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Old 09-11-2018, 10:35 PM
RA1John RA1John is offline
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Default Best states fir rust-free used vehicles?

Looking to purchase a few year old Dodge Ram truck. Living in the rust belt (Mich.), I'd prefer to buy out of state. Some say go to Georgia or Carolinas but how risky is this due to flood vehicles?

How about Oklahoma?

Appreciate recommendations.

Thanks!

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Old 09-11-2018, 10:45 PM
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So Cal.

Arizona.

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Old 09-11-2018, 10:47 PM
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Arizona, the metal is like new, the interiors are baked if the car stays in the sun very much. The paint also bakes away too when exposed to the sun.

I just picked up a 99 GP from AZ that has zero rust anywhere.

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Old 09-11-2018, 10:54 PM
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Colorado....Idaho......then the obvious California,Arizona, Texas, Nevada

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Old 09-11-2018, 10:56 PM
lugnutx2 lugnutx2 is offline
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Colorado, and they're not crispy from the California sun.

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Old 09-11-2018, 11:06 PM
MUSLCAH MUSLCAH is offline
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It’s
well worth it....even with 1,000.00 tow bill

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Old 09-11-2018, 11:17 PM
RA1John RA1John is offline
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Colorado....snow, salt...rust?

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Old 09-11-2018, 11:21 PM
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unruhjonny unruhjonny is offline
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1) places where the winter isn't extreme, so no salt is used

2) places not too close to the ocean, where the salt in the air can't eat sheetmetal

3) if it's a hot climate, hopefully the car hasn't cooked outside... too much.

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Old 09-11-2018, 11:34 PM
MUSLCAH MUSLCAH is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by RA1John View Post
Colorado....snow, salt...rust?
Nope ...unless they have changed the way they treat roads now....maybe someone from there,will chime in

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Old 09-11-2018, 11:40 PM
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The cleanest cars all around that I have ever seen come from the California east bay area and other non-coastal parts of the bay area. Very mild winters with zero salt, warm dry summers, sea level so the sun does not destroy the soft bits and rubber, etc.. Arizona and other high desert cars are generally dry as far as rust goes, but everything gets cooked. Paint, rubber and plastic trim, weatherstrips, interiors, dashboard, glass, window tint, etc etc etc., all age much faster due to the heat and high elevation sun. I see it here in the Reno area to a lesser extent as well. The cars that stay out more into the desert east of the sierras get cooked, the cars that live on town and around tahoe rust. Paint cooks faster with elevation.

So, in short.. west coast inland cars south of the California-Oregon border that are not at higher elevation or in the more heavily forested areas. The bay area is dry enough where cars don't rust with any kind of reasonable care, but not so dry that the soft parts dissolve.

Case in point, my '71 Bonneville spent its whole life in the mostly dry east bay, was rarely garaged its whole life, daily driven rain or shine, was never painted or even really well taken care of until I took possession of it, and it is almost completely rust free, no cracks in the dash, soft interior upholstery remarkably good, etc.. If that car spent its life in Arizona the dash would be cracked to hell, tops of the door panels sunburned, glass delaminating, etc..

Lots of good bay area cars and trucks out there. That's probably where I'd look.

Except not if I lived in Michigan.. what's the point of buying a cherry creampuff from out of state only to destroy it with Michigan salty winters? If I lived in Michigan I'd have classics that only get driven in nice weather and a beater daily driver. I see no point in paying a premium to buy something nice only to see it rust away.

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Old 09-11-2018, 11:42 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by MUSLCAH View Post
Nope ...unless they have changed the way they treat roads now....maybe someone from there,will chime in
Got a friend that lives in Colorado Springs and we talk almost daily, he tells me cars definitely rust away there when daily driven in winter, and suffer from high elevation dryness/sunburning when predominantly left outside as well. Paint and everything else suffers.

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Old 09-12-2018, 12:34 AM
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OZZIEVILLE 67 2 door OZZIEVILLE 67 2 door is offline
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I like this thread as its great info for me doing a bit of research wanting a rust less car,
John L

Sent from my SM-T585 using Tapatalk

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Old 09-12-2018, 12:53 AM
Baron Von Zeppelin Baron Von Zeppelin is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by RA1John View Post
Looking to purchase a few year old Dodge Ram truck. Living in the rust belt (Mich.), I'd prefer to buy out of state. Some say go to Georgia or Carolinas but how risky is this due to flood vehicle ?
No Risks if you zone in on the "Piedmont Area" of NC
No flooding in this region, no mountain snow road salt, no coastal air.
From about Hickory (west) on out past Raleigh (east)
WinstonSalem, High Point, Greensboro, Burlington, Durham to name a few more well populated areas with lots of cars.

20 year old cars in the junkyards around here are still rust free.
You can find an excellent 3-5 year old Dodge Truck with zero corrosion anywhere.
Alternators still have nice clean cases, no rusty bolts or brake lines. etc .....

Once in a while a stray nothern car will come into a salvage yard.
You can spot them right away.
Its pitiful

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Old 09-12-2018, 01:18 AM
1965gp 1965gp is offline
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Here in TX we have almost no rust issues. Only if the car was on the coast will you see any type of corrosion.

I would look at So Cal as well.

I think it’s smart to buy from a rust free area- give you an extra 5 years of life out of it.

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Old 09-12-2018, 01:19 AM
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No risk in the mountains of SC either we don’t salt our roads we sand them. Only rust here is from cars left outdoors which I would think you would have from anywhere except Phoenix where it never rains

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Old 09-12-2018, 01:21 AM
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Greg Reid Greg Reid is offline
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The interior regions of any of the Gulf States, except Florida, are good places to buy a solid car/truck. A car sitting out in a field with no care whatsoever will rust away here.... but it takes a looong time.

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Old 09-12-2018, 02:08 AM
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Some of the best I've seen are out of Montana.

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Old 09-12-2018, 05:35 AM
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Tennessee is good too. I bought my Ranger there and it was 8 years old at the time. Super clean, frame barely had surface rust.

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Old 09-12-2018, 07:56 AM
mgarblik mgarblik is offline
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The last few vehicles I have purchased were from North Carolina. Bought a Jeep from the Ashville area. 100% rust free. You will pay just slightly more than buying a rusted pile of junk from OH, MI, IL. Transpostation home will cost a few bucks. My 62 Catalina came from High Point, NC. It also is remarkably rust free for it's age. All original sheet metal, excellent frame, floors, trunk. This car was obviously driven on red dirt roads for years before I bought it. Amazingly, the frame was still rust free although every square inch of the frame was just packed full of red dirt. I probably removed 25-30 lbs. of dirt from the interior of the frame rails!.

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Old 09-12-2018, 08:17 AM
TAKerry TAKerry is online now
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Agree with all comments, however you said you were looking for a late model dodge. I think they come standard with rust. I have yet to see one that is more than a couple of years old that is not rusted above the rear wheels, or the bed in general.
I see why you would want to get away from Michigan to get something though, on my last trip there I couldn't believe how bad the cars were rusted. I dont think I saw one that wasn't.

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