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'13 JKU Rust: various underside areas

43K views 234 replies 97 participants last post by  peanut09 
#1 ·
My '13 JKU was delivered to my dealer in January, I have owned it for a week. I crawled under the front and noticed what appears to be excessive rust across a variety of areas. I may swing by my dealer do see if others have this but for a $36k vehicle this is a bit much for a vehicle with 200mi on it.

Inside the spring perch is covered:





 
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#4 ·
I have to agree with what the others have said, that is not normal. I picked up my 2013 late summer and the only place I have any rust at all is a little on the driveshaft.
 
#5 ·
I doubt my dealer will do anything about it but I will show the pictures.

I have some rust converter from a previous project car that I will apply since the weather is sunny and in the 50s today. Don't want it fester and get any worse.
 
#6 ·
That is not normal and if I had to guess I would say possible flood damage. Maybe delivered from a dealer lot in NY? There was a big story a few weeks ago saying that vehicles damaged in Sandy would start showing up on lots soon. If it were meI'd have that Jeep gone over for other signs.
 
#7 ·
Build date on the door jam is listed as Jan '13. The window sticker has the 'ship to' dealership as my dealer here in VA. Sandy was in October. Covering Volvo products as an auto journalist, they destroyed all of their cars (+/- 1500) sitting in the NJ port, even those with water barely touching the undercarriage. It was not worth the risk of salt water damage to the wheels, brakes or any other part of the vehicle.

Not sure if my JKU went from the Toledo, OH plant straight to my VA dealer or went to a centralized depot for distribution.
 
#8 ·
Wow those pictures look like the underside of my jeep. I just picked mine up this past Thursday got about 150 miles. I'm going by the dealer tomorrow. I'm not to happy about it spend a lot of money on a new jeep and its covered in rust on the undercarriage. Not sure if they will do anything about it.
 
#9 ·
The rear doesn't look any better. I looked at other Wrangler's on my dealer's lot this afternoon, and several looked rust free and the parts were black. Two of them had minor rust but nothing to the extent of mine. Hopefully discussions go well with the service department in the morning.



 
#13 ·
True, it is surface rust but if some Wranglers have it and others do not, there could be a quality control issue prior to assembly that could be brought to light if numerous owners identify the defect.
 
#14 ·
I have the same problem with my 2013 jku. Not quite as bad but still bad for how long I've owned it (3months).
But it has quite a bit to do with the climate your in. I'm in Nevada and it seems like nothing last out here with the desert. If you contact your dealer please pm and let me know what they say.. Might be worth a giggle lol
 
#16 ·
I have the same problem with my 2013 jku. Not quite as bad but still bad for how long I've owned it (3months).
But it has quite a bit to do with the climate your in. I'm in Nevada and it seems like nothing last out here with the desert. If you contact your dealer please pm and let me know what they say.. Might be worth a giggle lol
Seems to me, Nevada would be great for a car! No humidity.
 
#33 ·
Wrong plant, that was JNAP (Jefferson North Assembly Plant) in Detroit. They build the Grand Cherokee. Michigan UAW will do anything to convince your employer to keep you.

Supplier Park is where the Wrangler is built in Toledo Ohio. The UAW representation in Ohio would agree on you being fired on the spot with no severance if you were found to be drinking or doing any controlled substance that wasn't a valid prescription and then returning to work.

And to the OP, that is way, way too much rust for a new vehicle to have, surface rust on a mechanical component or not. I'd open a STAR case with Chrysler ASAP and have them track the assembly process down, that is a manufacturing defect if I've ever seen one.
 
#19 ·
it almost seems like the undercarriage was exposed to something corrosive before you took delivery. the parts underneath weren't all painted at once, so it's unlikely that it's a paint issue.

Here are some pics of my 2012 w/15.5k miles in the pacific northwest for comparison:













i wouldn't be very happy with the OP's rust, even though it is just on the surface....
 
#20 ·
My '03 didn't look that bad when I sold it after 10 years. I would be raisin' hell with the dealer if my new Jeep looked like that. My new one looks just like I would expect a new vehicle to look. Everything is shiny and black. But...it also looks like you have a good-sized dent in the skid plate. I'd have some hard questions for the dealer. Did you buy it off the lot? Looks like someone may have taken it for a hard test drive.
 
#22 ·
I purchased a new JKUNLIMITED over the weekend and crawled under it as soon as I got it in the garage. The pictures you posted are identical to what my parts/pieces look like.
I've subscribed to this thread. Please let us know what your dealer says.
I'll post any info I can get from mine.
Thanks!
 
#26 ·
Here are a couple of quick photos of mine for comparison. I took them a few minutes ago. This is the way a new vehicle should look. I took delivery on Halloween and have 1200 miles on it...though it has not been driven since Dec. 8. Yours looks like it has been sitting in a saltwater bath for a few months. Is there a way to track the route it took in shipping? It looks like you have substantial rust clear up on the tub.
 

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#27 ·
Service Manager -"common", "it's surface rust and will not affect operation of the vehicle", "the parts are sitting outside until assembly and can get surface rust from the elements. ". He is going to have the sales manager call me.

I paid for a new vehicle, I simply want one without rust, that is not asking for too much. We were really excited about owning our first Jeep and this has really put a damper on the experience
 
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