..or maybe interesting covers better than; great fun. September last year we where on our way back to Norway after 3 weeks of holiday in Italy in our 308 GTB, 77, About 300 kms north of Maranello (30 C) we hit about 20 cm of wet snow. It took us a few exiting hours before we where clear. "Slush" was forced into every possible opening under the car , around battery, in the radiator and in engine bay etc., as there was more "slush" on the road than the ride height on the car. Thank to new tires and the differential brake it worked out. Image Unavailable, Please Login
All, I don't think the common perception of "don't wash you car" comes from people's lack of ability to dry off what they can see, but rather the collection of water in places you can't. Case in point- my 85 which lived in SoCal all it's life and has 34K miles had some minor corrosion on: The pass. door frame Driver's fuel filler under the 3/4 grille Pass side under the 3/4 grille This car is not like my '06 V70R- if water accumulates on semi-protected areas and the car sits, it's going to rust (it's 80's Italian, don't forget). Most people wash their car AFTER it's been driven. Consider the frame and engine compartment that are hidden from view and probably other places you or I can't access. It's not unreasonable to use Final Detailer after each drive, spend some time cleaning up the dust, then cover the car. Like this you'll never have to worry. Just my .02, -w-
Same here in UK! The area which bothers me is inside the doors. Any water which runs down the window firstly reaches a metal channel which holds the bottom of the glass (328) and collects there, thus rusting the metal which only seems to be painted with one coat of black paint. Then if water collects inside the bottom of the doors it will sit in the lowest part which is the outer side of the base of the door, where the outer door skin wraps around the flange of the base. This is below the level of the drain holes. There was evidence of rust here on the inside of the outer skin on my 89 328 so I coated with anti-rust followed by underseal. As far as I can see, the later cars being galvanised is a myth, I cant see any evidence of this on mine.
Andy, I would not like to be seen as nitpicking here, but I have read many times that, from 1983 onwards, that the cars were rust-proofed by a zinc-coated treatment applied on standard metal ("pre-treated zincrometal steel"), but I have no source that specifically mentions the expression "galvanised steel". Whatever the metal treatment, I hope that it protects at least some places: I sortied my GTB on Friday: the weather was sunny and the forecast was: sun; and guess what? It rained after about 20 miles... Best
I am sure you are right. They used a zinc coating. This is not the same as galvanising, but a Google search reveals many references to later 3x8s using galvanised steel.
Just for the sake of it, and FWIW, I have had a quick look into my archives; all the "serious books" mention more or less the same description of the anti-rust treatment; I quote Bluemel's as an example, on page 36: "for all models produced from January 1984, the steel body panels were manufactured from Zincrox-coated steel panels on internal surfaces most exposed to corrosive action. The Zincrox treatment was an electrolytic applied, multi-layer coating comprising one layer of zinc on the steel surface, then a layer of chrome, and finally a layer of chrome oxide". This description may have come from the factory's litterature, as it more or less matches what is written in the "Warranty card and owner's service book", in the paragraph "preventing rust", on the page following the last service coupons. One source says that the method came directly from one previously tested on cars manufactured by FIAT. And to conclude, one of the source also states that the thick black paint employed on the bottom panels of the cars (rockers, etc...) is PVC based. Best,
While I dont do out for a drive and look for a rain cloud, here in Florida they seem to find you when you least expect them. Have gotten caught in some heavy down pours and the car survived just fine. Just make sure the drains in each A piliar are clear so the water will drain away from the front of the targa top. There are small rubber hoses just behind the rear fender skirts in the front wheel wells where the water drains to.
Nope, no melting here either... Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
Isabella is parked on the drive, and gets washed about once every two weeks, where i live near Manchester its always raining, car leaks being a GTS, and plenty of metal replaced over the years, but she looks good and like a good mistress makes me smile, oh starts every time! JK
