I've got rust spots on the back hatch!!!!! I've seen 1st gen X's with rust "rainbows" running from little points on their hatch ALL the way down the hatch. I do NOT want that happening to my baby...

Scott... I know your anger and mute rage extends past feline's to rust as well. Any tips and or cures for my little problem??? I was also toying with the idea of getting a new (heavier) paint job for the truck in a year or two since its sooo beat up. Anyone have a guess/estimate on how much that would run?

I once heard somewhere that the best way to counteract rust, is to paint everything blue and yellow.

Yes, I heard those particular colors counteract the rust and send it running for the hills. Theres a scientific name for the process i cant think of at the moment... Daggerfication or some such thing.

I repainted my whole rear door, but that's a lot of work.

You can lightly sand off the rust, get some brush-on touch up primer and the get some touch up paint to match.

i had to get my truck repainted within the first year of having it... small vandalism problem at my hs but that cost around 1800 i believe it was.. for a good paint job from a god shop in the area.. that was down in jersey though.. not sure about here in ny

hmmm... the only thing about getting the truck re-painted (which it needs... badly) is the fact that as Pepper knows, I'm not exactly careful when it comes to sticks/branches on the trails. I think it would just get re-trashed! Granted I'm not off-roading as much now as I used to w/ the new job and all.

It just seems like X's have such a thin coat of paint and gloss. You'd think they would've made it a bit thicker.

I've got to get on that rust. I have one little bottle of touch up Scott. I have to get some primer. Do I need a super coarse or super fine grit for the sandpaper??

That depends on how good a job you want to do. I would sand down the rust spots with #100 sandpaper. Make sure you get all the rust. Also, before you start, you'll want to clean the area with wax/grease remover.

After you get off all the rust, feather the edges with some #320 grit. Then prime with a couple of coats, let dry and carefully sand that with some fine, #320 should do, paper. Then brush on your color. It will take a few coats to get it covered.

Or, you could. Get it professionally done. My friend has a 2002 chevy z71, all modded and stuff. The back door started to rust. He tried to do it himself but after a few months the rust came through. I do not know if he did a bad job with it or what. Then he got it done from a body shop and has not had any problems with it.

Of course the body shop was more expensive. But good luck with your rust problem

The key with any paint job, done yourself or by a pro, is the preparation. You have to get out all the rust and foreign material. Getting the surface clean before sanding is just as important as sanding out all the rust. If you don't clean it well with wax/grease remover (I then clean it with acetone as an added step) you run the risk of pushing stuff into the surface with the sandpaper and then the paint will fail. I have seen many body shop jobs fail all too quickly as well.

So far, the only reason my paint jobs have failed is because I beat them up.