Rust - is this normal?

[randog78 Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close randog78]

Just noticed a fair bit of rust under my car (2019, 36 000 kms). It gets exposed to beach driving 3-4 times a year (Moreton Island, Fraser Island), but is always thoroughly washed right afterwards (underneath and all over).

Is it normal to see this much, and should I do something about it ASAP?

[LeighW Avid PP Poster! Find all posts View Profile Close LeighW]

Doesn't look good, perhaps has done a bit of beach work

[randog78 Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close randog78]

Yep, it has (3-4 long weekends a year). But we bought it brand new, so I know it gets cleaned properly every time.

[Daniel150 Member Find all posts View Profile Close Daniel150]

Definitely not great. I’d be getting it dealt with asap. I’ve used my 120 on the beach heaps and never saw that.
The new one is only 9 months old but has been on a few decent trips without and rusting so far. I do lay underneath it with the hose for a good 45 minutes every time it goes on the beach though. There is so many places for sand to hide.
Yours almost looks like the paint is being rubbed off and then rust is setting in.

[404pug Avid PP Poster! Find all posts View Profile Close 404pug]

Wire brush, treat, paint with spray can of underbody paint.

[watsea Member Find all posts View Profile Close watsea]

I have a 2019 Prado, just on 68k km but little beach work. Mine does not have that degree of corrosion, (I would attach a photo but it is bucketing down where I am camping) though I did go over with a black enamel paint on some exposed exposed leading edge areas that would get peppered by stones etc. I found the vehicle seemed to have thin underbody paintwork. I inspected my vehicle as there had been comments on this forum about new vehicles with poor paint thickness issues. If you are regularly doing beach work, perhaps you should consider getting some rust proofing paint applied. A few months ago, I found that there were a few places in Brisbane and the Gold Coast that do rust proofing using sprayed paint/coatings.

[watsea Member Find all posts View Profile Close watsea]

Back home now and took a photo for your interest. At least the topic of this thread made me have a look and I have notice some rust showing on parts of the lower control arms. So thanks for the prompt. This is easy enough for me to treat. Pic attached