[nUcLeArEnVoY]

Originally Posted by Sirrotica

With the bad metal that was used in 73 GM cars, all that salt in all the bare pinch welds is going to rot that car from the inside out. I don't care how well they wash it with fresh water, the rust is already started.

My 73 rusted out on the floor pans, and rear frame rails without any salt water getting in there only 20,000 miles, never been driven in the winter, stored inside most of the time I owned it. The floor rusted in weird places like the driveshaft tunnel had pin holes in it right through the red oxide primer and paint, rusted from the inside through the paint and primer. The firewall had pin holes in it too.

Back in the 70s the 73, and 74 GM cars, and trucks would rust under the paint, even when the paint was intact big blisters would appear. I was told it was like the mid 60s Fords that the frames rotted from the inside, bad quality recycled imported metal. Early 70s ford trucks also rusted so badly they had a recall to replace panels at fords cost due to bad steel being used in the body stampings. Then later Toyota recalled their trucks to replace frames that rusted from poor quality steel. They also would trade those trucks on newer trucks for a good credit.

When I worked in the GE plant in Erie PA I worked in the shop that burned parts from steel plate. We had some steel that I was told came from Japan that was so rusty we couldn't even burn parts from it. You'd lose the cut from the torch because rust would screw up the cut, they ended up scrapping the unused steel plates. Huge rust blisters would just erupt as the plates sat waiting to be used. I was told the affected steel was bought because it was much cheaper than steel made here in the states. I believe GM also got some of the cheap steel as it was in the early 70s too.

Yikes. Sounds like a mess.

Wasn't there a specific model year in the 2nd gen run where they started to finally use galvanized metal? I've heard from time to time that 78+ or 79+ cars don't rust as bad as the earlier 2nd gens, or something.