ok its getting cold outside and im getting scared....before long there will be salt on the road. I live in maryland so they will do it maybe 4 times in the winter. I got pretty new paint job and chrome rims. Whats the salt gonna do to that? should i wash it off every day I drive it?

And no, I cant afford a winter car....i can barely afford this car. so i have to drive it, but I will drive it as little as possible...just to college and back..and ill make other people drive if im gonna go out.

But do you guys think ill be ok if i wash it off all the freaken time and take it to the car wash all the time?

also, are there any things i can do or products i can use might help to prep my car?

 

Keep a good coat of wax on it. I drove mine many years in the salt/slush(it was my college car)--the paint is still fine. It's only going to hurt bare metal. If you have any chips down to bare metal, it will create some rapid rust. But you have good paint and probably good wheels. I used to wash mine after the roads dried up...

 

I drove my IROC last winter. Once a week, I would take it to the DIY carwash and spray off the undercarriage and wheel wells to get all the salt out of there. That should keep most of the rust away.

 

just to be on the safe side im taking my chrome rims off for the winter...i drive my car in the winter time & i dont have any problems with rust

 

dont forget to get it rust proofed, it does help. watch those wheel wells they luv to get rust there dont let the salt sit in there to long. dont feel so bad i am in the same shoes as u i have to drive mine this winter.

 

if you have to drive with chrome be sure to coat it with protectant like a wax carnuba of sorts. if they are really nice chrome rims i would invest in cheap winter wheels but you should be ok.

it's a good idea to clean the car when you get alot of salt on it but you have to be careful when you do it. using warm water in cold months can cause your paint to crack among many other issues.

best bet if you have to drive the car is to clean it really well and put some products on the wheels and paint to help protect and when you notice that it's getting bad wash the car if you get a chance. there is no way around it unfortunately.

also stay away from undercoatings and rust protectors as they only help to hold moisture and advance the stages. unless your using products like por-15 or rhino lining on your car your better off leaving it how it is. checking for bare areas and taking care of rust before winter comes will help alot.

 

i got c5 chrome rims ;\ exactly how bad is salt on chrome?

 

wate rust protection is bad, how u figure that one

 

salt is extremely bad on chrome....let it dry and your in trouble. dulls the finish, finds open pores and causes chipping as well as rust. numberous reasons....

 

if i wash em off after everytime i drive will it be alright? shouldnt be too many times where salt is on the roads.

 

from the first salt til weeks after the last one there is salt on the roads.....all that white powdery stuff you see even when the snow is gone is still salt. there is no way around it just try to put some protectant like a good coat of polish or a carnuba wax of sorts.

if you do wash them when the salt is dry on the chrome soak the wheels and be sure that the water meets the temperature of the rim otherwise you will cause the chrome to crack. i drove mine through 3 winters and she still looked good when i sold them but it was alot of work.