Accidentally drove in Salt Brine?

[shumile.swift]

I'm originally from NYC, moved to Raleigh, NC about 4 years ago. This winter is the first actual snowfall I've experienced living here.. I had NO idea they salted roads in NC... and then upon more research I find out that salt brine is worse than whatever it is they use in the tri-state area?
Anyways, I'm driving my E46 and see tons of salt on the road and i'm like ahh great... (it was entirely dry at the time) I'll have to get the undercarriage cleaned, but I'm not sure how to go about it, because im reading that its smarter to NOT use a pressure washer as it gets the brine into nooks and crannies that are impossible to reach/clean, and i have an entirely rust free car, and I work at a BMW repair shop, I see E46's coming in with lower miles than mine looking like absolute dog shit. I'm also reading about how below freezing its fine, its once the car is in non freezing temperature the brine really starts to get corrosive..

Idk, I don't want to rack my car up to do an oil change one day and find it to look like an NYC e46 rust bucket.. if that makes sense.
So my question is, does anyone have experience with salt brine and cleaning it off? Any tips/advice? Am i freaking myself out? Its the first time this car has ever experienced it.. maybe its harmless if its just one time?

Also please keep you "its a car just drive it" answers to yourself.. I drive the hell out of my car, but that does not mean im going to willingly run it through salt in the winter. I purchased my car in nov 2021 with 125k miles, its currently at 183k..

Any advice is appreciated.

[jayjaya29]

Water dilutes the brine, just do a thorough underbody wash and it will not be an issue, even long term.

[PetrolM3]

Personally, I'd take it to a self-wash location, jack one side at a time onto the tallest ramps you can find and pressure wash (soap then rinse) the crap out of the entire undercarriage. Make sure the wash you choose has hot water (not cold) and adequate pressure... some cheaper car washes have cold water only and crappy pressure.

If it helps, I drove my salt and rust free 2003 through the 2013 and 2014 winters here in Ontario, Canada, where the roads are COVERED in salt and brine for almost 6 months. I washed the car really well after both winters and 10 years later, there was absolutely no rust anywhere.

[bmwfnatic]

Car in air, garden hose.

[Estoril]

Keep water off it. Corrosion needs water to work.

[fattycharged]

product called SALT AWAY, I use it on my boats down here in TX, works really well

spray on, let it dissolve salt, rinse

[shumile.swift]

Keep water off it. Corrosion needs water to work.

Idk, im getting so many conflicting answers. Someone said water dilutes brine, you're saying keep water off it.. i cant keep water off it forever so how does one undo this lol

[shumile.swift]

product called SALT AWAY, I use it on my boats down here in TX, works really well

spray on, let it dissolve salt, rinse

I'll try this out

[Pklauser]

Don't overthink it. Thoroughly rinse the underside with a hose. My father dailied his E30 in NJ for 25 years, kept the rust away by just rinsing the undercarriage every 1-2 weeks during the winter.

The rusted out cars you see are because people never rinsed them off. The key is keeping up with it during the salty months.

The other thing that contributes to that northern rust is the constant battering by the abrasive salt/rock/sand that breaks through the undercoating/paint underneath the car, allowing rust to start. A couple trips through brine in the south won't have the same effect.

Obviously the "purest" way to avoid problems here is to avoid the salt altogether, but it doesn't have to be a death sentence.