Okay team, what do you think? Is the oxidisation on this support (or whatever it is called) normal? The location is just forward of my right rear wheel. I suspect it will also be on the right in your left-hand drive vehicles but I could be wrong. You have to get down pretty low to peer under the car to see it, but it's not a long way in. Happened to recently park near a staircase which gave me a view of this object and I was surprised to see it in that state after only six months.
That hanger is pretty rusted... All my previous cars have never experienced that kind of rusting even after several years but I live here in California. I'll check mine and see how it looks (a little over a month old)
Looks like cutting corners in the manufacturing process... My best guess is they either used the wrong kind of metal or the wrong kind of paint on it.... That support, if it's not cost effective to use stainless steel or aluminum probably required high temperature paint, which they didn't use and I suspect the original paint cooked off exposing the metal to rust. It's probably not worth the hassle dealing with the dealer. Just sand it down and spray it with high-temp primer and high temp paint. Problem solved...
Don't be surprised by this corrosion. Exhaust systems now are made of aluminized steel or stainless steel. However, the brackets are uncoated steel. The high exhaust temperatures burn off any coating on the brackets, exposing them to corrosion. You can coat these rusted brackets with products like Loctite's Extend. This stuff converts the iron oxide to a black coating which looks a lot better than "rust".
If it's just for appearance sake I'm not bothered. The only reason I even saw this was because I was parked right next to an open stairwell in a multi-level carpark and happened to observe this item when walking up the stairs.
Weak surface rust. If you just can't stand it, naval jelly and then some aluminized spray paint. Otherwise, it really isn't all that big a deal.
So there's no concern that this part will fail due to the corrosion? I'd be freaked out if I saw something like that on such a young car, and I'd be worried that if I didn't bring it to the attention of the dealer and it later fell off...
Eventually, yes, it will corrode and fall apart. All cars must die. You should see the underside of my truck. Just last year I found the first rust-through and it was quite a sobering experience. But I use it mostly in the winter and we use salt like you can just dig it out of the ground. This little bit of rust on the hanger is no more than surface rust. It hasn't had time to really go to town yet. You could get an oily rag and probably wipe most of it off.
I must say I am heartened by the fact that it's the piece attached to the pipe and not the piece attached to the car. Presumably it would be subjected to much higher temperatures. I must say that relatively speaking my c would have been experiencing a low-sodium diet... it is surprisingly rarely parked outside and while it does venture towards the coast on weekends, it rarely is within sight of the ocean and the areas where you get salt build-up on external windows. Also as we don't get snow, we don't salt our roads, it's just the regular grit and whatnot.
My first post here. Really want to thank all of you, I learn so much from this forum. I discovered similar rust issue as Rob.au on my 2013 Prius C4, just 2 months after purchase. At that time, I had only driven it for about 1300 miles, and not in any snow yet. It looks like Toyota really used some low-grade metal with little protection, presumably to cut cost. Here are some pictures I took at that time. Just behind the converter in the center front: Same spot as posted by the OP under the rear passenger side door: Another bracket under the rear bumper: Rusting nuts and bolts in the front wheel wells: Overall, I still love the car because of its MPG, but am a bit concerned about how well it will hold up in the long run after seeing this on such a new car.
