Rust on Ford Transit - AS Windsor

A friend use to have a 2006 VW Sandhurst and was very pleased with it, but his wife decided that they should take the Grandkids away with them now and again, so two months ago he put  the  VW in part exchange for a 2008 Ford  / Auto-sleeper Windsor, he  loves  the Auto-sleeper part but it`s the rust on the base vehicle, has anyone else with this van had this problem, ? I know Fords are renowned for rust problems, but would have thought a 2008 would be better. He is disappointed to say the least. left to him he would have kept the Sandhurst.

Ask Roli, he's had his Windsor a while but not for much longer

Hi
    I am really surprised 2008 is quiet a late vehicle,I thought Ford had beaten the rust problem by then. I can only think it has been badly neglected,or suffered accident damage did he buy it from a dealer,has he any warrenty on it
    Alan

One possibility is that it spent its early years on the coast somewhere. Last year we looked at a van that was in a shocking condition in terms of rust, and then we found out where it came from - a coastal town in Cornwall!

You would think, though, that at that age it should still be fairly superficial, and that if he were to get any scaling removed and have it wax sprayed it would probably stop it from getting worse for quite a while.

I am surprised at the rust, Our Windsor (2008 MK7 Tranny) is largely plastic at the front. 

We have had ours from new and this week have been under it to strip out the amateur radio feed and grounding prior to selling the van.  It still has a gleaming white chassis front to back.

I am a Tranny fan and have kept an eye on Mk7s and have never seen one with rust. 

Can I correct you, the older Transits "were" prone to rust, not an issue with later models

I was wondering where this rust might be on what is a chassis cab with a coachbuilt non-metallic body. 

I've seen badly looked after, battered Transits with rust, usually Mk 5/early Mk6 but with care even they can be like new.

This issue of rust is strange and can only be down to were the vehicle has been stored. We got rid if a 20 year old Mk5 Duetto because we couldn't keep up with the rust. It lived on the Isle of White for a while. We looked at a Mk7 Winsor in the midlands that was very rough underneath and  due welding work fairly soon.
The Mk6 Rienza we bought has been in the west country and Norfolk all its life and is due rustproofing but not bad for ten years old.
When I was MOT testing we had a warning about Landrover Discovery rust issues on first test. It was a batch that had been stored long term in Southampton. Could this be the same problem with these rusty Mk7 Transits we have found.
We did have the VW based Gatcombe as first choice but we simply couldn't find one to suite our budget so we took a gamble on another Transit. VW T4 based motorhomes do go rusty but later in life.

-mojo- wrote:One possibility is that it spent its early years on the coast somewhere. Last year we looked at a van that was in a shocking condition in terms of rust, and then we found out where it came from - a coastal town in Cornwall!

my first VW had rust just about everywhere. When we went through the service receipts it had spent the first 18 years of its life on the Isle of Wight.

Further to my last regarding vehicle storage. I worked in the vehicle storage compounds in this area for a while. We unloaded a batch of Merc Sprinters to be stored on the old fuel storage compound. This was a muddy grass compound during the winter. The grass was up to the door sills and we had problems moving the cab units because you couldn't get traction on the muddy grass. Those sprinters were in contact with salty wet grass for quite a while.
One of the security staff said some vehicles are stood for a year before being delivered to the dealers. How old are our Autosleepers and were have they been before delivery to the first customer.
Don't be afraid to look underneath a vehicle, take a torch . Flaky undersides could mean welding. I take a small magnet to look for filler. Dealers get twitchy when I ask to inspect underneath a vehicle. Not easy without getting mucky but it could be a deal breaker. Yes even I got caught with the Duetto.

Thanks for replies will try to find out more, think it was bought from a dealer as he did a part exchange.Pity looks a lovely van.

Our Windsor will be on the market in the next few weeks and it has no rust, extras and low mileage

Could this Rusty Transit be a Tewkesbury van , remember some years back the Marquis dealership was flooded and some of the vans were waterlogged.
I looked at a 59 Symbol back in 2010 in Preston, we took one look at it and walked away due to the high level readings on the damp meter  and rust on the chassis.
Boaby

I have always been a fan of the Transit , but the panel van type having driven every model to current. It has always been the failing on the Transit, rust on chassis edges, sill edges, wheel arches etc The company I work for must run one of the largest fleets in the Uk and I can confirm that even the newer versions rust. Currently driving a 13 plate with rust showing on wheel arch lip edges and underbonnet all chassis seams are crusted in rust. This appears to be common across the fleet talking to other drivers. They are of course used every day in winter but the paint/ primer used is still not up to the job in my opinion. Its a shame as they are great to drive.Best advice is to treat the rust then drown the underside/box sections in wax preserver.

Whilst admittedly on an older transit chassis , I had a 1999 Duetto for several years and it was a mechanically troublefree joy to drive only marred by the dreaded rust round the wheel arches. I took it to a bodyshop which immediately confirmed this as a recurring fault on all transit models and said that the only cure was to cut out the arches and weld new ones on at a cost of around £1000. Apparantly the outer panels are apot welded to the wheel arches every few inches and moisture easily penetrates between them causing the rust. They say that Ford know what the problem is but I assume that it is the built-in obsolescence that prevents them from sorting it permanentally. I sourced a set of wheel arch covers on ebay which are easily fitted with self tapping screws and at least it hid the rust and looked really good in black. They cost £45, came direct from Poland , and are manufactured to fit all models. I now have a broadway on the Peugeot chassis which is predominately plastic so do not expect any similar problems.

I'm gonna throw a curved ball here.. It comes from 40 years owning multiple Transit vans. Some 200 or more And about the same time in vehicle detailing. 

Some vehicles do not like the often aggressive cleaning products we in this modern age use . One of those products is wheel cleaners.. These can be acidic or non acidic. All are very or contain very aggressive ingredients and that includes the non acidic ones. 

Use these products anywhere near Transit wheel arches or sills which often get ar wee spray on them and watch the rust form in no time.

Trust me this is a factor with these vehicles....

Wheel cleaners might accelerate the problem in some cases, but even without (I never used any wheel cleaners on my 1999 Transit) they still rust really badly from the seams and edges. Ford just couldn't be bothered to use proper finishes and sealants.

I personally would never consider using wheel arch covers over rust - all it will do is trap moisture and accelerate the problem. The only "proper" cure (IMO) is to stump up the cash to have them cut out and replacements welded in...

-mojo- wrote:Wheel cleaners might accelerate the problem in some cases, but even without (I never used any wheel cleaners on my 1999 Transit) they still rust really badly from the seams and edges. Ford just couldn't be bothered to use proper finishes and sealants.

I personally would never consider using wheel arch covers over rust - all it will do is trap moisture and accelerate the problem. The only "proper" cure (IMO) is to stump up the cash to have them cut out and replacements welded in...

Can't disagree with that. My words were ones of caution having seen the damage some products can and will do.

dbroada wrote:

-mojo- wrote:One possibility is that it spent its early years on the coast somewhere. Last year we looked at a van that was in a shocking condition in terms of rust, and then we found out where it came from - a coastal town in Cornwall!

my first VW had rust just about everywhere. When we went through the service receipts it had spent the first 18 years of its life on the Isle of Wight.

I've got a 2009 Windsor on a mk.7 Tranny. Last owner lived in Eastbourne, I live half a mile from the sea at St. Blazey Gate, Cornwall. Previously I lived on The Isle of Wight!

No real signs of rust, so far!