Dear Tom and Ray:
My car has spots of rust. Please teach me the best way to treat it. I've retouched it, but it continues to spread. A friend told me to sand off the rust and then retouch it. I think that only created scratches. Next thing I was told was to put a dab of wax over the rust. That just seemed to collect water and make it worse. Now another guy just tells me "body shop, body shop!" The spots are still small. Is there any way for me to fix this without taking it to the body shop? -- Chika
RAY: Rust is tough, Chika. And it never sleeps, as they say. Truly, the best way to fix it IS to take it to a body shop and have the spot ground down to the metal, filled with body-filler, re-primed and then painted. But that is expensive, and it may not be worth it on an older car or a car you don't plan to keep for a long time.
TOM: It also may not work. The rust may eventually come back, since it's such a sneaky little substance.
RAY: The only "home/consumer" product we've ever had any real success with is called Extend. Extend is a white-colored, paint-like product that bonds to the rust. And as it bonds to the rust, it turns black.
TOM: And once it turns black, it serves as a primer coat, which you can then paint over. It's worked great on my barbecue grill over the years. I've got 125,000 rust-free burgers on the thing now.
RAY: Of course, since the primer is black, you'll need about 16 coats of touch-up paint to even start to cover it up. So don't expect the end product to be showroom perfect.
TOM: But if your objective is to slow the corrosion, Extend is probably your best home remedy. Good luck, Chika.
Dear Tom and Ray:
I read your column every week, and am writing to you with an urgent plea for help with my almost-new Toyota Camry V-6 LE. At speeds of 40 mph and above, the car sounds like it's going through a wind tunnel. There is a tremendous amount of wind noise and turbulence which seems to be coming from the front and sides of the car. I have taken my car to two different Toyota dealerships, and nothing satisfactory has been done to eliminate this horrible noise. Both dealerships have told me "it is unfortunate, but sometimes wind noise cannot be corrected." I find this totally unacceptable. This is the sixth new Toyota that I have owned, and this is my first major problem. Can you please help me? -- Betty
TOM: The best way we can help you, Betty, is by printing your letter. We agree with you. This IS unacceptable. And I'm willing to bet people higher up at Toyota think this is unacceptable, too.
RAY: There's no question about it, wind noises can be very hard to find. But on a new car like this one, the dealer is obligated to find it and fix it for you. You may have to leave it with them for a week or two so they can experiment with some high-tech diagnostic instruments, like duct tape and foam rubber.
TOM: But they can't just say, "Tough luck, lady. We know you spent 20 grand on a car, you just can't drive it over 40 mph, OK?"
RAY: Honda Accords had a wind noise problem, and it turned out to be the seal on the windshield. Other companies have had side-view mirrors, doors, seals and roof racks that catch the wind and make noise. It's usually not a hard problem to fix. It's just hard to find.
TOM: Call your dealership and ask for the name and number of the "zone manager." The zone manager is one step up from the dealerships. I'm sure he'll intervene and help you get this fixed. If not, write back, and we'll embarrass Toyota again.
Dear Tom and Ray:
Can you please say something about fuel injection and the need for being careful NOT to step on the gas before starting up the car? Why don't dealers impress this upon customers who buy fuel injected cars these days? -- Dorothy
TOM: Mostly because it doesn't matter, Dorothy. In the old days, when my brother had hair and Dodge Darts roamed the earth, you HAD TO step on the gas before starting a cold car to set the choke. But since cars don't have chokes anymore, that's no longer necessary.
RAY: Cars are now fuel injected and controlled by computerized engine-management systems, which read the engine temperature, and in some cases the ambient air temperature, and then determine how much fuel and air to send into the cylinder when you turn the ignition key.
TOM: And these computers couldn't care less if you step on the gas pedal before you start up. As long as your foot is not on the pedal while you're turning the key, any such "pre-stomping" will have no effect whatsoever.
RAY: But you do have a point when it comes to stepping on the gas pedal WHILE you're starting the car. While stepping part way down on the gas doesn't do any damage to the car, it does make some cars start more slowly. That's because you may be opening the throttle slightly when the computer wants it closed. Again, no damage is done, but it's completely unnecessary and may make starting the car harder.
TOM: Another reason to get out of the habit of stepping on the gas WHILE you start the car is that as soon as the car starts, it's going to rev up. And we know that revving up a stone-cold engine as soon as you start it is one of the worst things you can do.
RAY: The other thing you should be careful not to do is related to what's called a "W-O-T mode."
TOM: Oh, my Dodge Dart was in W-O-T mode last year. With-Out Transmission!
RAY: No. W-O-T stands for "wide-open throttle." In the old days, when my brother had brain cells and the Earth's crust was still warm, carbureted cars had a mode for starting the car when the engine was flooded. You held the pedal all the way to the floor while you turned the key. That opened the throttle all the way and let in the maximum amount of air to counteract the excess gasoline.
TOM: And most car's computers are designed to "mimic" that W-O-T mode. So if you hold the gas pedal to the floor while turning the key, the computer assumes the engine is flooded and cuts the supply of gasoline in half. So that's something you want to be careful not to do by accident.
RAY: But stepping on the pedal BEFORE you start the car really doesn't matter, Dorothy. Stomp on it, pump it to the beat of "Stayin' Alive" or just leave it alone; as long as your foot is off the pedal by the time you turn the key, a fuel-injected car couldn't care less.
Wait! Before you buy your next car, make sure you read Tom and Ray's guide How to Buy a Great Used Car: Things Detroit and Tokyo DonÃ-t Want You to Know. Send $3 and a stamped (55 cents), self-addressed, No. 10 envelope to Used Car, P.O. Box 6420, Riverton, NJ 08077-6420.
Got a question about cars? Write to Click and Clack in care of the Journal-World, 609 N.H., Lawrence 66044, or e-mail them by visiting the Car Talk section of cars.com on the World Wide Web.
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