Just bought myself an 03 plate Cooper which is very tidy on the outside but on inspecting the underneath I was suprised to find a fair ammount of rust on the front subframe where the paint has been chipped off. It appears to be surface rust and i intend to wire brush and Hammerite it but was wondering if any other oweners of similar year cars have suffered from same.

the rest of the underside of the car appears to be well sealed against rust, but the front suspension and subframe appear to been painted only from the factory which suprises me.