Rust on sliding door channels

[Chasethevan]

Hi all,

I am the new owner of a 2019 T6 and I have noticed that a lot of rust has formed in the sliding door channels (see picture). It also makes the door open rather rough. I did not notice this when buying the van, nor did I expect it after 5 years.

Now I have been searching on this forum and on the internet and have not found any conclusive answer as to the best way to approach this. What I have been able to conclude so far is that I should probably order a new set of rollers, get the door off the frame and wash off the worst with water and soap. Take the rubbers off the door, dry out the channel and treat rust with Ranex Rustbuster. Rinse and repeat after 30-60 min if necessary.

Now I still have the following questions (because I would prefer not to ruin my 'new' van):
1. Is the above approach indeed correct? I have only found it on one source.
2. If so, what would be the next step? Is there any follow up treatment needed after Ranex treatment and rinse? Or just replace rollers and put the door back in?

Your thoughts are very much appreciated!

Best,

Chase

 

[roadtripper]

Can't help with advice of treating it as is but once you have it sorted there is a thread here of various ways to stop water sitting in that void:

Sliding door lower roller guide / channel holding water

Hi all, looking for some advice. I have an issue with the sliding door bottom roller guide / channel holding water when the door is closed. If I open the sliding door after any rain or wash then quiet a lot of water runs out. It is also casing the channel to rush. I replaced the sliding door...

www.t6forum.com

 

[Chasethevan]

Thanks - I'm going to try it with WD-40 and a rough sponge this week and see if it helps. After that I'll try to follow the above to make sure it stays clean and free of water

 

[Wilma_BB]

Hi, are you able to provide an update on this please? We’ve found the same thing on ours and I’d interested to hear what you did. Thanks

 

[DXX]

It’s rusting because the paint has worn through not because of rain collecting. Remove the rust and re-paint, make sure the roller is smooth and keep the area clean.

 

[Wilma_BB]

It’s rusting because the paint has worn through not because of rain collecting. Remove the rust and re-paint, make sure the roller is smooth and keep the area clean.

Thanks very much. Will make sure we get a proper job done on it.

 

[Chasethevan]

Sorry for my late reply - I decided to focus on my van build first. For now I have sprayed the rollers and the entire sliding channels generously with WD-40 and took off the worst of the rust with a scouring pad. Looks a lot better already and runs a lot smoother.

Would love to hear if you found a way to fully restore it (like DXX's tip). I will update as well if and when I fixed it.

 

[DXX]

Unless you have sandblasting and paint spraying equipment it would be best done by a body shop.

 

[Heydave]

I have this issue also, noticed the rust marks along the channel, took it to the dealer who said it was normal as the roller takes the paint off.it can’t be right can it? eventually it will rot through! They said if it’s repainted , it will just happen again, it must be more common surely unless they’ve changed the design. Fobbed off yet again!

 

[Foofighter25]

It's rubbish.
Other vans have a plate attached to the channel for the bottom rollers run along to protect it.
I keep mine very clean and spray the channels and rollers with silicone spray every week. Rust free so far.