Top strut mount (again)

[Dashiel]

As we had another thread on top strut mounts on how to change them it brought to mind something that I noted when I got both front and rear struts off my 75
And this is the issue of rust.
My car is generally in pretty good condition underneath regarding rust , much better than some of the photos I have seen of other's cars I have seen posted here.
And I notice that rust was starting to form between the body and the strut mounts. They are rust traps in other words. I don't Want to cause a panic, the 75 has excellent paint and metal already to prevent this, so this will take years to affect my car. But others may want to consider taking the struts out, applying a rust killer treatment and then wax undersealing the area, if you live where there is a lot of salt about. I did this to mine anyway, so i can crack on with the next jobs on the car.

[Livermpj]

Did you find rust at the front or rear?

I was quite shocked at the state of my rear suspension/subframe in general, when I decided to paint it the other year. I used phosphoric acid + hammerite primer & top coat, it was a pretty big job!

I too noticed a fair bit of rust around the top plate of the rear dampers, although it was confined to the damper and not the body mounting point. I brushed it all clean, de-rusted and applied a good dollop of wax-seal (that black waxy underseal that doesn't fully set).
Had my front arch liners out recently, and the front strut tops looked OK as far as I could tell.

BTW, I pretty sure rust is the main cause of spring breakages, rust spots will cause stress points. I keep my spings clean, and the rears waxed. No failures yet (in 11 years).

TBH, I'm not very impressed with the quality of finish of the bolt-on parts (subframes, fuel tank straps etc etc). I wish they were as well protected as the body shell appears to be... nowhere near as good as French and German cars I've owned.

[Bob Williams]

Many thanks for that warning Dashiel. I had my rear sub frame removed, sand blasted and properly painted and put back last year because of the visible (and probably invisible!) surface rust and just next week am having the top strut bushes replaced (at about 99,000 miles) so this is perfect timing to check for rust there.

I agree about the fuel tank straps. They are poor quality compared with much of the car and I will think about treating them later in the year.

Flashy wheels, fancy electronics inside, powerfolds, etc are all nice but it is the unseen parts we need to look after.

Bob

[Dashiel]

Both front and back all 4 corners showed deterioration.
It must be water getting trapped between strut mount and paintwork on body combined with moving parts and lack of sunlight and wind.