Is there anyone who lives in Spokane who can tell me if the roads are salted in the winter? How well do cars and trucks hold up out there? I'm thinking about buying a car there but I'm afraid 15 years back there might cause some corrosion issues.

 

"liquid and granular deicing.."

Snow Removal - City of Spokane Valley, WA

Liquid is 75% sodium chloride with desugared moleasses and maybe calcium chloride. So yes, mostly salt. This keeps the snow from sticking to the streets.

Granular: Almost everything has salt in it, in some form.

Deicing & Anti-Icing - EnviroTech Services

So check those door bottoms, lower fenders, top of frames, brake lines and just about everything else between the license plates.

 

They do when it gets icy. I ran across I90 once in the winter with my truck and trailer and the unpainted trailer took a beating. Rust just flaked off it the next summer. Some of the additions to the truck picked up a bit of rust, but the factory stuff was fine.

 

Darn, I was afraid of that. Looking at other ads for vehicles of the same age, I don't see any rust buckets so I'm hoping the use of salt isn't frequent.

Thanks for the info.

 

It's not like the east coast, they don't dump tons of salt.
What are you looking at there?

 

Don't hate me for this, but potentially a 4Runner. I know, it's not a Ford. Friend-of-a-friend kind of deal, I'm not sure about going through with it. Every time I buy something from someone I know or who works at my company, it turns out to be a turd, which makes the relationship awkward. I'm starting to think the more anonymous type of transaction is better. I'd rather be mad at someone I don't know and won't ever see again. I get over it more quickly than if I buy from someone I see from time to time or more frequently.

 

They dump a ton of that **** on the roads here and it's a good idea to have your vehicles "rust proofed" at least every other year. Look for small holes/plugs in the vehicle doors and rocker panels. This is where the wand sprays oil inside the doors. There should also be stickers in the door openings for each year the vehicle was serviced.

Having bought used vehicles in cold regions I can say that picture/ads can be very misleading. Some owners will advertise a car as rust free if there is no rust showing on the painted surfaces but the underside is already a complete mess. The only way to know for sure is inspect the vehicle in person and get underneath with a flashlight.

 

I've never had a rust problem on any of the vehicles I've purchased up here in my life. I've lived here 30 years. The cda area. As long as you still wash your car in the winter the rust shouldn't be an issue. I had a 79 f250 that lived it's whole life up here and it was almost rust free.