Rusting Engine Bay Components

You are likely to get different opinions from others, but since you live in the heart of the snow belt, I would expect the rust is always with your car from now on unless you can store the car entire winter in a garage. I really don't think there is anything you can do to prevent the rust from developing. That being said, if it makes you feel better and it is not too costly and easy to apply, then spray some anti-rusting coating to the surface. I have used several known brands of anti-rusting agents. All work equally well (or bad considering that it does not last very long).

The rust may cause the problem or it may not. In a long run, it is easier and often cheaper to deal with the rust as it becomes a problem than trying to prevent it. I lived in the snow belt my entire life, I have come to the conclusion that any car will develop rust problems if kept long enough in the snow belt regions. Some earlier than others, but most will have major rust-related problems after 10 years old.

 

I'm not sure if I should mention this, but take a look at the underbody too.

Rear suspension components/bolts in particular are rust-prone in my experience; I guess the salt on dry roads in particular will swirl up and coat stuff, more so towards the rear.

I've had good results painting on full-strength boiled linseed oil. Using disposable foam brushes, old tooth brushes.

And for the myriad little screws and bolts, holding front/rear fairings (I refuse to call them "bumpers") and underbody plastic panels, I just back them out, drench in oil and reinstall. Be careful with bolt removal, they get rust-seized pretty quick.

 

Here's what one gentleman from the Northeast did to his underbody.

Posted via the PriusChat mobile app.

 

Metadata on this one says April of 2015:



I coated that area with boiled linseed oil at that time, then maybe a couple of years later, did a follow-up coat.. This pic is dated Sept 2019, a year or two after the second coat, and it pretty much looks the same now:



Having too much fun:

 

I would replace those rusty clamps with stainless steel worm gear clamps and probably boil them in linseed oil before installation (Mendel's trick). No need to disturb the hose; just cut them off with a good set of diagonals. I've notice over the years the quality of those clamps has been going down hill along with the price. I'd normally wire brush off the rust, paint it (high temp), wait a week, then WD40 it.

PS. love that safety jack stand Mendel

 

Using stainless steel worm drive clamps might be a costly mistake.

If you want stainless, use Oetiker ones or their equivalents like these.

 

I've been fighting rust on my 06 (other hybrid) the last couple of years, but mostly on a backburner schedule.
When I did my first oil change engine / tranny and brakes last year on the Prime, I did some rusted / corroded treatment as time permitted in spots that I could get at easily. I used anti-seize, dishwashing liquid on plastic pins and caliper slide pin holes, than just cleaned brake parts, I'd like to paint in the future.
I also noticed a lot of places I would have liked to have gotten, but didn't.
In the last few days I posted a pic much like this one from the OP https://attachments.priuschat.com/attachment-files/2021/10/213384_tempImagexWLm4s.png
here Brakes - the good the bad the ugly | Page 2 | PriusChat
Engine Bay (dressed a couple days ago).
I'm not sure I'll get as far as I'd like with rust prevention and learning the best lube process for all the different parts that need it / could use it. So I just take it one step at a time and keep my fingers crossed behind my back.

 

That's a good point; but I'm assuming that someone wrenching on their own car has enough common sense not to over tighten a clamp over a plastic outlet. I guess common sense is no longer common anymore.

BTW; those cheap worm gear clamps I spoke of; would likely strip or break before crushing a plastic outlet.

 

Initially, yes. Over the long term, pressure applied at one point will cause the thermoplastic to "flow" and deform resulting in either ductile or brittle fracture based on the Young's Modulus coefficient of the material.

 

The screw clamps differ from OEM spring-style too, in that they don’t expand/contract, say due to temp changes, or rubber compressing.

FWIW, where hoses are pushed onto properly sized barb connectors, no clamps is the recommended approach, at least according to this local-to-me site:

https://www.new-line.com/

(somewhere on the site, eluding me right now)