My neighbor pointed out my car rust spot I kept ignoring

Last week around 2am I was scraping ice off my windshield and my neighbor came out to smoke. He walks over and says "you know that spot behind your rear tire is getting worse." I had seen it six months ago and just figured it was surface stuff. Turns out it was actually eating through the panel and would have cost me $800 to fix if I kept waiting. I got it patched at a local shop in Akron for $200 because it hadn't spread too far yet. Now I check my wheel wells every time I wash the car. Anyone else have a neighbor point out something obvious you were ignoring?

2 comments

2 Comments

alicehernandez9d ago

Jump right under there next time with a flashlight and poke around with a screwdriver. That's how I found rust hiding under the plastic trim on my old Civic. The fender looked fine from the outside but it was Swiss cheese underneath. Caught it early enough to grind it down and slap some bondo on it before winter hit again. Those wheel wells are like rust magnets, especially if your car's been through a few Ohio winters.

josephmartin8d ago

My old Camry had a rust spot the size of a dime that I convinced myself was just "patina." Woke up one morning and the whole quarter panel looked like it had leprosy. Neighbor didn't even have to say anything, I could feel him judging me from his driveway lol.