[farhadtarapore]

Hello all,
Need some advice here. The front doors of my XUV 500 (2015) have rusted considerably.






The service center says they will replace the doors (costs about Rs. 26,000 per door!)

What can be done to rectify this? I am quite appalled by the paint quality used here. Does this have any impact on the car's safety?

Thanks in advance.

[vigsom]

The corrosion is likely due to

a) accumulation of water at the doors bottom due to clogged drain slits
b) poor metal treatment before painting
c) vehicle used in a corrosive environment (this, however, would impact all metal body parts and not just the two front doors)

Since your car is already six, I'd suggest you look for good doors in the same shade in the used car parts market. Remove all parts from the existing doors and put them into the replacement doors. I'm not sure about the XUV 500 but replacement doors at the service center would generally be without the seal at the metal joint where the sheet is wrapped around the frame. Absence of this seal might raise a flag (eg. car being involved in an accident) during the car's resale.

[anjan_c2007]

Quite appalling to note in a comparatively new generation, not so old SUV.

Are you located very near any locality very close to the sea? Even within Mumbai or any other coastal town or city the metal is more prone to rusting nearer the sea. I have had first hand experiences with my brother's vehicles.

The metal and its treatment, the primer and the paintwork are much superior to the old generation cars that would start rusting from the fifth year onwards in such locations. The door glass and the door metal gap would have felt material in between, that was in the 1980's and 90's replaced with rubber. And water trickling down from here below to the inner door bottom would be starting the rust process.

These days they use a very improved quality of rubber to very well seal the door glass- door metal gap for effective air conditioning and to prevent water seepage . Moreover Mahindra uses it own company Mahindra Ugine's steel (cold rolled sheets) for its range.

Your case shows total negligence by the automaker as one or more batches would be prone to such rusting.

As regards door replacement, that's a costly option for a six year old SUV now depreciating in value.

I would suggest you to get in touch with a good vintage car restorer who can do a cosmetic surgery of the rusted portions, weld new metal, treat it and then apply paint matching the original. Vintage cars as rust buckets are routinely restored and with the fit and finish, these become fit as beauty pageants.

As a tailpiece, I would like to relate an incident from the 1990's. A friend's brand new M800 was parked in the open within his flat compound. Some burglars most likely with a dwarf, fat crowbar (used for housebreaking) tried to open the front passenger door. The crowbar made ugly dents defacing the door, but luckily the door did not open. These outlaws were professional house breakers, not car breakers. Else, every owner knows the strange ways used by thieves to gain entry inside a M800. Disturbed to the core, I comforted my friend. We went to the ASC. The insurance guy was available and with the SA they decided to help out. They said that it is an accident case that we are recording for insurance claims. Though the door could be repaired, the ASC replaced the door with a new one and insurance was claimed. The customer and ASC gained.

New door/s come by sometimes even when someone doesn't ask for one.

[VWAllstar]

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[abhishek46]

When I first saw the photographs you have posted, the first question that came to my mind was your location.
My guess was somewhere coastal, and co-incidentally, I was correct.

Coming to the cure for this problem, this can be fixed by visiting a competent FNG, by scrubbing off the rust and getting the panels re-painted.

[Indian2003]

Originally Posted by farhadtarapore

What can be done to rectify this? I am quite appalled by the paint quality used here. Does this have any impact on the car's safety?

I see that the drainage slots are not blocked and water has been running out.

This has no impact on safety so there is no hurry to replace them now. When you decide to replace the doors, treat the insides with lanolium or other oil that clings to the surface. Gear oil was used about 4 decades ago. I use lanolium for my car.

If you decide to do a treatment, do it after the respray of the red colour. While at it do the trunk at the same time.

Check the condition of the rubber seals by the window glass and dont reuse if brittle.

[Bibendum90949]

Incidentally, I was just searching for any existing thread that highlighted the same issue. My friend was seeking advice as his uncle's XUV 500 is also facing the rusting issue. The car is 3 years old and under warranty, has a closed parking and is not being used in a coastal place. Rusting is on all four doors. Owner is taking the car to the service centre shortly. Shall update on the progress. Few pictures.

[Raghu M]

Pretty common problem on the coastal areas. Just a few drops of salt water and it could wreak havoc to cars and other products. I think the OP might have driven around sea water (without knowledge mostly) and did not get it thoroughly cleaned after that. My friend's Nano almost lost the entire underbody after a fun drive near SuryaLanka. It just took 4 months to eat up pretty badly.

[Sran]

One thing I have noticed over the years that puke/vomit on car's metal surface rusts it very fast, if not thoroughly washed with shampoo. The lower inner parts of doors and door sills are most prone to this bodily fluid as sometimes in some spirited stupor one opens the door, finish the deed while sitting on seat and later does not wash the area properly with shampoo.

If you are not willing to change the door, talk to a local denting shop. They will cut out the affected part and weld a new one as most affected parts are the inner side of the door.Then have it painted. There will hardly be any aesthetic difference. If the denter suggests cutting both inner and outer portion then get a new door. Don't think you will get a good door from any second hand yards and then painting a whole door to match the colour will be a costly affair so getting a new door from ASS will be better.

[Moto_Bear]

Hey hi everyone. So for this issue, I can be of help as I've had 8 years of experience owning and operating my XUV5OO. And I've had to have my two doors changed because of the rust and one door on my Uncle's XUV.

To be honest, there are two solutions to this and the solutions are highly dependent on how much and how deep the rust has eaten the metal. In my case the rust was near the hinges that attach the door to the body and hence, both had to be changed. My Uncle had the same issue on one of his door but the other door had rust only on the bottom edge, so we got it sanded till the rust was no more(it was only on the surface layer), applied the body filler wherever needed and got it painted. Worked fine till the time he sold it.

Originally Posted by Bibendum90949

My friend was seeking advice as his uncle's XUV 500 is also facing the rusting issue. The car is 3 years old and under warranty, has a closed parking and is not being used in a coastal place. Rusting is on all four doors. Owner is taking the car to the service centre shortly.

Yeah, this case is a door change one sadly. It's pretty much similar to mine. You can see in the pictures attached that the rust has eaten a lot of the metal. A proper door change should be the way to go as the rust is very close to the door hinge and a lot of door body metal has been corroded.

On another note, owning a 2011 model myself, it's very peculiar to see a 3 year old car with such a condition which isn't being driven in a coastal area. Mine developed Rust after a lot of beach driving in Sea water and then forgetting to get the underbody and door panels washed thoroughly. My Friends who have bought the XUV post the 2018 facelift haven't complained of any rusting issue yet.

Originally Posted by farhadtarapore

What can be done to rectify this? I am quite appalled by the paint quality used here. Does this have any impact on the car's safety?

Thanks in advance.

Hey farhadtarapore. Your case is much milder on the surface and what I would suggest is that in any case door change is better if you want a complete peace of mind because the rust seems to be very close to the rubber lining. Alternatively, since from the attached pictures, it appears to be surface level only(hasn't corroded deep yet) and is far away from the mechanical part of the door, you could just have the metal part sanded down and cleaned properly, welding if needed, apply body filler and get it repainted. Shouldn't be more than 15k for everything. I don't recommend it as such because it really depends on the guy who's doing it to get rid of all the corrosion and then treat it so it doesn't spread.

As far as safety goes, no it won't affect the safety till it reaches the mechanical hinge of the door or the rust has eaten the metal too deep. Then it'll be real hazard. In any case, try to get it fixed asap. My suggestion - Get the door changed. It's much reassuring

[farhadtarapore]

Originally Posted by Moto_Bear

Hey farhadtarapore. Your case is much milder and what I would suggest is that in any case door change is better if you want a complete peace of mind. Alternatively, since from the attached pictures, it appears to be surface level only(hasn't corroded deep yet) and is far away from the mechanical part of the door, you could just have the metal part sanded down and cleaned properly, apply body filler if needed and get it repainted. Shouldn't be more than 15k for everything. I don't recommend it as such because it really depends on the guy who's doing it to get rid of all the corrosion and then treat it so it doesn't spread.

As far as safety goes, no it won't affect the safety till it reaches the mechanical hinge of the door. Then it'll be real hazard. In any case, try to get it fixed asap.

Thanks @Moto_Bear and all for your replies. I'll take it to a FNG and ask him what he thinks - if the quote is too high or equal to the door change, I'll just get it changed at the auth service center. Will update this thread with the results

[Lowflyer23]

To all those doubting coastal location or usage of hard water, the thing is that this issue has been very common in XUV500 and Scorpio. It's like that of Hyundai brake failures, everybody knows but few talk about it. I have seen this particular area (door sill bottom) rusting badly even in 3-4 year old Scorpios and XUVs (not the 300).

Being very frank and clear here, it's just poor manufacturing by Mahindra, I have seen cases where people have had to change whole Scorpio body shell due to heavy rusting. These type of things are the only reason which still hold me back from going for an Indian brand. Heck, even my 22 year old Maruti 800 doesn't have this much of rust .

Also, for all those who will be trying to defend Mahindra here somehow, please understand that water being left after wash or during rains between the door sills and closed door is very common. Many a times, regular car owners don't even dry it up properly, that doesn't mean all cars have rusting in the door sills. This much rusting just shows Mahindra's galvanisation process (or anti rust) whatever it is called.



Lowflyer

[sanjayrozario]

Originally Posted by farhadtarapore

Hello all,
Need some advice here. The front doors of my XUV 500 (2015) have rusted considerably.
Attachment 2212064

Attachment 2212065

Attachment 2212066

The service center says they will replace the doors (costs about Rs. 26,000 per door!)

What can be done to rectify this? I am quite appalled by the paint quality used here. Does this have any impact on the car's safety?

Thanks in advance.

I had the same issue with my 2015 XUV500. My FNG told me to sell it off as rusting is like cancer. He further suggested that one shouldn't wash his car every day especially not the Tatas & Mahindras if you're staying close to the sea (Mumbai). I tend to agree as my previously owned cars (Maruti, Hyundai, Ford) never had rusting issues even though they were washed every day. My present vehicle, Tata Harrier, is washed only twice a week.

[Arvind319]

Originally Posted by Bibendum90949

The car is 3 years old and under warranty, has a closed parking and is not being used in a coastal place. Rusting is on all four doors. Owner is taking the car to the service centre shortly. Shall update on the progress. Few pictures.

I had slight rusting on my 2017 XUV5OO after I moved back to home town which is on west coast,, due to WFH. I highlighted it to my SA here. Though it was on extended warranty, Mahindra replaced 3 doors free of cost. Now I feel if they could have scrubbed out the rust and done some anti rust treatment and painted the Original doors, it would have been better. Reason for that is, the new doors don't have the original alignment which results in slight road noise entering the cabin. Also the feel when you shut the door is not the same as company fitted ones. We have Bolero which also had sever rusting issue. It is the metal which Mahindra used previously. Recent vehicles have better durability especially the Morazzo & XUV300.
Ask the SA to raise a case for rusting with Mahindra, they should replace these doors.

[kovilkalai]

I owned a 2014 XUV500 which I sold a couple of years back. While I generally had a good ownership experience with the XUV500, rust in doors was a big problem. All the doors had to replaced under warranty because of rust. I don't live near the sea. However, I did use hard water to wash the car. That said, there are several other cars in my community and none of them rusted as quickly as the Mahindra.