Thread: anti rust units

I will put my 2 bobs worth in here. I have a 1986 County which like 99% of them had some rust in the door frame bottoms and in the double skinned area of the floor kickpanels when I bought it. I intend one day to replace the door frame sections and get the lot galvanised and cut/shut the floor sections. Removing the firewall and galvanising it is a bit too big a job for me. About 10years ago I bought one of these ERPS (electronic rust protection systems), and fitted about 12 electrodes allround the body, including 1 inside each door on the frame. I can honestly say that I think it has stopped the rust that is already there from getting any worse. The anodes get a powdery coating on them. I was pretty sceptical initially but now I believe they do work. The only disadvantage I have found is that it will flatten the battery if the vehicle is not used regularly.

Amazingly my beach driven since new Discovery has no rust to speak off..

Even after the recent mud flat recovery it performed to rescue a stuck Jeep Grand Cherokee and a 6 tonne 4x4 truck.

Its called washing

I use Staun Salt Assalt and Staun 329 to clean down the vehicle.
I spend the time clearing the chassis and underbody...

And thats it... 10 years old and no problems

I'm in the boat (pardon the pun) that believes that they are pretty useless on motor vehicles....you need the water as John said.

with regards to people saying they had it on a car and it didnt rust.....how do they know that not having it on the same car would change the out come.

while Grimace has posted some info on a few vehicles its still far from a controlled test number to give any accurate results....way to many varibles and not enough test units to return fact.

cheers,
Serg

Same as Tombie,my 6yr old D2 has no rust after many beach trips,etc.

Now the son's Puma was fitted with the one austral LR sell,as he thought he would do the right thing as the vehicle would be spending a bit of time on the beach.

Didn't stop the rust on the chassis,or corrosion around the alpine windows,both of which have been repaired under warranty.
The chassis rust was only surface,they repaired it & completely sealed the chassis inside & out with underbody sealer

Hi All
I have used electronic prevention for about 7 years on my x-trail and it is left in the weather & parked outside continually and it has been on the beach once. I have never repaired any stone chips in the paint. There is some surface rust on the tow hitch 7pin plug bracket and some on the steel suspension components (Just wipes away mostly). The stone chips in the bonnet have not blistered but have a brownish appearance in some places. I have not used any other rust prevention such as lanoline or fish oil.

The electronic rust prevention system has been on since new and only has 1 pad so I am not sure weather it is effective or not, the light keeps flashing which makes me feel better.

I have a new 90 defender which is about a month old now and came with surface rust in the drive flanges and on some suspension component bolts so it has an electronic rust prevention device on it as well. This consists of only 1 pad on the chassis. I was told this one requires servicing once a year? Maybe the pad dries out and no longer works I don't know? The other one on the x-trail does not require this.

When the flooding and rain improve I will be using some fish oil on the Defender as I think electronic rust prevention only slows the rust rather than stopping it.

My brother has a Patrol he put 8 pads on it about 8 years ago and regularly uses lanolin for added protection he has been to Straddie or to Fraser at least once a year and has no visible rust. Although his electronic rust system light has stopped flashing about 6 months ago.
He cleans his car really well after and prepares it before each trip perhaps this is why?

I work for the QLD Government and drive a 4WD on mine sites we are due to get a new Landcruser with electronic rust protection installed. It will be interesting to see if this works as our cars usually rust where dust and moisture sit.

I don’t think they work as well as advertised but since the new Defender has it as well I must feel it is worth the peace of mind only time will tell.

Regards
Flatty

I all comes down to science simple as that. They work and are great units, but if they work on a moving car, they don't. A bridge is a stationary object, its pillars are permanently in the ground and water, which has moisture. So there is a constant current to pass through, same as a boat in the water. Now a car is mostly on the road, so the contact from the road to the body/chassis is broken by the wheel. There is not a constant current running from the ground to the car, plus your wheels are rubber and that repels electricity.

Most offer a warranty of 5-7 years from a new car not second hand. In this time most cars have a anti rust period, so in sense its really snake oil. It would work if your car was in water and mud over the wheels 100%, but soon as you drive out of it the connection is broken and the rusting starts. Its simple science, bridges and boasts yes cars no.

Originally Posted by MightyJosh

I all comes down to science simple as that. They work and are great units, but if they work on a moving car, they don't. A bridge is a stationary object, its pillars are permanently in the ground and water, which has moisture. So there is a constant current to pass through, same as a boat in the water. Now a car is mostly on the road, so the contact from the road to the body/chassis is broken by the wheel. There is not a constant current running from the ground to the car, plus your wheels are rubber and that repels electricity.

Most offer a warranty of 5-7 years from a new car not second hand. In this time most cars have a anti rust period, so in sense its really snake oil. It would work if your car was in water and mud over the wheels 100%, but soon as you drive out of it the connection is broken and the rusting starts. Its simple science, bridges and boasts yes cars no.

Dr.Karl also reckons it's a load of BS and I'm with him
Car Rust and How to Stop It (Dr Karl Homework: ABC Science)

I have posted this before but each to their own.............

Cheers,
Paul.

When I came here I worked in a land river dealership where the company that make these were trying to get us to sell them.

I had not seen these before. ( being a pom ) we don't have them in the uk. So I was interested to know how they worked. He told me they put a negative charge through the car. I looked at him and said that is what the battery does anyway. At this point he walked of and would not talk to me.

But if they really worked then they would be sold in the uk and Europe. Because cars rust a lot more there than here. After all a 2000 110 will be on it second rear cross member by now due to rust, if not third . Rear cross members are a common replacement part in the uk along with other chassi legs.
So as they are not used or heard of in Europe or the uk I would definitely say their rubbish. After all of they worked you would make a fortune in Europe and the Uk