues and had it repaired. My rust prevention actions are pretty basic. I have not washed my car since somewhere back in 2003. It has only seen rain twice since I have owned it. I just dust it down and use detailer spray. I'll strip and re-wax once a year. I keep it inside and periodicly will take the air gun and blow under the car. So far , so good.

 

VERY bad idea........I use very little water at all and ALWAYS at low pressure.

The trouble spots in the doors are from poor drain hole location, drilling better ones would help if the cars sees rain....

The other trouble spots are behind the front wheels and sometimes above the reveal lines at the rear corners.

Keep your trunk dry.

 

Is anyone using one of the electronic anti-rust systems on their 308. Something like CounterAct: http://www.counteractrust.com/counteract.htm

I have some friends running them on hot rods, but they are pretty rust proof and babied as it its so I'm not sure thats a good test. Just wondering if anyone is using it on a car known for rust... I've fixed my fair share on my car and might consider putting a system on the Ferrari if there is merit.

Rick

 

I thought in your state that was "Keep your powder dry"?

 

+1

I've just refurbished the doors on my car - the seam where the door skin joins the bottom of the door is a perfect trap for water. I topped up the existing rust proofing with waxoyl. Provided the drain holes are kept clear it can't do any harm.

 

These 308s were designed in sunny Italy, so, weather protection and rust protection was initially somewhat of an afterthought. Thankfully, these are tube frame cars....much like a kit car....so, when those rockers rust out or the pillars rust out there's not a significant structural risk as is the case in a monocoque car of the same vintage. That's the good news. Bad news is that they like to rust, especially the pre-galvanized ones. Clean out the door bottoms/wheel arches/trunks and keep 'em dry and in the garage is the best advice.