Buying a truck from up north??

[wowens79]

Got a question for you folks from up north. I'm starting to look for a slightly used truck. I can't seem to find one in the southeast. I've always heard about the road salt up north rusting cars out. I can also see it making getting rusty bolts loose a real pain.

Would a truck that is a less than 2 years old with 20-30k miles affected to bad??

Not I've decided I want a Ram 2500 Big Horn with the 6.4 gaser, it is the lowest trim level that has the 60/40 split seat. I need that so I can put my 2 kids and a Golden Retriever in the back seat 🙂 I'd be fine with a Tradesman if it wasn't for the back seat. I'm not sure why, but I see very few of this configuration.

[SidecarFlip]

Bedlam wrote:

Durb wrote:
As far as I know neither Oregon nor Washington salt their roads. Almost 14 year old truck and 10 year old trailer - no rust. Hope to keep both another 7-8 years. Doubt that the lack of rust would be worth the cross country drive home though.

WA has gone full hog on the chemical deicer and their mountain passes are getting even heavier doses - It ruined my desire to drive the ranges during snow.

Chemical deicers and brine corrode faster that rock salt or CaCl. They are especially hard on electrical systems and connectors.

The problem with any deicing application is... the spray coming off the wet road (melted snow or ice with chemicals in it), get sprayed up under your chassis in places you'll never flush out no matter how carefully you wash it.

It sits on the metal, gets damp and starts the corrosion process.

[Cobra21]

If you are looking for a 2 to 3 year old truck, from Minnesota I wouldn't worry about rust. For the people that don't do anything, they are good for about 7 years. Most vehicles here don't start to show rust for 10 years. Most northern states have a better selection of 4X4s if that's what you are after. I'm driving a 2008 Chev. from Minnesota that does not show any body rust and very little underneath.
Brian

[Bedlam]

Durb wrote:
As far as I know neither Oregon nor Washington salt their roads. Almost 14 year old truck and 10 year old trailer - no rust. Hope to keep both another 7-8 years. Doubt that the lack of rust would be worth the cross country drive home though.

WA has gone full hog on the chemical deicer and their mountain passes are getting even heavier doses - It ruined my desire to drive the ranges during snow.

[Mortimer_Brewst]

I would think you’d be better off looking in Texas. Many more trucks and a lot less salt.

[Durb]

As far as I know neither Oregon nor Washington salt their roads. Almost 14 year old truck and 10 year old trailer - no rust. Hope to keep both another 7-8 years. Doubt that the lack of rust would be worth the cross country drive home though.

[wowens79]

Thanks for all the replies, I think I'm going to limit my search to the inland southeast. I'm not in a hurry, my truck is only a 2002, and I'm planning on giving it to my son when he turns 16 in about a year, and get me something a year or two old.

[SidecarFlip]

Well, I'm 'up north' in the rust belt and my 1997 F 350 is rust free. Not a spot anywhere. Thats almost 20 winters now.

Of course it never gets driven in the winter which is why it's in pristine condition. Stays in a heated garage all winter. November 1 - April 1.

To answer the OP, no, I would not even buy a 2 year old truck from any corrosion state. It's already started corroding, you just cannot see it....

[ford_truck_guy]

We were OK with just the salt here in PA compared to the darn Brine solution they now use....

That stuff is just down right NASTY ! Any reputable body shop will tell you to take your vehicle to a car wash after driving in each storm and make sure you pay for the under carriage wash..

[Bionic_Man]

I'd stay away from anywhere that uses a lot of salt. Mid west, upper mid west, North East US, are all suspect unless you can really look at the vehicle.

I was I the market for a full size SUV 18 months ago. A couple years old. Less than 50,000 miles. I had been looking at home (colorado), and found an Escalade in Iowa when I was there on a work trip. It fit the above criteria, was in my price range, went and looked. Interior was fantastic. Exterior looked good. Then I happened to check out the spare tire, and the entire underside was riddled with rust.

So, if you do consider it, make sure the seller sends you a lot of photos before you make the decision. And include the underside of the vehicle in the photos as well.

[Bedlam]

I would look at the southwest before the northeast. Like you pointed out, you have to watch for salvaged vehicles from flooded areas, but I'm also reluctant to buy anything used near a salty coast since I have seen what that air does to cars even if not driven on the beach.

[Lwiddis]

In SoCal we close the schools if it might rain, wowens.

[rockhillmanor]

wowens79 wrote:

Redwoodcamper wrote:
"up north" doesn't help us. There are plenty of places in "the north" that don't get much ice or salt. There are many that do.

Thanks for the reply, having always lived in AL and GA, we don't really know how all that works. We get a 1/2" of snow, and close the schools for 2-3 days 🙂

I noticed several in Illinois, and Ohio. I'm not sure if I want to travel that far for one, but I'm trying to decide if I should even consider these areas.

IMHO NO.
I am from originally from Illinois, moved to Wisconsin.

Illinois, Ohio, Indiana are all around the bottom of the Great Lakes. They use COPIOUS amounts of salt in that area. More than anywhere else because of the constant lake effect snows in that area causing very dangerous driving on those roads.

And it's not just rusty bolts. It's rusty everything. 99% of the people in that area do NOT wash the undercarriage of their vehicles after each snow fall where they coat the streets with salt each and every time.

I faithfully washed the undercarriage of my Tahoe after driving on salted roads and it still did not stop the rusting.

Fast forward to 2017 I am in Florida.
I had a fuel line leak with that same Tahoe I took such fine care of the undercarriage.

Pulled into an auto repair and asked if they could slip me in and fix a fuel line leak.

The guy only looked out the window at my Tahoe and said NO! I asked why? Mechanic said: "Because I see you have "Wisconsin" plates. The lines will be all rusted and it will take me almost all day to get them off and replace them."

That should answer your question if you should buy from 'up North'. :B

You want cheap no salt cars? Look into centrql Florida. The selling prices on cars and RV's are so low it's ridiculous.

I waited till I got down here to sell my truck and MH. What a mistake. The selling prices down here are over 50% less than what a truck or MH would sell for up north. 😞

[Ivylog]

It only takes one time in salt to have it do it's thing. Find the seat you need from a wrecked truck to expand your number of choices.

[wowens79]

George3037 wrote:
I guess it depends on how far north you mean. I live in a State that uses lots of salt and it does a number on all vehicles in just a few years. On the other hand I wouldn't buy a southern truck that has been in a flood so it works both ways. As mentioned, there are lots of northern States that don't use a lot of salt so they may a good place to buy a used truck.

I heard that, I found 2 in central Florida, that I crossed off because of the hurricane. Texas/Louisiana is also off the list 🙂

[mat60]

A truck 2 years old are mostly ok up here in Maine but I see 10 year old trucks with rusted rocker panels exc. Some never wash the salt off after a storm.