I can say with certainty that rust issues I currently deal with aren't nearly as bad as what I saw in Pennsylvania. Automobiles are made of metal and are susceptible to rust over time. A Pennsylvania winter, where we use chemicals on the roads, could be devastating. But not here. The issue of rust generally isn't a problem in northern Georgia, (coastal Georgia, YES, but not in Athens). The photos above and below show what I typically encounter with our fleet.

The Ford E350 van shown in this series of photos arrived at the shop for its regular maintenance.

Vehicles get transferred to other departments within the University System all the time. So it's possible that this van may have spent some time on the coast. Rust of the nature seen in the photo above isn't normally an issue.

The giant hole seen in the photos above and below, however, was an issue.

This hole sits just forward of the right rear wheel and was created when a student trying to make his way to the rear seats sunk through the floor.

Rust had weakened the floor to the point where it gave way.

We sent this van out to a local body shop so it could be repaired.