Chloride Rust Near South Florida but not NZ Beaches

If both cars were built in the same factory at about the same time then their "rustabilty" in different climates would be interesting. As it is, assuming they are different makes, built in different places then what can we say? Your USA car (domestic or foreign?) may have less rust proofing than your daughters? Having lived years in Florida I can certainly vouch for things rusting there - high humidity and higher average temperatures than Auckland, both of which will exacerbate corrosion.

There's higher salinity in Fla, but rainfall and wind currents could also come into play.

http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/aquarius/multimedia/gallery/pia14786.html#.VHDL78nKTjY

Even though you don't drive either car near the salt spray, there is still salt in the air from the surf. You can smell the distinctive odor of the ocean pretty far away. You say the condo is on the beach, and the house in NZ is on a bay. I wonder if there is more surf on the beach in Florida, and therefore more salt in the air.

Also, if salt from the air is deposited on surfaces, the deposited salt will also absorb water vapor. Perhaps the higher humidity in FL allows more water to be absorbed. (Not sure whether the water vapor would be ADsorbed or ABsorbed in this case.)

We lived in the Florida Keys for a time and it had the worst rust on cars of anywhere.

The elevation is only a few (if that) feet above sea level and when it rains and the storm drains back up...you drive through salt water!

Everything south of the equator goes backwards....

This girl is around 60....

...months.

How do the prevailing winds compare? If the Fl one is off the sea and the other off the land...

The lower portion of FL is surrounded by water...doesn't much matter which way the wind blows!

Thank you for that information. It does still have width such that wind spray from the waves would fall more heavily on the windward side.

I think we have a higher salinity here in FL, and higher air pollution which contributes to acid rain, plus possibly less rainfall.....

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salinity

http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/GlobalMaps/view.php?d1=MYD28M&d2=MYDAL2_M_SKY_WV

The the salt content of the surrounding waters in the area has a big influence on how fast the metal parts of any car rusts...

Florida is located in the northern hemisphere closer to the equator in the Atlantic ocean side and far from from the Artic waters...

New Zealand although located on the Pacific's southern hemisphere on the other hand is also farther south from the equator, thus making it closer to the Antartic waters.

I believe that both waters from the Antartics and Artics contains less salt than the equatorial waters..

New Zealand, being closer to the Antartics where waters are less saltier, it obvious that due to its geographic location, the surrounding waters are less saltier than those off the Florida's. Which may be the reason why rusting is less problematic in New Zealand than in Florida.....

My stuff rusted worse in Buffalo NY than anywhere else i've lived darn roadsalt!!

Prevailing winds! It is the salt that expedites the rust. Paint and wax both help, but beach combers are always washing their cars with fresh water.

A good undercoat is important if you are going to live near the salt water. But even a good undercoat is not enough because condensation, within a few miles of the salt water, tends to be salty. Products for the marine environment are frequently sealed to the point of being gas tight.

Probably a slight difference in smog level. OR maybe she got a car with better primer coating than yours.