Last fall (10 months ago) I got my rockers panels repaired and the lower 1" or so of the rear doors also cut off and replaced because of rust. I noticed that at the bottom of both doors there is light rust at the seam again. Don't know whether water is getting into the door somehow or something else is causing this. Was thinking maybe the outside window trim that attached to the side of the door up against the window may be going bad? Not sure if I should try and find that trim and replace. Not sure what the part number is and how hard it is to replace, not a simply piece of generic trim. Looks like hard plastic with a softer more flexible rubber piece attached or something?? Not sure how it even attaches to the door. Thinking of drilling a couple of more hole at the bottom corner of both doors and treating the inside a little with WD40 through the hole, but was told that is simply a band-aid, Originally the two rear door had a lot of rust down there, hence the repair. I fear the problem that caused that may still exist.







Help.

Thanks, David

 

That is being caused from the rust inside of the door panel that was repaired. It's the surface rust that is draining out, since it's not a perfect seal.

When my truck had some rust work done, they painted the insides of the work after they welded it to help alleviate this. Like for the doors, the fellow made a special contraption with a hose for his sprayer and sprayed paint on the inside of the doors where he worked the best he could. Knock on wood it there is no rust like you are showing.

In any event, those new rockers should last at least 5 years even with the rust.

And as always... rust is a cancer... it's a B***** to keep ahead of it.

 

Hmmm, interesting. I think they painted the inside of the lower part of the door as well, but maybe didn't do a good job? It's odd that it's the full length of the doors at that bottom bend, on both sides. Are you thinking that it should stop at some point or might this be the start of more issues? Think I may drill the extra holes in the bottom of the doors to ensure it's draining well too. It was expensive to have that work done!

 

Without looking at it, the issue may or may not get worse.

Drilling extra holes can benefit, especially if you live in dusty/sandy climates.

 

I live in Virginia, so it's wet and humid here. Went ahead and drilled the hole and sprayed inside them as best I could. Then I used some of the Rustoleum paint that turns rust into a non-rust surface on the areas where there is that slight surface rust. Have used this previously, but not for metal that will continue to be outside in the elements. Will just keep an eye on it for now.

Thanks

 

That's about all you can do. Good luck.

 

I live in NC and was going to need some rust work done on my 2002 F150. I bought it and unfortunately didnt realize how bad the rust was from the mountains of NC road salting on it. I only plan to keep it a few years but want to make sure it survives till then. Do you mind me asking how much general ballpark it cost to have the work done on your truck and how you found the shop to do the work as I've asked around here in Raleigh and no one can tell me of a place to do rust work. Thanks!

 

I ended up finding somebody on craigslist. The "shop" was actually a guys garage back in the woods, literally. He is/was building a very large garage on his property and starting a business restoring cars and building race cars. They had to replace the lower 1" or so of the rear doors, cut out and replace the rocker panels on both sides, touch up the paint, etc. All of that cost @1700. Expensive, but probably much less than a "professional shop" would have charged. Only time will tell if it was money well spent, if the inside of the 2 back doors are already rusting, maybe not ....... Not sure whats happening, just have to wait and see I guess. The truck is in very nice shape, only has 105K miles, I bought it back in 2004 and its a 2002. One of the reasons I haven't gotten something newer as this is the last full sized truck made I think that will fit into my garage! Damn newer garages are small.

Good luck to you.

 

I did several months of shopping around, until I found the right person.

The fellow that did my truck used to work for two companies that did heavy duty truck repair. Like buses, semi's, haulers, dump trucks, stake beds, flat beds.... etc, etc.

He mostly worked on tour buses and coach buses, painting them and refinishing them for the local area bus companies. From you guess it... salt and rust damage. But he also did collision work as well.

Basically he redid my whole truck for $1500.

Food for thought, most people knock these new aluminum trucks. In fact, a majority of tour buses and coach buses are aluminum bodied and they have aluminum undercarriages, except for the main frame. That is why they last so long with so many miles.

Which is awesome, because if I upgrade to one of these aluminum trucks, I already have a man that can repair it, which is sweet!