Eddie Bauer in Production and Salt on Roads

[Sun Rambler]

I guess I wasn't clear. I have asked the dealer that I purchased from in Eugene, Oregon not to transport it at all and let me come to the factory and put it in storage in the area until the roads are clear. The problem is that Airstream won't let customers take possession at the factory. That is why my dealer has supposedly called Arbogast RV that is not far from the factory to do the transfer to me. Supposedly there is another option in the area but the salesman I have been working with has left me with just hints that something is in the works and no hard information. We are in limbo here thinking we may have to make the trip to Jackson Center on the spur of the moment to take possession of the trailer and put it in storage and then go back and get it when the roads are better. This will cost us a lot of extra money but seems to be the only option. The other option is to back out of the deal and hope they give us our $5000 deposit back without a lawsuit. We really don't want a trailer that starts out with this kind of pending damage and have to sue later or put in a claim on our insurance. There really are no good options. The best one that we can see is to store it there and wait until the roads are better. I feel badly for all of the unsuspecting buyers of these trailers being manufactured this winter (or really any winter) when they get to the dealers lots as they are all potential time bombs for severe filiform. I hope I explained the problem more clearly. Thanks for your reply and helping me to clarify this issue.

[Frank's Trailer Works]

you do realize there are literally thousands of Airstreams being towed down the road at this very second. I have to wonder how mine lasted for the past 52 years after reading this thread.

[dkottum]

I hate the effects of salted roads on vehicles, but concede there are few options. Every car I owned in Minnesota for a long period looked like crap from rust long before the mechanicals were worn (except for the Tacoma that looked like the frame was about to break in two).

[acstokes]

you do realize there are literally thousands of Airstreams being towed down the road at this very second. I have to wonder how mine lasted for the past 52 years after reading this thread.

I guess you weren't one of those thousands.

[streaminwild]

I drove from Washington to Key Largo to visited my sister last week. The weather was a hot 90 degrees so I drove back for cooler weather the following weekend. I saw only one Airstream while driving to and back. Like classic cars we tend to avoid salted roads. The heat was an excuse to leave, her and I are to much alike... sorry sis.

[Pitou49]

Just a question : are they build to go outside ?
I reed in an other post we should keep them inside with out rain snow or chemical rain !!
I bougth an AS to use it almost all year here in Quebec with snow and salt on the road. Nobody told that an AS is a piece of collection and don't use it !!!

I hope it is not so bad, I will use mine and I'll see what append

[AtomicNo13]

I might suggest if you are this worried, an application of LPS rust inhibitor. In aerosol can form it is easy to apply and will last for a decade or more. It is a yellow wax based product which will creep into the nooks via capillary action. It could even be applied to every seam inch and rivet.
Take advice from a British car nut... this is your best option after not trailering at this time of the year.
LPS or Waxoil are 2 readily available products. Grainger carries all this stuff.

[Frank's Trailer Works]

Originally Posted by acstokes

I guess you weren't one of those thousands.

I wish I was. Instead I was rebuilding one of those not on the road today. I did however tow mine 2800 miles last month.

[Castaway]

If you had bought the same unit off of your dealers lot in June instead of ordering it would you have given any thought to how the roads where when it was delivered? Would you have asked him when it was delivered and what the road conditions were from Ohio to Oregon during its travels? With over 66% of all Airstreams ever made still on the road any issues with salt exposure would have been discussed on this forum many times. Your concerns kinda sound like buyers remorse to me, get it,use it and ENJOY IT.

Gary

[LHall]

Originally Posted by switz

My unit arrived in Mesa, Arizona 27 January after leaving the factory on 24 January. It looked more like Moby Dick the white whale than a silver Airstream. The dealer has been washing the unit nearly every day since it's arrival and has been spritzing areas to get the road salt out of all the nooks and crannies and seams. This will not be a single wash job. Failure to get ALL the salts off the trailer can start filliform corrosion on the raw cut edges of the metal at seams and other openings.

The unit must be delivered to the selling dealership as they are expected to do the arrival inspection and pre-delivery inspection with walk through to the retail customer. The trailer is not the customers property until the Manufacturer's Certificate of Origin has been turned into a title (and with plates in Indiana). Since the factory's customers are only dealers, they have to get the trailer and then the customer gets it.

You would have to get some real handshaking going between the two dealers in different states and the factory to get the routing changed. The freight is not an issue as each dealer pays the same amount whether they are in Ohio or Washington state as that levels the cost to the dealers so the close guys do not get a cheaper freight advantage in pricing the trailers.

The goal when I left the factory on 15 January is 53 units per week and there is very finite storage at the factory. The dealer's line of credit is charged the day the trailer is "released from production" which will be several days before the towing company (RV Express does a lot of the towing) gets access to start the drive. The smaller units are targeted to be built in only five working days.

There is no standing around chatting on the shop floor. It is a blur of constant motion.

My trailer was next to yours at the dealership when they were washing it. They did a nice job in splattering some of it on my trailer... it washed off, but your rig must have been really covered.

[TinTin]

Originally Posted by AtomicNo13

I might suggest if you are this worried, an application of LPS rust inhibitor. In aerosol can form it is easy to apply and will last for a decade or more. It is a yellow wax based product which will creep into the nooks via capillary action. It could even be applied to every seam inch and rivet.
Take advice from a British car nut... this is your best option after not trailering at this time of the year.
LPS or Waxoil are 2 readily available products. Grainger carries all this stuff.

Have you (or other Airstreamers) used the LPS product on their trailers with success? No problem on aluminum re discolouration etc?

[AtomicNo13]

LPS originally marketed these products to the aviation industry as fuselage and superstructure are aluminum.
Yes I have used on all my Airstreams and aluminum bodied autos. This is my go to chemical company. They make something for every situation.

[dkottum]

LPS sounds like a good product for the underbody steel.

You surely wouldn't want a heavy application of this on the shell. If you temporally used it to protect the shell seams and fittings, how would you get if off? Or would you carefully apply it to edges, rivets, fittings with something like a Q-Tip, maybe wiping the excess with a rag?

I've used Boeshield T-9 that way, which leaves a paraffin wax coating and is a good product; it's really a mess if you just spray it on and let it dry.

[AtomicNo13]

All depends on how serious you are about protection. Anything can be wiped off after the threat has passed!
Yes I would apply to all rivet heads gaps holes untreated edges and the like..
Underneath... goop it up!

It is easily removed with paint thinner or the equivalent.

[TinTin]

Doug, I was thinking the same thing re: the underbelly. I think I'll drop by Acklands/Grainger today and look at the LPS.

We pick up our FC on March 28 in Virginia, I'm hoping that spring and a few good rains will come before then, but so far, there's no end in sight.

I can't remember a winter this long! Perhaps when we were kids , but that's been a while!

[AtomicNo13]

I lay out a big plastic sheet then drive the vehicle over it.
In a good spray bottle, I douse the undercarriage just to the point of dripping. Be careful to not clog up naturally engineered drain/ weep holes.
For rivets and belt trim I spray a light film and allow some time to penetrate. In a day or so you'll see this stuff creep into every little nook and cranny. With yearly attention you'll have perfect attention. It is a little messy but you'll figure it out! Been using this method for 30 years and have no regrets. A gallon does both my 34 footers twice a year and touchup on my tow vehicle.
FWIW I have never had any corrosion on alum alloys or steel.
I have some pretty exotic bodies....

[AtomicNo13]

Not sure of your plans. There is a Grainger a little south of JC just off I 75 in Troy Ohio.
You can always get a gallon of WD40 and a spray bottle. You can do the job correctly after a wash at home!
If it was me.... I'd ask for permission to do this during a sunny day at the Terraport. Remember this really needs a day to creep around.

[AtomicNo13]

This is the stuff I use. It has changed names over the years but remains my standard goo...
http://www.lpslabs.com/product-details/612

[TinTin]

I am planning to stop in JC en route home to get the FC checked out (27 point inspection, leak test, bearings). Regarding the salt protection, we'll just play it by ear, hoping we'll have dry conditions for the drive. If not, I'll be washing it each evening.

Thanks Atomic!

[AtomicNo13]

Well....
Ohio uses lots of salt which then turns to dust. Keep your trailer dry until you get it home.
Please for the love of Velveeta don't use a pressure washer.. that only drives the enemy in deeper