Steel wheels rusting

[Campfos]

My Ducato base vehicle not two years old until November this year so technicaly still under warranty.

The steel wheels are showing bad signs of rusting/ surface corrosion have asked about this at the local fiat professional dealer.

Still waiting on a response from them.

Now my question is any forum members have this problem and if so did Fiat solve it.

You may think this is a small issue but I always think nice wheels set a motor off well.

 

 

[Derek Uzzell]

You could take your Ducato’s wheels off regularly, give them a good clean and apply a wax coating, but they’ll still rust - just less than if you don’t ‘maintain’ them.

 

I’d also like my Ducato’s steel wheels to not rust, but I know they are going to and there’s not a lot I can do about it. Aren’t the plastic wheel trims there to disguise the rusting? ;-)

 

(Best of luck with Fiat Professional - it will be interesting to learn what they say...)

[Will86]

If you live near an on shore wind or visit coastal resorts where the waves are crashing on rocky outlets then salt spray will destroy any protection you thought you may have had. One good dowsing of salt spray will start the corrosion process immediately.

 

In addition have you driven on salt covered roads in the winter, if yes and you didn't clean the wheels immediately after, there is your problem with little chance of recovery.

 

Based on the above comments I doubt any dealer would be interested to respond.

 

Will

[Bulletguy]

Derek Uzzell - 2016-08-30 9:18 AM

 

You could take your Ducato’s wheels off regularly, give them a good clean and apply a wax coating, but they’ll still rust - just less than if you don’t ‘maintain’ them.

 

I'd say it's down to a shoddy finish more than anything. The op's van is two years old FGS. That's totally unacceptable.

 

The wheels on my van are steel as it's an LE Duetto......16 years old and zero rust on any of the wheels. When i first bought the van six years ago i dropped the spare to grease the cable and hook which secures it. After cleaning the dust off it was clear to see it had also never been used.

[Campfos]

Van is back to the local fiat professional dealership as outside temp gauge stopped working

Now I thought this would just be a simple sensor but they tell me the hole mirror requires to be changed out so waiting on that being done. Hopefully this done on Warranty.

But while in did complain about the wheels and they tell me I will have to send pictures into fiat, as said above they are not that helpful but I will send pictures into Fiat.

They are off the opion that this is no worse that any other Fiat Commerical van.

As I said nice wheels set off a motor well.

But I think this could be a winter job take the wheels off one at a time and rub them down and paint them.

Just have to get the right paint.

 

 

 

[Will86]

If you really want posh wheels have them powder coated, or enamelled and baked, minus tyres of course..

[Tracker]

Having tried many paints over the years I have never been that successful in preventing steel wheels from rusting.

 

The problem seems to be mainly getting the paint to adhere around all the holes and edges and it may take several coats and even then fail in the medium to longer term.

 

Plastic wheeltrims are easier to fit and to live with!

[John52]

You can get plastic wheeltrims for vans. Those for cars are not suitable because they are generally flatter. Van wheelbearings tend to be bigger for the heavier loads so stick out further in the centre of the wheel..

I have had many new vehicles but the paint finish on thewheels has never lasted more than a couple of years. They are not galvanised like the van bodyshell.

I just brush paint them on the van with silver paint. A short piece of garden hosepipe slips obver the valve to keep it paint free. Then I get a piece of cardboard, press it against the wheelrim to create an impression of the curve, and cut the curve out so it covers the tyre whilst you brush paint the wheel. You can't see the brushmarks in the paint unless you get down on your hands and knees to look for them. (lol)

[Bulletguy]

Campfos - 2016-09-01 5:34 PM

 

Van is back to the local fiat professional dealership as outside temp gauge stopped working

Now I thought this would just be a simple sensor but they tell me the hole mirror requires to be changed out so waiting on that being done. Hopefully this done on Warranty.

 

But while in did complain about the wheels and they tell me I will have to send pictures into fiat, as said above they are not that helpful but I will send pictures into Fiat.

 

They are off the opion that this is no worse that any other Fiat Commerical van.

As I said nice wheels set off a motor well.

But I think this could be a winter job take the wheels off one at a time and rub them down and paint them.

Just have to get the right paint.

 

Hang on a minute here.

 

This is a 22 month old vehicle and already you are needing a part replaced? Then they want photographs of your wheels? Are you seriously going to paint them yourself??

 

Without being rude here, how much did this van cost? Because quite frankly someone is having a laugh here at your expense.

 

It's time you did some serious table bashing at Fiat HQ.

[Derek Uzzell]

Bulletguy - 2016-08-30 12:36 PM

 

Derek Uzzell - 2016-08-30 9:18 AM

 

You could take your Ducato’s wheels off regularly, give them a good clean and apply a wax coating, but they’ll still rust - just less than if you don’t ‘maintain’ them.

 

I'd say it's down to a shoddy finish more than anything. The op's van is two years old FGS. That's totally unacceptable.

 

The wheels on my van are steel as it's an LE Duetto......16 years old and zero rust on any of the wheels. When i first bought the van six years ago i dropped the spare to grease the cable and hook which secures it. After cleaning the dust off it was clear to see it had also never been used.

 

Of course it’s down to the materials/paint used...

 

My Fiat Ducato-based Rapido was purchased in late-April 2015 and its steel wheels already have some surface rusting. Having said that, the steel wheels of my previous 2005-built Ford Transit-based Hobby motorhome also rusted, as did the steel wheels of the 1996-built Ford Transit-based Herald motorhome I owned before the Hobby. In fact I’ve never owned a vehicle with steel wheels where those wheels did not rust to some extent, so you’ve been extraordinarlily fortunate with your Duetto.

 

The difference between me and Campbell (Campfos) is that I’m not much concerned about my Ducato’s wheel surface-rusting provided that it does not become excessive and does not affect the wheels' strength. I would have thought the Fiat Professional dealership’s opinion that Campbell’s motorhome’s wheels were no worse (rusting-wise) than any other Fiat Commerical van was fair comment and, in any case (as Tracker points out) motorhomes normally come as standard with shiny plastic wheel-trims that prevent most of a wheel’s outer surface from being seen.

 

It’s to be expected that a 22-months old Ducato may well have had two part-replacements already - one under the ignition-switch recall and the other to replace the instrument-cluster. Then there’s the optional instrument-cluster lighting ‘owner-request’ software modification to consider.

 

Obviously there should be no argument over replacing the wing-mirror to address the temperature-sensor failure as Campbell’s motorhome is still within the 2-year Ducato warranty period. But I wouldn’t hold up much hope of having the wheel-rusting dealt with under warranty (unless it was exceptionally bad) and I certainly wouldn’t attempt to ‘de-rust’ and repaint the wheels myself.

[Geeco]

Speaking of rust my wheels are ok but the swivel mechanism on my two front seats is showing signs of corrosion after 18 months. No big deal I can disassemble the seats and treat the corrosion but really? Cheers,

[John52]

Bulletguy - 2016-09-01 11:50 PM

Without being rude here, how much did this van cost? Because quite frankly someone is having a laugh here at your expense.

 

It's time you did some serious table bashing at Fiat HQ.

 

The Fiat would cost less than £20k new. The cost of a motorhome tends to be at least double the cost of the base vehicle. Your paying for whats on the base vehicle and shouldn't compare a £50k motorhome with a £50k car.

I find it incredible your steel wheels have not rusted after 16 years. Just fitting tyres is bound to damage the paint. How do you know the previous owner didn't repaint them after the tyres were fitted?

 

[Muswell]

I was having some paint work done to my T4 some years ago and the person suggested he should renovate my wheels. A complete waste of money because a year later they had gone again, I should have spent less money and bought the trims that I eventually got.

[Derek Uzzell]

If it proves impossible to tolerate a modicum of surface rust on a vehicle’s steel wheels, there is plenty of on-line advice on how to approach the renovation task

 

https://www.google.co.uk/?gws_rd=ssl#q=car+steel+wheel+painting

[John52]

Derek Uzzell - 2016-09-02 11:36 AM

 

If it proves impossible to tolerate a modicum of surface rust on a vehicle’s steel wheels, there is plenty of on-line advice on how to approach the renovation task

 

https://www.google.co.uk/?gws_rd=ssl#q=car+steel+wheel+painting

 

Murphys Law states that as soon as you have done all that you will get a puncture and the tyre machine will scrape it off again :D

After cleaning I can brush paint my wheels in 20 minutes - less time than it takes to complain about them. Looks as good as new unless you get down on your hands and knees to look at them. :D

[Bulletguy]

John52 - 2016-09-02 9:49 AM

 

Bulletguy - 2016-09-01 11:50 PM

Without being rude here, how much did this van cost? Because quite frankly someone is having a laugh here at your expense.

 

It's time you did some serious table bashing at Fiat HQ.

 

The Fiat would cost less than £20k new. The cost of a motorhome tends to be at least double the cost of the base vehicle. Your paying for whats on the base vehicle and shouldn't compare a £50k motorhome with a £50k car.

I find it incredible your steel wheels have not rusted after 16 years. Just fitting tyres is bound to damage the paint. How do you know the previous owner didn't repaint them after the tyres were fitted?

 

Even taking £20k as cost of base vehicle i wouldn't accept rusting steel wheels after just 22 months unless it's been permanently parked up on the sea front. It's either cheap materials being used or shoddy workmanship....probably a combination of both.

 

I'm just staggered at how people meekly accept this but "put up and shut up" has long been part of British psyche.

[Derek Uzzell]

Bulletguy - 2016-09-02 12:42 PM

 

...I'm just staggered at how people meekly accept this but "put up and shut up" has long been part of British psyche.

 

It’s got nothing to do with the ‘milksop’ British psyche.

 

If I bought a vehicle with stainless-steel wheels I’d feel a mite miffed if they began to corrode quickly, but the non-alloy wheels on cars and commercial are made of mild steel and the reality is that mild steel exposed to a harsh environment rusts.

 

Brand new mild steel wheels suitable for a Ducato can be obtained for around £40. At that price it’s hardly worth bothering with cleaning/repainting significantly rusty Ducato wheels - just replace them every now and again with new ones.

 

It would be worth knowing quite how rusty Campbell’s Ducato wheels are.

 

As I said earlier, my Ducato-based Rapido’s wheels have some surface rusting on their silvered outer side, but the rusting is pretty minor and, even if I removed the wheel-trims, I doubt people would notice it. It’s certainly no worse than the rusting on the wheels of my previous Transit-based Hobby that had Ford plastic ‘centre caps' that the silver paint soon flaked off and, because they cost a fortune to replace, I repainted with silver Hammerite. The Hobby’s wheels were much more exposed than the Rapido’s, but I never found the rusting offensive. If it had concerned me I’d just have fitted Ford’s full-width wheel-trims.

 

I like steel wheels. They are inexpensive and will take the sort of knocks that an alloy wheel will not. If I accidentally scrape one along a kerb it doesn’t cause me the mental anguish I’d feel if I’d scraped a (corrosion prone) alloy wheel. If they surface-rust a bit, so what?

 

(A repainting story. I worked behind a Post Office counter for a while at a time when vehicles had a proper ‘log-book’. A lady wishing to renew a car’s road-tax presented me with the log-book and, when I inspected it, there were about 20 colour-change entries. I remarked on this and the lady told me that her husband - a painter and decorator - never bothered to clean the car. He just repainted it when he was in the mood with whatever household gloss paint he happened to have left over from previous jobs.)

[Robbo]

In the Civil Engineering industry the paint systems are designed to last a minimum length of time depending on how aggressive the environment is and how often the Client wishes to carry out remedial maintenance. 15+ years is generally the minimum expected for steel buildings and bridges.

 

The "white van" is probably designed to last 3 years and white van man (or the company fleet buyer) is not really concerned if the wheels start rusting prior to selling off to the secondhand market.

 

Vehicle wheels operate in a very harsh environment, especially if exposed to road salts. I sympathise with the OP's early rusting problems. It will be interesting to hear the feedback from the Dealer/Fiat.

 

 

 

[Don636]

As far as I am aware steel wheels always rust to some extent and is almost impossible to prevent. Isn't this why plastic wheel trims came in as a fairly inexpensive way to cover up the unsightly rust spots. The problem with plastic trims is that they can look cheap and have a tendency to fall off if not tied on securely. This is, I assume, is why alloy wheels came into use. The problem with alloy wheels is that they get contaminated by brake dust and other road grime and take time and effort to keep,shiny (there is another recent post about the hassle of keeping these fresh).

 

It seems that no matter which option you go for there are always going to be people who are simply too lazy to spend time keeping their vehicle in tip,top condition.

[Will86]

It might aid these comments if Cambell (Camfos) were to say exactly where he lives in West Lothian.

 

Part of that county runs alongside and into the River Forth (The mighty Firth of Forth). A funnel shaped river pointing directly at West Lothian so when the winds are easterly they disgorges tons of cold damp salt laden air all around his Ducato's steel wheels.

 

Its no use Cambell looking for answers to why his steel wheels rust when he possibly lives surrounded by cold damp salt air for much of the year. A hopeless position for anything with an iron content. So unless he enlightens us further that's the cause and no amount of complaining will offer a suitable answer.

 

Will

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Derek Uzzell]

Don636 - 2016-09-02 6:27 PM

 

...The problem with plastic trims is that they can look cheap and have a tendency to fall off if not tied on securely. This is, I assume, is why alloy wheels came into use...

 

A background to vehicle ‘alloy’ wheels is provided here

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alloy_wheel

 

 

[John52]

Don636 - 2016-09-02 6:27 PM

The problem with plastic trims is that they can look cheap and have a tendency to fall off if not tied on securely.

 

True, but the thing that concerns me most about plastic wheel trims is they restrict ventilation and cooling of the brakes. Commercial vehicle drivers are trained to use their engine braking and descend long hills slowly to avoid overheating the brakes. But some motorhome drivers have been oblivious to the problem of overheating brakes, driven them like light cars descending long mountain passes at speed using only their brakes until their brakes have seriously overheated. This can lead to brake failure at the worst time.

[Derek Uzzell]

John52 - 2016-09-03 8:50 AM

 

...True, but the thing that concerns me most about plastic wheel trims is they restrict ventilation and cooling of the brakes.

 

Modern motorhomes have large diameter front disc brakes (that do most of the stopping work) and the brake rotors are ventilated. The rotor behaves as a centrifugal fan, drawing cool air from the inboard side, passing through the rotor passages and exhausting at the outer circumference. Even if a full-coverage wheel trim (examples in attached photo) were fitted, it’s questionable that it would matter much regarding actual braking performance, though it’s probable that it would cause the wheels themselves to get very hot.

 

Historically, motorhomes were under-braked for their weight and - as you rightly say - unthinking owners badly abused the brakes when descending long steep gradients. I’m sure it would still be possible for a technically unsympathetic motorhome owner to do the same with a modern motorhome, but I believe the presence of common-or-garden wheel trims on the vehicle would not make matters worse, nor that removing the wheel trims would improve cooling so that the brakes did not overheat.

[Rayjsj]

All of the above posts just make me glad, that alloy wheels have been fitted to my last 3 motorhomes.Yes they need regular cleaning to look nice, but they never rust, (i live near the sea),are lighter than their steel equivelents ,so more load margin. And provided you dont pay silly money for them from the options list, IMO worth having.

My daughters T4 Holdsworth Villa 1994, the steel wheels have only just started to rust enough for her to notice, all resprayed with Black Hammerite, and covered with nice alloy style plastic covers, should last another 20 years or so! And looks stunning....for a 22 year old van.

 

ps any Alloys fitted must be heavy duty duty ones for 3500kgs and over.

[Derek Uzzell]

The weight-saving per motorhome wheel by switching from steel to light-alloy is most unlikely to exceed 2.5kg. While it’s possible to make a significant percentage weight-saving with car alloy wheels, the amount of metal needed to produce an alloy wheel with the necessary load-carrying capability makes a similar saving impracticable where motorhomes are concerned. If saving 10kg on a 4-wheel motorhome is considered that desirable, it’s a lot cheaper to travel with 10 litres less in the fresh-water tank than fork out for alloys.

 

As BGD advised in a 2008 forum discussion

 

"Don't touch alloys.

 

Stupidly expensive, often damaged when tyre changing, corrode like hell as soon as varnish starts to come off, easily cracked, easily nicked......basically just pouring money down the drain..."