Originally Posted by: commodorenut 
Plenty of rusty Commodores around....VB-VL are just as bad as HQ-WB, if not worse, and even VN-VP in the boot if the tail light seals are leaking.
The only ones I would say they really got right was from VE onwards, but VT-VZ weren't too bad - I've still seen some rusty examples, but nowhere near the level of rust we used to see.
About half the VB-VL Commodores I wrecked out in the 90s/00s were terminally rusted in structural areas like the sills, rails, corners of the scuttle, bottoms of the A-pillars or extensively rusted under the rear screen & in the boot floor. Some even had those little plastic plugs from where after-sales rustproofing had been done, but obviously wasn't all that effective. Some of the crashed ones I bought & wrecked were in remarkably good condition though - either being well looked after, or they'd had gallons of no-odour fishoil in every cavity early in their life. The ones that have survived to this day have led pampered lives, lived in a very dry area, or are like Grandpa's axe with replacement metal.
Keeping it in a dry, well ventilated garage would be more important, and successful than rustproofing it & leaving it in the weather.
I drive through a lot of cow shit but I do hose it off under their and drive through a lot of creek crossings and cutting loose on dirt roads a lot, but the ute was garaged and well vent. not a spot of rust and the exhaust was fine but for all the dints in it caused by some of the rocks washed across in them bloody deep creeks at times. years ago a exhaust did not last much more than 3 to 5 years max.
But just by looking at cars around on the roads and I do take note I never see rust in the commodores. Back in the 70's 80's 90's in QLD boy were there some real rust buckets getting around and when the rust was cut out the idiots just bashed it in and used bog and news paper and chicken wire. seen it all the time at the bog repair shops, NSW and NT at least could not just bog things up like the fools did in QLD.
I remember seeing new XC Falcons with fine rust starting to appear and also on the last years of the Falcons.
I was thinking of what they did to the prevention of rust as the VB came out with claims of pre-coated steel ? pre-coated zinc where it prone to rust, dip primers waxes protective lacquers and acid resisting enamels.
My mums HR bought new was Roo Ted with rust at 10 years old a hole in the passenger side rear floor big enough to toss a piccaninny through, so the dude when I sold it to in Aug 1977 said and he pulled the engine and box and diff out and got tossed out on the artificial reef.
My brother drove his HQ on the beach a fair bit cutting loose on the salt pan and going way out far on the low tide, but it never had any rust at all at 8 years old and had it for 5 years.
