Bent Open Pinch Weld from Jacking?

[Freddy Turbina]

Got my BB inspected late last week, and taking a look under the door today I noticed some paint flaking from the pinch weld where the jack point is. The paint was hanging on by a thread and fell off with a touch, so that also leads me to believe it is very recent.

A few weeks ago I had been washing the car and noticed a bunch of surface rust in the area (another topic……..) so I’m sure it is something I would have noticed prior. Upon further inspection, it looks like the pinch weld is bent open a little.

Very sorry for the blurry photos, I apparently cannot take pictures this close to the ground…

I have only ever had this car serviced at Ford dealerships, and have never had to jack it up myself. The only place that might have had the car lifted up would be the shop I went to in order to get the car inspected. Seems like the jack/lift wasn’t placed right and grabbed only one half of the seam?

Not sure if this is common, or if this is even an issue or not. It looks like the weld dot kept the two sides together, but I just have concerns about rust compromising the joint further (New England, and within sniffing distance of the ocean 24/7).

Figure I would reach out for advice on the damage or if there’s anything I should ask the shop about.

 

[Mark S.]

It certainly looks like damage from jacking. It's not likely your dealership will take responsibility for it, but it probably wouldn't hurt to point it out the next time you're there. Tell them you'll be looking for any further damage.

If your dealer won't accept responsibility then you'll want to protect that area to prevent rust. Get in there with a wire brush and get as much of the rust off as you can, then apply a rust converter. There are several different options:

https://www.forbes.com/wheels/accessories/best-rust-converters-and-inhibitors/

I would probably just go with the Rust-Oleum product just because it will be easiest to apply.

After you've applied a rust converter you can get touch-up paint the same color as your vehicle if desired. I would probably just leave it as is if it were mine.

 

[Freddy Turbina]

It certainly looks like damage from jacking. It's not likely your dealership will take responsibility for it, but it probably wouldn't hurt to point it out the next time you're there. Tell them you'll be looking for any further damage.

If your dealer won't accept responsibility then you'll want to protect that area to prevent rust. Get in there with a wire brush and get as much of the rust off as you can, then apply a rust converter. There are several different options:

https://www.forbes.com/wheels/accessories/best-rust-converters-and-inhibitors/

I would probably just go with the Rust-Oleum product just because it will be easiest to apply.

After you've applied a rust converter you can get touch-up paint the same color as your vehicle if desired. I would probably just leave it as is if it were mine.

Great, thank you for your response! I’ll add it to the list of places I want to add rust converter/more paint/rust proofing.

I figure it isn’t worth getting worked up over if it isn’t “real” damage (if it had popped a weld that’d be another story).

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