Corrosion Prevention And Appearance Care; Protecting Your Toyota From Corrosion - Toyota Celica 1997 Owner's Manual

Part 5
CORROSION
PREVENTION
AND APPEARANCE
CARE
D
Protecting your Toyota from
corrosion
D
Washing and waxing your
Toyota
D
Cleaning the interior
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Protecting your Toyota from
corrosion
Toyota, through its diligent research, de-
sign and use of the most advanced
technology available, has done its part to
help prevent corrosion and has provided
you with the finest quality vehicle
construction. Now, it is up to you. Proper
care of your Toyota can help ensure long-
term corrosion prevention.
The most common causes of corro-
sion to your vehicle are:
D The accumulation of road salt, dirt and
moisture in hard-to-reach areas un-
der the vehicle.
D Chipping of paint, or undercoating
caused by minor accidents or by
stones and gravel.
Care is especially important if you live
in particular areas or operate your ve-
hicle under certain environmental
conditions:
D Road salt or dust control chemicals will
accelerate corrosion, as will the pres-
ence of salt in the air near the sea-
coast or in areas of industrial pollution.
D High humidity accelerates corrosion
especially when temperatures range
just above the freezing point.
D Wetness or dampness to certain parts
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of time, may cause corrosion even
though other parts of the vehicle may
be dry.
D High temperatures will cause corrosion
to those components of the vehicle
which are prevented from quick-drying
due to lack of proper ventilation.
The above signifies the necessity to keep
your vehicle, particularly the underside,
as clean as possible and to repair any
damage to paint or protective coatings as
soon as possible.
To help prevent corrosion on your To-
yota, follow these guidelines:
Wash your vehicle frequently: It is, of
course, necessary to keep your vehicle
clean by regular washing, but to prevent
corrosion, the following points should be
observed:
D If you drive on salted roads in the winter
or if you live near the ocean, you should
hose off the undercarriage at least
once a month to minimize corrosion.
D High pressure water or steam is effec-
tive for cleaning the vehicle's under-
side and wheel housings. Pay particu-
lar attention to these areas as it is
difficult to see all the mud and dirt. It will
do more harm than good to simply wet
the mud and debris without removing
them. The lower edge of doors, rocker
panels and frame members have drain
holes which should not be allowed to
clog with dirt as trapped water in these
areas can cause corrosion.
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