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w9det · 01-25-2005, 08:29 AM

Has anyone had any trouble with the exterior peeling, discoloring etc.?
My 2001 Safari is like new and has been blasted by 55mph winds in Roswell and sand stones etc. on the Dempster Highway going to Univik in the Northwest Territory. I have Wolmanized it each summer and it shines up very nice. As you know that has been an Airstream problem for some time. The newest model I have seen with the problem was a 1999 Safari 25 ft. with the peeling etc. around the WBCCI numbers this summer.
So far so good. Plan on Wolmanizing in the summer again.

dmac · 01-25-2005, 09:32 AM

Yes - look at my old posts. In summary - in December of 2003 I bought a new 2003 from a dealer in Florida. It may have been exposed to salt air when on the dealer lot in Florida. I towed it to northern Wisconsin. During this tow it received a dash of road salt. I rinsed it off the best I could (being below freezing at the time). Within 90 days the clear had filliform corrosion and peeling at the front seams and rivits. I stored it outdoors in Wisconsin for about 9 months. I washed and Walbernized the trailer several times. Since then I have stored it indoors. Airstream replaced the corroded skins under warranty in April 2004.

Going forward I will wash and Walbernize 1 - 2 times per year, continue to store it indoors, and avoid salt!

w9det · 01-26-2005, 07:08 AM

You must of had some acid / salt rain or something on your 2003. You are the only one who has had a problem that I have seen with a 2001 or newer.
But it is prabably our destiny.
We like to go down and dry camp on Padre Island on the National Sea Shore. 10 days with the salt spray and everything with iron and my window awning brackets all started to pit, rust etc. etc.. We met some Airstreamers down in South Padre at the County Park last winter who stay there for a couple months in the winter. Absolutely destroys the trailer. After 3 weeks on the beach we headed for the desert. I soaked all the iron parts and brackets with constant wd40 and this summer will brush paint my tongue and feet.

**jcanavera** · 01-26-2005, 08:34 AM

I really haven't heard of any peeling either until your post. I only had my 2001 for 3 years so it was still in its early life cycle. I hit a brief patch of salted pavement when I took my 2004 up to the dealers for some warranty work. Although the splash was minor I want to get it washed off ASAP.

Unfortunately the weather is due to change this weekend, so even though it is ready to bring home, I will probably leave it there until I'm assured of a dry tow home.

Jack

dmac · 01-26-2005, 09:53 AM

Based on my experience I believe that the Alcoa clear coating is disturbed:

-At the edges of the aluminum where it was cut by Airstream
-At the rivits where the holes were drilled/punched by Airstream, and the riviting operation smashes the clear
-Wherever a stone chip, sandblasting, or heavy duty bug splat occurs - making a small break in the film

Exposure to salt and water results in filiform corrosion starting at each disturbance. The corrosion then worm-tracks it's way across the skin surface. Once it starts it cannot be stopped, except by stripping the panel and recoating, or replacing the panel. I had my trailer indoors, clean, with multiple coats of Walbernize... and it still got worse, until the panels were replaced.

Pahaska · 01-26-2005, 04:07 PM

My very early 2003 (built spring 2002) International had a small spot on the curved front corner segment that started out less than the size of a dime. Over the year and a half I had the trailer, it slowly spread; the edges would lift slightly and when I waxed the trailer, some finish would fall away. By the time I traded the unit, it was the size of a golf ball and growing. I hated to have the segment replaced, so I was going to cover it with a decal since the location was good for that concealment. The second owners had the segment replaced under warrenty.

There was no indication that anything had ever struck the spot. It looked very much as if a bit of oil or other foreign material was on the surface when the finish was applied.

There was another thread on the forum much earlier where a side panel had a large peeling area. My guess is that Alcoa had some problems with surface contamination early on.

No problems with my present (late 2003) Classic or with any other newer unit that I have seen..