Tips for Spotting Salt Damage to Your Car

Snowy, icy roads are dangerous in the winter. Therefore, many areas use snowplows to throw down sodium chloride and salt brine to melt through the ice and snow. These mixtures have a higher temperature and freezing point than the snow, which helps melt ice and make the roads less slippery. While road salts and brines are inexpensive and effective, they can also cause damage to your vehicle due to their corrosive nature. Here are some tips for spotting salt damage to your car to keep your vehicle in good condition throughout the winter.

Examine the Key Areas

The easiest way to start checking for signs of salt damage is to examine the common problem areas. You want to inspect your car’s trunk, roof, and hood, especially if you park on the street where most trucks dispense the salt. These flat surfaces can hold onto the salt or brine and face the sun, so they’re high-profile targets for damage.

You should also look at the area beneath the hood of your car, the undercarriage, and your wheel wells. Tire areas especially tend to take lots of damage since your tires can splatter the salt and brine onto their insides.

Look at the Paint

A helpful tip for spotting salt damage to your car is to pay attention to the paint. Salt may cause peculiar patterns of fading or chipping that you may need to fix. A mixture of the humidity in the brine coming into contact with your paint may also result in unsightly bubbles. Any unusual damage to the paint is a common sign of salt damage in the winter.

Check for Corrosion

Apart from the paint chipping off, you may also notice signs of corrosion. If you see holes forming in the metal structure of your car or any rust building up, we recommend you bring your vehicle to a body shop. They can help remove symptoms of salt damage before it’s too late.

River North Collision Repair is your auto paint shop in Chicago for bodywork, paint, and salt damage. Illinois gets quite a bit of snow, and we want you and your vehicle to make it through the winter with as little damage as possible. To learn more about our services, stop by one of our garages. Or feel free to contact us anytime.