rust issues

:shakehead I have another problem with my lumina.
ok, the other day when i moved my car i noticed a lot of rust chips that must have fell of the frame or the bumper. There was one rust piece almost a half inch thick! I also have a trailer hitch on the back bumper and i can jiggle it up and down, could this lead to a serious problem down the road?

And also i noticed on my rocker panels alot of rust showing, how can i stop that problem. Then on the passenger rear back door leaks when it rains, water will come right in and sit on top of the rocker panel where the door closes at the bottom. Well i accidently shoved my finger in a rust hole and now i have a hole about the size of half dollar, how can that be fixed?:frown:

Truthfully, that car has pretty much had it...sounds like you live up north?

Rust is like cockroaches, for all you see there's 10 times as much hiding behind the walls...your car is probably pretty well shot through, and structural integrity will become an issue soon...

I sure wouldn't try to tow anything...

You need to have the hitch looked at and removed before it falls off and hits someone on the road (as a motorcyclist I can't stress this enough)...and you need to have the mounts where the subfame in front bolts to the body looked at...when they are rusty, that's a typical failure point...when they break free, the car is mostly uncontrollable...

:grinyes: Thank you for the information. I am going to have my car looked at as soon as possible. I am thinking about getting a new car.:grinyes: well not a new car, but a newer used car, I was think about a 1996 chrysler concorde.:wink:
Yes i do live up north, in the u.p. of michigan.
The funny thing is there is no rust on the fenders or any visible on the body, it is just underneath, go figure:)

They use a lot of galvanized/treated panels, the bodies don't rust like they used to, but in the north the undersides still take a beating...

http://files.automotiveforums.com/gallery/watermark.php?file=/503/455507100_2110.JPGI feel your pain! This photo was taken last year and the rust has gotten worse since then. the bottom "flap" (below the crack) has actually started pointing straight out...looks like a mouth:) I too have the water leaking problem. I took my car to the shop and they said that you have to replace the rocker panel [expensive]. I thought you would just be able to cut out the rust and fill it in or put a new piece of sheet metal there and re-paint. who knows?

Wow!, i my car looked bad. LOL:grinno:

I think 13-14 years of Illinois winters caused most if not all of that. Illinois tends to use A LOT of salt/cinders on the roads in the winter time. It really gets on my nerves!!! If people would learn to drive in inclement weather they wouldn't have to use as much stuff on the road and this would be less frequent in the north! I've noticed a lot of chevy pick-ups with the same problem. I guess I learned my lesson from that...now everytime I wash my car, I dry it well, especially the rocker panels, hoping to prevent further damage.