ricky914

I live in Northern PA near Lake Erie. I store my 2014 GT in my 2 car garage which I also use for my winter car. Last week I uncovered my GT, opened the hood, and there was white powder on the supercharger housing, around the heads, on the alternator housing, and other places. I was told that it's salt from my other vehicle that melts off when it's warm and that attaches itself to the aluminum parts in my Mustang. Has anyone encountered this and do you have a fix?

Buck Sergeant

ricky914, I don't think the "white powdery stuff" is salt. I would guess it is "Aluminum Oxide" caused by "Galvanic Corrosion." The stuff they use to depress the freezing-point in the winter is not just rock-salt, but a cocktail of various chemicals. Did you wash the underside of your car before storing it? Also, I have heard of salt attaching itself around aluminum, but only under extremely high temperatures, ie. volcanic eruptions.

ricky914

No, I didn't do anything to the car before I stored it. I purchased it from Florida in November, it was shipped to me in late November, and it started snowing here shortly after. We've gotten over 10 feet of snow (yes, that's 10 FEET) this winter. It's been in my detached garage covered since I stored it. I had a battery tender on it and I went out about once a month, started it, and let it run for about 15 minutes. Then I would cover it back up. I noticed it when the weather started to get warmer recently. My winter car is driven daily and stored in the garage with the Mustang.

08'MustangDude

I got the same thing in another car, in PA, they're using a spray for the roads,
a magnesium mix. It may not be the salt, but it can be that stuff. I have
white spots in the engine compartment of my Jetta, lots more than the Mustang.

They use Sodium chloride (salt), magnesium chloride, calcium chloride,
calcium magnesium acetate, and potassium acetate to prevent and remove
snow and ice from roadways. It's a pretreatment. It does not contain any
aluminum oxide. Wait till you get stuck behind one of these little tankers
spraying the crap... It will be ALL OVER your car...




You can install a belly pan on the GT.

ricky914

The belly pan will stop the moisture and "white powder" from coming up into the engine compartment and on the engine parts?

08'MustangDude

It will stop a lot of road debris and moisture while in motion. It still won't stop what comes
in through the grilles. Helped a lot on my '15 Jetta, I have an Osiris aluminum belly pan on
it, about 3/8" thick, helped a LOT with all that. IT doesn't stop when splashes in through
the grille though. SO, most of it is all up top, nothing at the bottom, like from the top of
the rad down. I want to install a belly pan on my '08 V6 Mustang, can get one for cheap,
but can't get a sold answer on how to install it -vs- the GT model. Partsgeek.com sells
them for $20 bucks: https://www.partsgeek.com/catalog/20...ine_cover.html

Buck Sergeant

ricky914, my crew chief said to ask you if the vehicle had overheating problems before it was delivered to you. He said engine coolant, on metal parts, will cause the same condition you outlined in your original post. Also, before garaging the car did you drive under any winter conditions? If so then I would agree with the other posts about guarding against corrosion caused by salt, either on the road, or if exposed to salt from the ocean air.

08'MustangDude

It ain't from coolant, I get the same thing on mine, and it started when they started
treating the roads. I had some small dots ones on my catch can when it was installed by the
RH strut tower.

I have them all over the top of my '15 Jetta, and under side of the hood, it is from that spray they're
laying down on the roads. I got stuck behind one of those tankers spraying it on an on-ramp. It
was all over the front of the car, and inside the engine compartment where it was HOT, and turned
it all white-ish. DRY roads, and no snow or rain that day, but that crap was all over the car, and it
dried white-ish in the engine compartment. This was actually before the first snow...

ricky914

Ok, so it's from when I drove the car when it was delivered in late November before the snow came in. The roads must have been treated and I didn't know it and that's how the stuff got in there and I just didn't notice it until it turned white and chalky. That's a good lesson, now I have to clean the engine compartment before the shows start.

08'MustangDude

Yeah, I didn't notice it either till it dried up, and it's everywhere up top, on the
Volkswagen. Used the mustang once in this weather, I had some small specs
on the catch can, where it was.

However, now that I think about it, it's the first time I have seen it on my Jetta, because
it wasn't like that last year when I ran it in the snow. I had a '13 Jetta TDI, ran it in winter,
and I never saw all that dried up white chalky stuff till this year...