Comparing racing tires especially designed for Formula I racing cars and everyday tires is a little inane isn't?
It sure is. Kinda like cutting and pasting from a company's online sales brochure and passing it off as fact. :-P Regardless, I'm not gonna get in a war of words over tires, especially when I agree that the X-One is, from what I've read, a pretty darned good tire. Looking at the Tire Rack's online survey and the sales guy's own account (remember, the X-Ones were more money; it stands to reason that if he were commisioned, which I'm not sure of, he'd make more of the more expensive tire) I went with the Bridgestones. I've never considered them to be an "off-brand" (If I wanted off-brand tires, I could have saved a LOT more money and gone to Pep Boys, but I'm not trusting my own or my family's safety to an inferior product) so I went with them. Again, it's a little early for a final judgement, but I can already tell you that wet traction is a vast improvement over the Michelin "Rain Force" (whatever the heck that means) MX4.
I copied from the Michelin site for a reason. It listed a tread warranty that another poster said did not exist.
As far as your humor is concerned, it needs improving. Let me suggest that you watch Speedvision (Speed Channel) 24 hours a day to get those hormones running. But please, skip over the Bridgestone ads when watching.
How can you say a Volvo is a good reliable automobile since Ford bought them? They have been one of the most unreliable vehicles manufactured over the past 3 years. Just look at Consumer Reports or the Powers Survey for starters.
Honda has far better quality contol than a Volvo. Even Peter Forsberg drives an Acura and not a Volvo. He knows better after playing in the USA for the past 10 years. I heard when he goes home to Sweden in the off season, he drives a Skoda.
"How can you say a Volvo is a good reliable automobile since Ford bought them? A couple things. One, I don't recall anyone making that statement. I personally can't make it, because my Volvo is an '89 model (if you'd read the above posts, you'd know that.) For another thing, all the Volvo designs currently in production were finalized before the takeover.
Regardless, I'm very satisfied with both my Volvo and my Honda (both are sitting at around 120,000 trouble-free miles; this is my first Volvo, but my third Honda/Acura) and wouldn't hesitate to buy either brand again.
Over at the other Honda boards, I have been reading that the a high number 2003 Accords have been pulling to the right. Alignments don't help the problem. It seems that everyone that posts a negative about the new Accord has this problem.
Is this a potential quality problem that needs to be addressed? Or, has Honda addressed this problem at the factory?
Always wondered if GM and Ford started using parts out of their system for Volvo/SAAB. A neighbor of mine bought a Saab a few years after GM took over and he had several problems and someone who really knew the vehicles said he had encountered a lot of the parts GM had substituted from their system.
Seems like virtually every little switch/part is made for one companies cars-it will work on lots of their vehicles but no other manufacturer's.
Years ago had a vw van that pulled left-well it was a bad tire-Dunlop had screwed up the belt. Would suggest finding a section of road that has no traffic and drive on the left/wrong side and see if it still pulls right. Could be the steering is so sensitive you can feel the effect of the crown in the road.
Don't you love the creative things car sales people can come up with.
A TSB came out for a Mitsubishi that said if the car pulled to the right to first try rotating and balancing the tires. If that doesn't work then swap the two front tires. And then if that doesn't work move the front tires to the back. My SI has a slight pull to the right on some surfaces but it's nothing major.
Thanks for the suggestions. I'll try driving another one. (Actually I did drive another, but it had a vibration/rattle which distracted me.)
A few posts state that this is a defect of the new Accords.
It could also be, as bburton1 suggests, that the steering on all the new EX V6s is sensitive and differs from what I am used to with my 1999 model--so a "crowned" road would affect the 2003 Accord more than my 1999 model.
If so I could get used to it, I think. I just want to make sure the drifting sensation is really a normal characteristic of the new model, not a defect of the specific car I may buy.
I posted the same remark on the "sedans" discussion board hoping to get as much feedback as possible.
Ford's ownership of Volvo is relatively recent, as such all of their current products aren't Ford based. The S40/V40 is heavily based on the Mitsubishi Charisma.
SAAB, on the other hand, is more integrated into GM already. The current 9-3 and 9-5 are based on existing Opel/Vauxhaull platforms (as are the L-Series and Catera). The new 9-3 is one of the first GM products on the new Epsillon platform.
I have read numerous posts on the auto tranny problem that has occurred in the '00-01 Accords (and even earlier models) so don't think I haven't done my homework. I have an '02 and there seems to be some hesitation or a "jerk" when the car is shifting between 1st & 2nd...even after the engine has warmed up.
Last time I was at my dealer he drained some of the tranny fluid as it was high, which seemed to have helped but now...no luck...the problem still exists. I've checked the fluid level and it is fine. I have around 7000mi so I think I've broken the car in.
Has anyone else with an '02 EX V-6 noticed anything? Should I start the ball rolling for Honda to extend the tranny replacement to include '02's? Any other suggestions for me to have the dealer check? Is this just a "characteristic" of the Honda trans...coming from a Pontiac Grand Am there are already a lot of differences...all for the better! Thanks in advance for your assistance!!
The jerky 1-2 shift is a characteristic of all Honda transmissions prior to the one in the new 02-03 Honda/Acuras. I had a 01 V6 Coupe and it was the same way especially if I slowed down and then pushed my foot in the gas to speed back up. It was an annoyance (end the end it was probably why I sold the car) but I never had a problem with the auto tranny in that Accord or a Civic automatic we used to have that behaved the same way.
Honda has always had a problem with rust above the rear wheel wells on Accords especially in the northeast. The Accord has a design flaw above the rear wheel wells where water and salt will collect in the winter causing the area to rust from the inside out.
Honda knows that it takes over 5 years for the rust to form in that area. Guess what--right after the rust throw warranty expires. Rock salt caught in that area of course is the biggest cause of rust and you can't wax that inside ledge.
I'm surprised about the rust problem. Is this a problem in their other models? I kept my 91 Integra for 7 seven years before selling it for a larger car and never had any problems with rust. I also washed it about every 2 weeks and waxed it fairly frequently. I'm not sure if that helped.
I was considering an Accord now that the styling is starting to grown on me, but I'm going to stay away from it if there are quality control problems.
Thanks for your responses...I feel a little more re-assured that it is a design issue as opposed to an actual mechanical issue....well, that remains to be seen I guess.
Anyway, thanks again for your posts. At the very least I can remember what it was like when I first learned to drive stick every time I feel the hesitation when shifting from 1st to 2nd.
I think people are trying to get answers to their problems here. Every time someone mentions a legitimate problem, isellhondas thinks it is bashing.
I tend to believe that all Generation 6 Accord transmissions were problematic due to a poor design by Honda engineers. Honda in so many words reinforced that statement by offering a 7 year warranty on its transmission. That is why all the changes were made on the Generation 7 Accord in the transmission housing.
By the way, this is what isellhondas said back in May, 2001 regarding the transmission problem:
"First I ever heard of this was right here, in Town Hall. I'll repeat, this was very much overblown."
How come everyone else heard about this problem except you?
"A supplier, unbeknownst to Honda decided to change specs on some part in the V-6 transmissions. This would cause a loud "clunk" while backing up. It did not cause total failure."
Where did you get this information from isellhondas?
"Honda was blindslided by this."
"And, few cars were affected. To this day, I have NEVER heard this clunk and I've backed up literally hundreds of them."
Isn't it strange that everyone else has heard this clunk but isellhondas?
"The problem cars were fixed under warranty, case closed."
That is why Honda had to extend the power train warranty right isellhondas?
As you can see, isellhondas comments sounded as if it was part of Honda's response to transmission issues at that time. This problem was critical enough that it made the newspapers nationally due to various consumer complaints. Honda's response AFTER NUMEROUS COMPLAINTS was to extend the power train warranty that covered the transmission defect.
I drove an 03 V6, and it had a distinct pull to the right, too! If you buy an 03, test drive it first. If it pulls to the right, DON'T BUY IT!! Based on my experience, Honda will try to tell you it's a "safety feature" to prevent you from straying into oncoming traffic. I guess they think we are all idiots. My 02 Ody pulls right under acceleration, and I had to get the BBB involved to get Honda to admit there was actually a problem. Their "fix" was to mess up the alignment to the point where it pulls LEFT under steady speed, but pulls right under acceleration.
Yes, Honda has quality control problems now that they did not used to suffer. They are still good cars for the money, but you better make sure it has nothing wrong with it before you roll off the lot.
That is a hooot-I mean how dumb do these sales people think we are. Would have loved to heard that inside the dealership-would have made sure everybody got in on it.
Seriously though, FWIW, there appears to be an issue here and from what i can see, it's "only" (not trying to make light of this fact) the EX-V6.
i find this very bizarre [our EX-I4 is fine, thank god.]. one other EX-V6 poster had it fixed by swapping tires.
could it be the tires fault? ie, Michelin...boy, this could be Firestone/Ford all over again...
but, if it's a tire flaw, why does the problem only show up in the V-6 cars? is this a weight distribution issue where the higher weight up front will unveil this problem in the V-6's?
I wonder if the pulling/drifting is a function of the tire width (V6 has wider tires). Maybe the wider tires follow road crown more so than narrower tires. The reason why I'm suggesting this is that we have both a CL-S and a V6 Accord. Now you'd think that the CL-S, being a sportier ride, should have the better steering feel. But I swear the Accord tracks better, has a "tighter" feel to the steering. In fact, if the road surface is uneven, the CL-S can be quite darty. I guess the higher tire pressure recommended for the CL-S also doesn't help in this regard.
isellhondas raises a good point--does the power of suggestion make us inclined to find what we are looking for in this "drifting" issue?
In my case (post 1812, Nov. 2) I test drove two 2003 EXV6 cars on Halloween, came back the next day and drove them both again. One had a slight rattle/vibration both times and that's all I remember about it. The other seemed to want to "drift" to the right slightly, in a way that my current 1999 EXV6 doesn't. I did wonder if it was my imagination. Just enough of a worry that I decided not to continue the buying process that evening.
When I got to my computer I checked this forum. That's when I saw another mention of the same thing--#1809 from paulo3--and posted my own experience.
Especially interested in hearing from anyone who had this problem but was able to fix it.
The 03 V6 Accord I drove pulled hard enough that it would climb up the road crown if you were in the left lane. Not quickly, but it would do it.
The "safety feature" comment came not from a salesman, but from a service manager. Chew on that for a minute! Fact is, there are some people who would believe him. That's an example of taking advantage of the uninformed. Ethics? What's ethics?
The street in front of our dealership is on a hill and is heavilly crowned. Often people will immediately take their hands off the wheel while driving up the hill. When the car drifts to the right a bit they will tell me..." It pulls to the right!"
I'll have them drive to a flatter street and somehow the problem go's away.
Also, if a front tire is a couple of pounds low on air it'll cause a pull too.
I'm looking into purchasing either a 2003 Accord LX V6 or Altima 3.5SE. (I'm leaning towards the Accord - just waiting for a test drive) One of my concerns is the history of rust formation on Japanese cars. Granted, my experience is limited to Japanese cars. In my family we have owned: an 84 Corolla, 89 CRX, 89 Civic, 90 Accord and 95 Civic. Four of the earlier cars have suffered various degrees of rust - some severe and some prematurely. I'm hoping that the New Generation of cars have better paint jobs and steel with less impurities.
My friend is "Anti-Japanese Cars" and says that they use "cheap" steel. He says you won't find this problem with American Steel or European.
Anyone have any thoughts on this? Has the quality of Japanese exteriors improved and the incidence of Rust decreased?
Has the Accord or more generically Honda, a good track record?
Japanese cars in the '70s and '80s did have a deserved reputation for rust problems. But I don't think they are any more prone to rust than any other brand since the early '90s.
Watched an 80 accord dissolve around me-had to replace the strut under the engine that connects to the front wheels-it rusted away and when the bolts anchoring those got loose-sold it to a friend-he knew about the frame problem and it is still going with over 300K on it.
An honest saleman (sounds like an oxymoron doesn't it-I sell for a living) who sold me my 97 accord told me to very carefully wash the area behind the rear wheels where the plastic bumper and the metal fender connect. This is the only area I have seen that has rusted on these vehicles. Just replaced the exhaust system and noted almost no rust on the under carriage with the exception of exposed steel nuts/bolts. Yeah the new ones are a lot better-oh I drive in salty WI/IL and in the winter regularly get it white with salt. Try to wash it at one of those DIY hand held wand things-lots of the drive thru places recycle their water and "filter" out the salt-if u believe that I got a bridge to sell u.
...that I've seen any rust on would be around '94-95 (the years with the horizontal slit in the grille and smaller taillight assembly).
I don't see it often, but on occasion it'll crop up above the rear wheel arches, or at the bottom of the rear quarter panel just above where the plastic wraparound fascia connects.
Still, when you figure that's a car now 8-9 model years old, and they do salt the roads around here, that's not too shabby.
I think the main reason cars used to rust was that they had more places for salt, dirt, debris, and moisture to gather. I think chrome also has some kind of electrical property that will cause the sheetmetal it's attached to to rust prematurely. The fact that moisture and debris can get up under chrome trim didn't help much, either!
It's very rare that I see a rusty car anymore, unless it's more than 10-15 years old. I still see 'em in the junkyard all the time with blown motors, dead trannies, and other failures, but I think the days that a car will literally rust out around a still-reliable drivetrain are long over with.
If you live in the northeast where the roads are heavily salted, you will see "many" and I repeat "many" 1994-97 Honda Accords with rust at the seam above the rear wheel wells. There is a lip on the inside panel where water and salt accumulate that causes this to rust from the inside out. You can wax your car all you want in that area and it will not prevent the rust. Definitely a design flaw by the Honda design team.
...but I think caulk might cause other problems and make things worse. I remember there used to be this stuff called "Goop" that was real common to use to re-seal windshields and backlites. Well, unfortunately, it would work for awhile, but somehow it would start trapping water and debris, and actually make the rust worse!
I'm not sure, but I think Goop actually had some kind of electrical property that would encourage rusting, as well. I'm not sure if all caulks are like this, though.
Probably the best thing to do is see if you can reach this area with a high pressure water hose, and just blast it real good to make sure you get everything out.
My '94, which has lived in salt all its life (the Maine/New Hampshire seacoast, and now the heavily salted roads of Iowa) is rusting in this very spot. Most of the other pre-'98 Accords I see are rusting here, too. Interestingly, one of our new project managers at work was recruited away from Honda's operation in Ohio. He stated that this bug had been worked out of '98 and later Accords.
So Honda makes a good car, they still haven't hooked the ride up with a built-in security feature that will prevent some fool from driving off in it. Unless of course said feature is in the '03, since it's not in the 90 (my dad has one and it's been marked), the 91 (I drive one and it's been stolen), the 94 (my sister drives one and the fools couldn't start so out of desperation they pushed it around the corner and tore apart the dash - amateurs), or the 96 (the neighbors' was stolen)...Last year Honda ranked in the top 5 for stolen cars nationwide. In OR, it ranked #2. What's the story? I'm a week away from purchasing a new '02 Accord EX coupe and I'd like ideas on the best way (short of garaging it) to avoid theft.
What I noticed so far with salesmen who post in this thread is that they are really prone to anecdotal evidence (i.e. "I never see this problems before", "my Accord does not do such thing", "Never heard that problem exist therefore it does not exist"). Or this one"I've never see rust" Wow!!! They are the Truman Burbank of this thread.
...He lives on the west coast, so it's very probable that he really has never seen rust. I myself have always lived in a state that salts their roads, and in one case did so five minutes from the ocean. Therefore, while I'm mildly disappointed my car has started to rust, I'm not all that surprised.
All Accords from 1998 on have a security chip embedded in the ignition key. These have slowed the theft rate way down. Civics from 2001 on have the same feature.
Comments
It sure is. Kinda like cutting and pasting from a company's online sales brochure and passing it off as fact. :-P
Regardless, I'm not gonna get in a war of words over tires, especially when I agree that the X-One is, from what I've read, a pretty darned good tire. Looking at the Tire Rack's online survey and the sales guy's own account (remember, the X-Ones were more money; it stands to reason that if he were commisioned, which I'm not sure of, he'd make more of the more expensive tire) I went with the Bridgestones. I've never considered them to be an "off-brand" (If I wanted off-brand tires, I could have saved a LOT more money and gone to Pep Boys, but I'm not trusting my own or my family's safety to an inferior product) so I went with them. Again, it's a little early for a final judgement, but I can already tell you that wet traction is a vast improvement over the Michelin "Rain Force" (whatever the heck that means) MX4.
As far as your humor is concerned, it needs improving. Let me suggest that you watch Speedvision (Speed Channel) 24 hours a day to get those hormones running. But please, skip over the Bridgestone ads when watching.
all: Has anyone compared the X-Ones to the Dunlop Sport A2's?
Honda has far better quality contol than a Volvo. Even Peter Forsberg drives an Acura and not a Volvo. He knows better after playing in the USA for the past 10 years. I heard when he goes home to Sweden in the off season, he drives a Skoda.
A couple things. One, I don't recall anyone making that statement. I personally can't make it, because my Volvo is an '89 model (if you'd read the above posts, you'd know that.) For another thing, all the Volvo designs currently in production were finalized before the takeover.
Regardless, I'm very satisfied with both my Volvo and my Honda (both are sitting at around 120,000 trouble-free miles; this is my first Volvo, but my third Honda/Acura) and wouldn't hesitate to buy either brand again.
Is this a potential quality problem that needs to be addressed? Or, has Honda addressed this problem at the factory?
Seems like virtually every little switch/part is made for one companies cars-it will work on lots of their vehicles but no other manufacturer's.
Comments appreciated
For example, Toyota does not out source their parts outside of batteries and tires.
I believe that Honda is making a big mistake in outsourcing its parts with GM. Quality will suffer in the once stellar Accord with GM parts.
I then drove same roads with my 1999 EX V6--absolutely steady steering, no drifting right.
I assumed it was a defect of the specific car I drove (the dealer said the right tire inflation was low).
If it's a known defect I would expect to see many comments. Any feedback?
Don't you love the creative things car sales people can come up with.
A few posts state that this is a defect of the new Accords.
It could also be, as bburton1 suggests, that the steering on all the new EX V6s is sensitive and differs from what I am used to with my 1999 model--so a "crowned" road would affect the 2003 Accord more than my 1999 model.
If so I could get used to it, I think. I just want to make sure the drifting sensation is really a normal characteristic of the new model, not a defect of the specific car I may buy.
I posted the same remark on the "sedans" discussion board hoping to get as much feedback as possible.
SAAB, on the other hand, is more integrated into GM already. The current 9-3 and 9-5 are based on existing Opel/Vauxhaull platforms (as are the L-Series and Catera). The new 9-3 is one of the first GM products on the new Epsillon platform.
Last time I was at my dealer he drained some of the tranny fluid as it was high, which seemed to have helped but now...no luck...the problem still exists. I've checked the fluid level and it is fine. I have around 7000mi so I think I've broken the car in.
Has anyone else with an '02 EX V-6 noticed anything? Should I start the ball rolling for Honda to extend the tranny replacement to include '02's? Any other suggestions for me to have the dealer check? Is this just a "characteristic" of the Honda trans...coming from a Pontiac Grand Am there are already a lot of differences...all for the better! Thanks in advance for your assistance!!
Honda knows that it takes over 5 years for the rust to form in that area. Guess what--right after the rust throw warranty expires. Rock salt caught in that area of course is the biggest cause of rust and you can't wax that inside ledge.
I was considering an Accord now that the styling is starting to grown on me, but I'm going to stay away from it if there are quality control problems.
Every make and model of car ever built will have an ocassional problem. In these forums these problems tend to be amplified and often overblown.
There are a couple of Honda bashers here that enjoy stirring the pot as often as they can.
Before you choose another make of car, be sure to visit the forums that deal with those makes. You'll find similar tales of woe only more of them!
Good Luck!
Anyway, thanks again for your posts. At the very least I can remember what it was like when I first learned to drive stick every time I feel the hesitation when shifting from 1st to 2nd.
I tend to believe that all Generation 6 Accord transmissions were problematic due to a poor design by Honda engineers. Honda in so many words reinforced that statement by offering a 7 year warranty on its transmission. That is why all the changes were made on the Generation 7 Accord in the transmission housing.
By the way, this is what isellhondas said back in May, 2001 regarding the transmission problem:
"First I ever heard of this was right here, in Town Hall. I'll repeat, this was very much overblown."
How come everyone else heard about this problem except you?
"A supplier, unbeknownst to Honda decided to change specs on some part in the V-6 transmissions. This would cause a loud "clunk" while backing up. It did not cause total failure."
Where did you get this information from isellhondas?
"Honda was blindslided by this."
"And, few cars were affected. To this day, I have NEVER heard this clunk and I've backed up literally hundreds of them."
Isn't it strange that everyone else has heard this clunk but isellhondas?
"The problem cars were fixed under warranty, case closed."
That is why Honda had to extend the power train warranty right isellhondas?
As you can see, isellhondas comments sounded as if it was part of Honda's response to transmission issues at that time. This problem was critical enough that it made the newspapers nationally due to various consumer complaints. Honda's response AFTER NUMEROUS COMPLAINTS was to extend the power train warranty that covered the transmission defect.
Yes, Honda has quality control problems now that they did not used to suffer. They are still good cars for the money, but you better make sure it has nothing wrong with it before you roll off the lot.
Seriously though, FWIW, there appears to be an issue here and from what i can see, it's "only" (not trying to make light of this fact) the EX-V6.
i find this very bizarre [our EX-I4 is fine, thank god.]. one other EX-V6 poster had it fixed by swapping tires.
could it be the tires fault? ie, Michelin...boy, this could be Firestone/Ford all over again...
but, if it's a tire flaw, why does the problem only show up in the V-6 cars? is this a weight distribution issue where the higher weight up front will unveil this problem in the V-6's?
just thinking and speculating aloud...
Of course, we all know that the problem was more widespread than I knew.
And...it's true! The first I ever heard of it was right here, in these forums!
And you know what else? I STILL have yet to hear this "clunk" when backing up an Accord or an Odyssey.
Not that you would believe me...
As far as the pulling go's, I keep meaning to check on this the next time I drive one.
Once again, I've only heard of this here.
I can see people coming here, reading this and thinking..." Maybe I have this problem!"
Then going down the street, taking their hands off the wheel to see if the car pulls to the right.
If a car has a pull, it'll be noticed without having to do that little test.
Big difference between a "pull" and a gradual drift which all cars will do.
But...I'll check..is it the V-6's only that are supposted to do this?
In my case (post 1812, Nov. 2) I test drove two 2003 EXV6 cars on Halloween, came back the next day and drove them both again. One had a slight rattle/vibration both times and that's all I remember about it. The other seemed to want to "drift" to the right slightly, in a way that my current 1999 EXV6 doesn't. I did wonder if it was my imagination. Just enough of a worry that I decided not to continue the buying process that evening.
When I got to my computer I checked this forum. That's when I saw another mention of the same thing--#1809 from paulo3--and posted my own experience.
Especially interested in hearing from anyone who had this problem but was able to fix it.
The "safety feature" comment came not from a salesman, but from a service manager. Chew on that for a minute! Fact is, there are some people who would believe him. That's an example of taking advantage of the uninformed. Ethics? What's ethics?
The street in front of our dealership is on a hill and is heavilly crowned. Often people will immediately take their hands off the wheel while driving up the hill. When the car drifts to the right a bit they will tell me..." It pulls to the right!"
I'll have them drive to a flatter street and somehow the problem go's away.
Also, if a front tire is a couple of pounds low on air it'll cause a pull too.
Four of the earlier cars have suffered various degrees of rust - some severe and some prematurely. I'm hoping that the New Generation of cars have better paint jobs and steel with less impurities.
My friend is "Anti-Japanese Cars" and says that they use "cheap" steel. He says you won't find this problem with American Steel or European.
Anyone have any thoughts on this? Has the quality of Japanese exteriors improved and the incidence of Rust decreased?
Has the Accord or more generically Honda, a good track record?
An honest saleman (sounds like an oxymoron doesn't it-I sell for a living) who sold me my 97 accord told me to very carefully wash the area behind the rear wheels where the plastic bumper and the metal fender connect. This is the only area I have seen that has rusted on these vehicles. Just replaced the exhaust system and noted almost no rust on the under carriage with the exception of exposed steel nuts/bolts. Yeah the new ones are a lot better-oh I drive in salty WI/IL and in the winter regularly get it white with salt. Try to wash it at one of those DIY hand held wand things-lots of the drive thru places recycle their water and "filter" out the salt-if u believe that I got a bridge to sell u.
I don't see it often, but on occasion it'll crop up above the rear wheel arches, or at the bottom of the rear quarter panel just above where the plastic wraparound fascia connects.
Still, when you figure that's a car now 8-9 model years old, and they do salt the roads around here, that's not too shabby.
I think the main reason cars used to rust was that they had more places for salt, dirt, debris, and moisture to gather. I think chrome also has some kind of electrical property that will cause the sheetmetal it's attached to to rust prematurely. The fact that moisture and debris can get up under chrome trim didn't help much, either!
It's very rare that I see a rusty car anymore, unless it's more than 10-15 years old. I still see 'em in the junkyard all the time with blown motors, dead trannies, and other failures, but I think the days that a car will literally rust out around a still-reliable drivetrain are long over with.
I'm not sure, but I think Goop actually had some kind of electrical property that would encourage rusting, as well. I'm not sure if all caulks are like this, though.
Probably the best thing to do is see if you can reach this area with a high pressure water hose, and just blast it real good to make sure you get everything out.
I'm a week away from purchasing a new '02 Accord EX coupe and I'd like ideas on the best way (short of garaging it) to avoid theft.
When I say I haven't heard of a specific problem, that is because I haven't. This doesn't mean I don't believe the problems can happen to others.
Since I'm in the thick of things, If a problem is a big one I ought to get wind of it.