I own an '03 F250 and have had it since new. I love the truck, keep it in good condition, and plan on keeping it for at least a few more years. For some time now I've had the classic small spots on one rear fender well. The spots are getting a little bigger and look like they're going to come through soon. I'm not a big fan of fender flares, but from what I understand, that's the easiest way to fix the problem, cut the rust out/seal it, install fender flares. Is there any other way to fix the rust without repainting the whole bed? I don't like fender flares because I think they look a little weird with stock tires and also because it's only one fender that is rusting, but I'd have to install them on all four. If fender flares are the only way to go, does anyone know of any that are small and low profile?

 

That is where these Fords start to rust first. You can either purchase a rust-free used bed and have it painted to match & installed, you can have a body shop replace the 1/4 panel, or maybe they can weld in a patch panel in the rusted spot. Any way you cut it, it isn't a cheap fix.

 

Fender flares are your cheapest alternative. You can either paint them to match or leave the black as an accenting color. I leave them black.
Before installation, you might as well drill a few holes where the rust is coming through and injecting some Fluid Film into the inner quarter panels. While it may not totally stop the rust, it will slow it down dramatically..

 

one idea is to go with a different color below the lower body line and go around the wheel well and do a stripe on the edge so the truck will be two tone. That would be if you can fix the spot within that area but the inevitable is you fix one spot and another will pop on the bed and then the bed support rails will go after that. Your best bet is look at the support rails and if they are good replace the whole side on both on both sides or buy a new bed.

 

I did the two tone deal and factory lips with my 6.0 when I had it.

Buddy owns a sign and sticker shop so I just had him wrap the moldings and the bottom of the truck at the same time.

When looking at the small sample I thought the color was close to factory gold. Not so much once it was on the truck but oh well.

 

^^Looks good!

 

Looks really sharp!!!!

While these are of a Chevy S10 that I had, they illustrate how the flares can compliment the look of the truck..
I had just spent close to 6k a couple years earlier in body/paint work on this lttle truck and it had not seen winter since - however, the silent killer of trucks was just a few thousandths of an inch behind the body EATING its way out...

 

Thanks guys, still unsure what I'm going to do. I'm still not convinced on the fender flares. The two tone repair is a good idea, but even the it s a it more than what I'd like to take on. It would be nice if it was easier to match paint without having to paint an entire side of the bed.

 

I fixed my '05 F350 back in 2010 that had the same issue. Cost was in the $1500 range back then. The problem is you need to remove the "roll pans" and foam crap that Ford used in the wheel wells. Once you do that, you gotta start over with it.

 

I had the same problem with my 03` had since new. The easiest thing is what I did. Got a 2014. Didn`t want to but the 03 was starting to have issues. None of them were cheap.

 

Yeah at some point I'm going to buy a new truck, just trying to get another 3 years out of what I have. For the most part the truck is in good shape, mileage is only 122,000. I'm probably going to leave the rust spots alone as I also have rusting on one of my doors and one of my super cab doors. Those are less noticeable as they're on the bottom. The wheel well rust spots are starting to bubble through.

Thanks again guys, time will tell.

 

I just dealt with this on my 02. I actually cut into the bed side from the inner fender well, removed the foam material that causes the rust problem in the first place, and then painted it with POR or Chassis Saver.

Here you can see the foam between the bed side and the inner well:


Bedside rust:





Rust cleaned up and sanded from the outside:



Cut out the inner fender behind the rust patch with a cutout wheel:




Here is the rust exposed after removing the foam. This is where the problem started. I painted this with Chassis Saver.



Here is the first post in my build thread on solving this problem... I have tons of photos and more details.
https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/1...l#post14736605

It took some time, but I think the problem is solved. The body work is pretty good. I am going to paint to match in the spring.

As extra protection is got a spray gun (schutz gun) from Monstaliner and spray bar and chain oil all under the the bed and up in the fender wells. Then I installed Rugged Liner wheel well liners.



Here is the post about the oil undercoating and the liners.
https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/1...l#post14808259

I plan on having my truck for more than 3 years since its only a year old to me, so I wanted to do what I can to preserve it. I may have went overboard, but I HATE rust. Everything I did here was pretty cheap. Liners are under $100, bar and chain oil was $7 a gallon and the spray gun was $15. The body work tools can add up a little more, but still not too bad.

Good luck!

 

spray the rust down with rust converter

 

Nice job Wiz!!!!!

 

Thanks! I hope someone else will benefit from the time and contemplation I put into stopping my bed from looking like swiss cheese...