Temporary Rust Fix - WD-40 or Other?

[OK-944]

The rear outside wheel wells on my 85.5 are showing some surface rust...and I won't have time to properly address this for awhile.

I really don't think I should hit this area with my grinder until I'm ready to properly prep and repaint.

In the meantime, I'm thinking that I might apply some WD-40 to this area from time to time...to hopefully keep the rust at bay until I have time to really fix this issue.

Or perhaps I should apply some sort of rust eliminator/converter? Which would be best?

[Grandad#3]

The longer you wait to repair a rusty surface the deeper the rust pits will be. You will have to grind more metal off as you have to remove ALL the rust. WD-40 is NOT a temp fix for any type of rust as its major job is to remove moisture from working area/parts. Read the directions on the can.

Cheers,
Larry

[DannoXYZ]

Yeah, there's really no quick-fix. Partial-repairs will often cause more severe problems in the future. Sealing in rust anaerobically will actually cause it to spread faster. Look up how ferrous-oxide and ferric-oxide work in tandem.

If you don't have 30-minute to sand down the area, just leave it until you can. Use a small 3" sanding-wheel attachment on a drill to reach the irregular surfaces and remove as much as you can. Wire-wheel can reach the crevices that's not flat. Then use this CRC rust-converter primer to cover the area. Even though it claims "conversion" of rust, that function should only be limited to the small amounts you can't completely remove by grinding/sanding. Then cover with regular sanding-primer before painting.

[v2rocket_aka944]

Wire brush it away, and seal the rusted area with paint or even spray truck bed liner/ under coat... Use tape to make some cool patterns

[djnolan]

Try this: Stop Rust with POR-15® - We Know What Permanent Means!

[petrolhead611]

i don't know if its avilable in the US, but Ive used Fertan with great success as a rust converter on several cars. Just briush it on even without any prep, and it works

[djnolan]

POR-15 will stop your rust cold and it does not any take more time than wirebrushing and painting a couple coats of the rust preventative coating in the red/orange can.

POR-15 Rust Preventive Coating

If you have a picture of your rust please post it so we can advise further...

[Karl_W911]

Can POR-15 be used to coat the wheel wells and underside to prevent rust even if there's no rust to begin with? I plan on driving my '84 in winter as I'll have no other means of transportation. And could it be used on top of the factory coating?

[Jrboulder]

Originally Posted by OK-944

The rear outside wheel wells on my 85.5 are showing some surface rust...and I won't have time to properly address this for awhile.

I really don't think I should hit this area with my grinder until I'm ready to properly prep and repaint.

In the meantime, I'm thinking that I might apply some WD-40 to this area from time to time...to hopefully keep the rust at bay until I have time to really fix this issue.

Or perhaps I should apply some sort of rust eliminator/converter? Which would be best?

Wash the area with soap, water and a scrub brush. You need to get as much salt and grime out of the area that is starting to rust. Once it's clean you can spray it with a corrosion inhibitor such as as this Corrosion Inhibitor & Anti-Corrosion Spray | Corrosion Protection

Obviously it's best to treat it with a much more permanent solution as soon as you can but this should slow the rust.

[running_cold924]

similar to POR-15 Automotive Formula - Rust Bullet LLC