rear dirt collector

[sambot]

Being a nice kinda guy, my husband gave the V a bath, after I drove the car on some really wet, mucky roads. I think he's always looking for Versa trouble, and now he thinks he's found it.

It seems that the rear wheel wells are designed to collect incredible amounts of road crud. He said he cleaned out a few shovel-fulls after my drive, and he's thinking it might be a good plan to drill some drainage holes before the wheel wells or back end or whatever starts rusting out. His rationale is road crud + water + time = rust.

Anyone else seen this, or think the drainage hole drilling might be a plan?

[ace rothstein 81]

I haven't noticed that, but I take great care in making sure I drove through as little mud as is possible in order to keep it showroom shiny at all times.

[Althalus]

I haven't noticed that, but I take great care in making sure I drove through as little mud as is possible in order to keep it showroom shiny at all times.

Same for me too. Besides, the Versa isn't exactly designed for those kinds of roads anyway.

[BenzTech Gone Versa]

i noticed this and actually said to myself"there should be a wheel well liner here".i get my car washed alot and i use a power waher on the wheels n wheel wells!

[CodeRed]

where?

[BBISHOPPCM]

Having owned so many older Nissan products, I can verify first-hand how ALL Nissan products are built this way, and yes, these cars will most definitely rust in the rear wheel wells. This can be prevented with regular washing with a garden hose (no high pressure needed, infact, that would cause more harm than good). Also, regular (yearly) undercoating inspections and repairs will help reduce the likelihood of any rust problems. Also, it would help to pay attention to the wheelwell seams, and the area where the bumper and rear quarter meet, also behind the plastic rocker panel guards, and suspension components. I also recommend spraying (with a garden hose) the engine compartment on a regular basis to remove any salt and sand from the crevices and cast engine components to keep them looking new (also the radiator).

[BBISHOPPCM]

One thing they fixed (and many other manufcaturers as well) was the redesigned rear wheel arch, specifically, the removal of the old sand-trap lip (this is where the side panel would fold inward, creating a sand/salt collection area). This area is still prone to sand/salt buildup, but not nearly as bad as previous models.

[StanBo]

This sounds like the same problem that the EG (93 small round headlights) chassis Civics suffer from.

It is a shame and you don't have to drive on dirt roads to suffer from it. Snow and salt will be a problem with this area as it will stick there and freeze.

Maintenance like BBISHOPPCM said will do a great deal of help.

I wonder if the Versa will suffer from the same cancer spot the Civics had?

[BBISHOPPCM]

I was amazed at seeing some of the 95-99 Sentras rusting out... and they rust something fierce! the "B" pillars, wheelwells, and trunk pans. I had a '99 GXE Limited that I sold after I saw it on a lift... I bought the car 7 months prior to selling it with 75,000 miles. By this time (6 years old), the floorpans, front bumper and structural parts, oil pan, and suspension mounting areas were showing surface rust. This could all have been prevented with regular washing; the rest of the car still looked new!

[sambot]

Thank you all for your comments. We shall just have to keep it clean, especially in the winter. The husband still wants to drill some drainage holes.

Same for me too. Besides, the Versa isn't exactly designed for those kinds of roads anyway.

It's not like I was off-roading. A lot of the under-muck included salty sand from city roads, so between a drive through Elk Island National Park, and driving around sand-sprinkled city streets, the collection was rather large.