First, I have severe corrosion (obviously) in the battery compartment. I really had not noticed the extent of the damage until I decided to pull the battery for routine maintenance. DAMMIT, look what I found. Pix included. I had been working hard in the trunk and engine compartment areas which are now gorgeous. Questions guys: When not running the car, I leave the battery in but pull the Positive lead, leaving the negative lead on. I have heard noises coming from the battery after a drive. I may have mucked this one. I have to undo the front lower valence below the bumper to get to the corrosion inside the valence. Could be tough. It is so bad as to start eating the paint at the bottom. I must stop this now. The first pix show the damage as was prior to THE WIRE BRUSH. Second set shows after three days and many hard hours of cleaning. I know I cannot just dump a quart of baking soda and water down the girl as there is a big induction fan leading to the internal vent fan system, but I also have absolutely NO room to dick around with spoonfulls of same down tight little holes of welded metal, next to fragile 35 year old wires. I will be derusting with Dremel, and wire brushes et.al. in the next several days, plus I have the rust proof paint ready to go. I truly need some ideas, and your professional help. Thanks all, this one got away from me, and I am coming to you all for serious help Cheers all, hope you all are well, Dwight Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
Looks like you have caught it in plenty of time. Why does your battery generate so much acid? Why do you disconnect?. Could you look at putting the battery in some sort of plastic tray so that the acid would only end up in this tray. That is what most cars have nowadays. Pete
You can remove this white battery salt with hot water....its better to do this before putting some protection paint on that metal. Guido
+1 on the baking soda. The patient appears to be well prepped .......... Now, let's begin the procedure....... Wipe, wire brush, or whatever method you prefer, to remove the precipitate. Then rinse with a 25% baking soda / water solution --- this will neutralize any acidic residue left behind. Dry thoroughly (a hair dryer or heat gun works great), and immediately, after rinsing. Base coat with a quality primer fairly soon --- before surface rust starts up on the exposed metal. Now that the patient is stable, you can paint the finish coat (I recommend "semi-gloss black" Rust Oleum) at your leisure during a post-op follow up FYI --- If you don't neutralize before priming / repainting, corrosion is likely to continue under (and through) your fresh paint.
DWIGHT --- Where did you get your car cover, BTW? Is it washable? I've been looking for one exactly like it for my 308 GTS.
NEVER REMOVE THE POSITIVE LEAD FIRST! http://www.handymanlyness.com/archives/auto/maintenance/battery/cleaning.html Get a battery disconnect attachment if you must. This is what i use. http://www.microfiber-products-online.com/anbadiswandb.html
Once you get it cleaned and painted throw out your old battery and switch to a sealed gel cell like an Optima. This type of battery doesn't give off the nasty stuff that makes your car rust. I had an Optima battery in Mustang for 14 years. There was no corrosion at all. I have had an Optima in the family van for the last 10 years and have never had to clean the battery posts or cables.
My experience with the GT4 battery compartment is on this page : http://www.ferrarichat.com/forum/showthread.php?p=136245096
Once you've cleaned it up and sealed it with say POR15, I would be inclined to spray the area with black waxoyl. Looks ugly at first, but dries matt after a couple of days and protect better than any paint in my experience - and its wet and salty over here. Because my car has black detailed sills I've also coated the bottom inch or so with black waxoyl - you can't really tell. Lee
Have been working very hard DIY on this project. Thanks all for much advice. Will have follow up pix tomorrow. Question - What is POR15???? For Finnerty - your answers: The car cover is actually an older BMW throw away by my business neighbor. Will try to get model #. It is a glove like fit down to perfect fit for the rearview mirrors. The color is Azzurro Mettalizzato Boxer aka Azzuro Dino Glidden Salchi of Milan 20.A.349 Boxer Matte Black 20.B.50 + Matte Lacquer 20.T.380 The surgery goes well. Cheers, Dwight
It's what most people use to paint and protect certain parts of their classic cars such as the frames, fuel tanks or suspension. It's supposed to prevent rust coming through again and certainly dries tough. It's low fumes as well so more pleasant to work with than paints such as Hammerite. Most if not all resto stores will stock it. Lee '77 GT4
Again, thank you all for the advice on this small disaster. Two culprits, a formerly bad battery NAPA, AND the current BAD battery, NAPA. I had a NAPA 8434/78 BCI #UNV 34/78 four post installed. The negative lead to the lower pole, the positive to the upper. Due to a bad cap, acid was flying out of the case, hence, severe corrision. After many days of sanding, wire brushing, and unusual sexual positions with the Dremel tool, cleaning complete. Today was primer as pixed. Great DIY project your learn about your GT4 et.al. Anybody have a good recommendation for the proper battery, and model # Heard Costco has a good one, 1975 308 GT4. Final prep and matte black rust proof final soon. Cheers, Dwight Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
Did you remove the inspection plate from the lower forward part of the wheel well (with front wheel removed). You can see how the acid has affected the underside of the tray and other bits. Don't know about yours, but mine is just held in place with a couple of screws. Lee '77 GT4
