Ok, it's actually not my truck, it's my fathers but he's not really .... internet savy.

The question is about the front suspension on a 2005 3500 diesel 4x2 with DRW. All of the suspension components seem painted except for the aluminum ones, and the hub assembly on each side. The truck has 500 miles on it and has never been driven in the salt, and has seen rain once. Here are some pictures to let you know what I am talking about.









So we were just wondering if it is supposed to be unpainted, or if it was supposed to be painted. It seems that if this much rust has formed after driving in the rain once, it might be a good idea for dodge to paint it.

-Andrew

 

ive never seen one that bad, you might want to have them look at it, ive seen it like that mabie rite after a rain and you havent driven the truck, but usually it goes away

 

It may suppose to be like that. Some steel is designed to rust and it acts like a coating that protects the metal. You will see this all the time on the west coast. Its used on the quard rails. Because of all the sea air, the metal will always rust so they use this metal. Some people think that its just cal trans not taking care of it like normal, but that was actually well thought out. It may not look good but it works. I would still have the dealer take a look.

 

Does anyone have this model truck, I would appreciate it if you could take a look and your's and see if it is the same.

-Andrew

 

interesting. . .my 2500 has the same front end as his 3500. at some point in time today when I get a break at work I'll look mine over and let you know what it looks like.

but that does seem a bit odd

edit. . .[:@] just noticed hit isnt a 4x4, but I'll look at mine anyway for ya

 

just looked under my truck and none of my parts look anything like that. they are all black. so I would say something aint right and I would have the dealer take a gander

 

Just more cheap &*$% DC. My Dakota I had some years ago was the same. I switched to Ford for a couple trucks and everything underneath them was painted or coated with something. How much money can this save... really? Even if it doesn't hurt function it looks crappy and can't be good for image.

When I ordered my new Ram, I looked under the trucks on the lot and saw a variety of unpainted steel parts. I guess not much has changed and first thing when my new truck shows up I'll be spending some time with the spray gun.

All the best.

 

I've got an 04.5 2wd with 21k miles on it. I also has some rust in the same areas. Not as much as yours, but the same parts were left unpainted. My drive shaft is also unpainted...is this the same for you? I've never heard about the "self protecting rust"....but I am located in California, so I guess its possible. Anyway, its just surface rust so I'm not too worried about it. If the appearance bothers you all that much you could buy a can of black engine enamel for a couple bucks

 

My 1500 looks the same way. I don't see it hurting anything, and isn't going to be visible to anyone unless I run over a pedestrian.

 

That is perfectly normal. All 2WD knuckles and hubs will look like that.
It's just surface rust on the cast iron knuckle and hub. As thick as that stuff is, it would take almost a full century to rust enough to cause any structural damage.

Your pictures look similar to what you would see on a brand new truck of this type just months after being built.