How much rust is too much?

[bergeron37]

I'm looking at replacing my totaled 2000 that had 219k on it, insurance gave me 6K.

I found one in CT that's at a dealer with 136k on it and all maintenance done, itll need tires soon thats it. I'm curious because its been sitting on his lot for over 2 months now and I think it might be because of the undercarriage, here are some pics:

The trailer hitch was replaced as it looks to be brand-new, most likely because it was completely rusted out. Everything else is fine on the truck, he has it listed for 7,900. I think i would pay 7 but not a penny more.

Let me know what you guys think.

 

[shootmymime]

i dont like how the top of the frame looks good but the skid plate and the control arm are pretty pitted. my main concern would be asking if it was a flood vehicle with that type or rust. because its pretty bad up to a point. was it from sandy? being your in the north east?

 

[shootmymime]

the more and more i look at it think of a flood car. why does the drive shaft have a line of rust on it?

 

[bergeron37]

That's the same question my dad asked if it was from sandy. Its a 1 owner truck and the guy lived in Chicopee MA. All service records on the carfax have it listed as never leaving MA so I highly doubt it is a flood vehicle but I would make sure before i did anything.

For a comparison, here is what my 2000 @ 219k looked like underneath, also a 1 owner MA vehicle.

 

[shootmymime]

yeah your looks a heck of a lot better than the dealers. i would say keep looking. there are better fish in the sea

 

[BlackCat914]

the more and more i look at it think of a flood car. why does the drive shaft have a line of rust on it?

Because its been sitting in one spot on a dealer lot for over two months. It's called lot rot.

 

[Nelsonmd]

It's not a flood car. It's from the rust belt, that's all. That doesn't look quite as bad as mine was and I have recovered from it, though I have done tons of work on it.

The skid rusts out first because is it the first line of defense so to speak, it is very exposed. The inside of the frame rails is the other place to look, especially along the weld. It looks like your weld has rusted a bit, but it probably doesn't have perforation.

The worst of the rust should be either the inner rear frame rails, or the rear axle and frame back of the axle. From the little I can see on the axle, it looks pretty good. If you are willing to do some rust fixing work, then I'd say go for it, though the price definitely needs to come down. If you aren't willing to do the rust work (which is understandable too) then you should start looking south. the price of a 1-way plane ticket and gas for the drive back can easily be worth it if you get a rust free vehicle for a decent deal.

 

[Insight Mike]

Buy one from Florida or Texas. shipping will only be a few hundred bucks.