| Description and Operation General Although corrosion protection measures and painting processes in production have reached a very high technical standard and will be continuously developed further, in the long term corrosion on a vehicle cannot be totally avoided. Further demands are therefore made of the paint specialist besides his knowledge of normal repainting of vehicles which have been repaired after an accident, in addition specialist knowledge is required for assessing and rectifying damage due to corrosion. During repair painting, take care over the maintenance and re-creation of the corrosion protection applied in production, in view of the long-term warranty on Ford vehicles. Only those repair materials which are approved by Ford may be used for body repair work and repair painting. For detailed information on corrosion protection measures during body repairs, please refer to chapter 501-25. Furthermore, information on corrosion protection measures is repeated in individual chapters of the paint manual. In particular, pay attention that the layer thicknesses specified in production are maintained. The complete system of solid one-layer on galvanized steel panels must equal at least 90 µm and the total system of two-layer on galvanized steel panels must equal at least 105 µm. It is important that sealing operations, as far as they are necessary, should be undertaken after the application of the paint to specification, in order to ensure the best corrosion protection. All components which form hollow cavities such as pillars, rails, side components etc. must be provided with a coating of cavity protection wax. Causes of corrosion Corrosion of steel is an electrochemical process during which the steel combines with oxygen. The following factors lead to corrosion: - Acidic compounds contained in the air, such as carbonic acid and sulphur dioxide, combined with oxygen from the air and/or water. Salts such as sodium chloride used as road salt accelerate the corrosion process.
- Mechanical damage such as stone chips and scratches which penetrate through to the steel panel.
- Lack of care by the vehicle owner of the painted and corrosion proofed surfaces or areas on the vehicle.
- Unfavorable weather or environmental conditions, as may occur in areas with high humidity, high salt content in the air or serious air pollution due to aggressive gases and dusts.
In the case of mechanical damage, formation of rust can often be seen, beginning to spread into the painted surface from a point (stone chip) or from a line (scratch). If these faults are not professionally rectified in good time, the result is rusting through from the outside to the inside. Rusting penetration from the inside to the outside occurs when for instance the cavity protection was inadequate. Operations after painting NOTE:The manufacturer's instructions must be followed when working with the various corrosion protection materials. - After painting, treat all cavities in the repair area with cavity protection wax. In doing so, pay particular attention to the weld seams. In dead-end applications with a panel insert, the cavity protection wax must be applied so that it also reaches the area of the panel insert.
- Seals which were applied in production and not over painted must be reapplied. Seals protect vulnerable parts of the bodywork, keep moisture away, reduce wind and road noise and dampen vibrations.
- Apply transparent wax.
Definition of the degree of rust In workshop practice, in order to be able to carry out a consistent and objective evaluation of the scope of the damage, a degree of rust on the scale of 1 to 5 is determined by the DIN 53 210 standard. The main criterion here is the extent to which rust exists under the paint structure. It is determined in millimeters (mm). Underlying rust grade: R1 < 1 mm Corrosion starting with up to 1 mm of rust underlying (in the form of a spot or a line). The damage can be rectified by cleaning the defective location and mechanically removing the underlying rust. For a small extent, apply a primer using a brush and allow it to dry. Touch-up the location with a paint pen or provide a new paint coating. Underlying rust grade R2 < 1 - 2 mm Advanced corrosion with up to 2 mm underlying rust. Rectifying the damage: - Clean the defective location.
- Remove the underlying rust mechanically down to the paintwork carrier.
- Apply 1-component filler and then 2-component "Vario" filler.
- Provide the damage location with new paint coat on visible outer surfaces. Only locally touch-up areas which are not optically conspicuous.
Underlying rust grade R3 < 2 - 4 mm More advanced corrosion with up to 4 mm underlying rust. The damage must be rectified in the same way as for R2. A permanent cure of this type of damage pattern is still just possible Underlying rust grade R4 < 4 - 5 mm Notably advanced corrosion with up to 5 mm underlying rust. The damage must be rectified in the same way as for R2. If it is found that for whole areas this is only possible with a great deal of work, or is not possible at all, then a new component must be used. Underlying rust grade R5 > 5 mm Extreme corrosion, with more than 5mm underlying rust (panels, flanges or load-bearing components partially rusted or rusted through). Such damage can no longer be repaired because in many cases the constructional strength of the component can no longer be produced. The risk in making a repair is too great. Install a new component and paint it. | 
