I understand what you mean. (On a side note. You guys in the UK are lucky. Not only did you get the Legnum/Galant wagon/estate, you guys got the VR4 variants. The last VR4 Galant we got in the US was a 4 door sedan and I think the last year for that was 1992).
I could never pull off the rust look on my Saturn, mainly because most of the car's exterior is dent resistent plastic. The only metal parts are the bonnet, roof, and boot lid.