Undercoating? Moving back east
 

So looks like we are headed out of Vegas and moving back to Ohio next year. Got to thinking all of our cars (non classic) have lived out here in the desert since new. Is it worth it to have them undercoated? It’s been a long time since I had to deal with salt on the roads but we will be keeping our current fleet for a good while and want to keep them from rusting up. I remember Ziebart used to be a thing but never used them.


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It is worth the effort. Two things. 1. Also do the inside of body cavities where there are holes (Rocker panels, and the quasi frame sections on the unibody) 2. Make sure that all of the drain holes are still open and working after you do the undercoating.

And keep it up at the recommended intervals. Seems like the places my Michigan cars had the deepest rust were where the undercoating had lifted slightly and held salt water in the pockets. (Those cars were probably undercoated once when new and never again, so by 10-12 years old, I could poke through the frames with a screwdriver.)

Look at rustproofing rather than undercoating, assuming that by saying undercoating you mean the rubberized stuff. It will eventually develop cracks or holes that will allow the slush to get behind it and then it traps the moisture against the metal. There are several products on the market, one good one is Krown: https://www.krown.com/en/

If you're moving to northern Ohio, Benny's is where you need to go. I've been going there for 30 years. There is none better. https://www.morningjournal.com/2019/...ars-in-lorain/

Spray everything with Fluid Film....been using it for years,with excellent results.

Just don’t get the undah carriage wash in the Wintah time.....do that in May...then reapply Fluid film.

I do my truck every October .....then a follow up in May Or June..

I bought a 62 Catalina from the original owner. No rust, but the underside of body and frame was encapsulated in dirt. I pressure washed the underside of the car to find semi-gloss black on the frame and red oxide on the body. There must have been close to 60+ lbs. of dirt that came off. I went over to the original owner's house to ask about all this dirt. The owner explained that he rust proofed the car when it was new. The owner explained that he was from the P/I and cars over their rust very badly, so he explained how his dad had taught him how to rust proof cars. You get 90W oil, heat it up and put it in a sprayer and spray the underneath completely, then you drive the car round and around and around X10 in a dirt lot to make the dirt and oil stick to the body and frame. It sure worked on this car!

I use Cosmoline on all my trucks that see winter activities. It dries into a waxy hard shell, and protects basically anything you spray it on. I get it directly from the manufacture of the Cosmoline brand itself, put on a cheap tyvek suit, and crawl under the trucks from front to back, covering the floors, frame, rockers, bed rails, door bottoms, axles, springs, every damn thing. I also pull the taillights out and spray all in the bed sides, spray in the drains at the bottom of the doors, the bottom of the tailgate lip, and whatever else I can blast.


The truck smells like an oil refinery for about a week, but whatever. I think it smells pretty good lol

Fluid film .

fluid film is good but there are better products available. i live in iowa which is as bad as any rust belt state for road salt, many of my friends prefer wool-wax over fluidfilm, says it is thicker, last longer & applies better. most the forums for trucks or 4x4 off roading say wool wax is better too. but either is better than noting or the spray on rubberized under coatings.

a somewhat new product from PB blaster has been getting excellent reviews and every one thats used it says its far better than fluid film.

https://youtu.be/NE1_EiZIVHs

I live in MN and haven't wasted any money on rustproofing since my first new car back in 1977.

I wash my cars regularly and don't have problems with rust.

Most rust occurs from INSIDE out. The closer the outer panel to the inner one, the worse it gets. ( think Chevy Vega).when its 99% humidity outside in the morning and Not raining, that " mountain Dew" in the air is INSIDE YOUR rockers. Doors. Quarters, truck bed sides, etc. It evaps and then condensate right there in place.
Salt is a huge factor, but humid and temp changes can do a lot mixed with salt.
At my Dealer back in the 70's and up. We used " Quaker Coat" It never really dries, gets waxy. Worked well.
I use fluid film, cosmology, And I bought a whole sprayer set up for WoolWax. This stuff lasts through the car washes. The pic below is a spray can version similar to fluid film. I use a paint gun size unit with 360 degree wands.
Get BETWEEN the rear quarter lips, use cavity wax, or and wand, but its a must. That said, still have put bed sides on my HD. Not rockers though..

Lotta folks use this, and works well here in the " Shire". Must be redone and checked yearly though.
A friend wanted his done in NEW oil. So he brought his own new oil lol.
Its heated or thinned, but I might want the 20-50 if I had a choice.

Once again, I find myself thankful to live in N. Texas.

When my 74 SD was new I had local garage use a product from I believe St Clair. He had to heat it up to spray,it was like a grease. For the first couple years it 'leaked'. I had to install muffler 2 years ago. Everything I had to clean ,hangers,bolts were like new. I do not like the other products that get hard.

I would think the biggest question is how often do you plan on driving your 77 Trans Am in the winter or inclement weather?

Don’t drive anything you care about in the winter while that salt garbage is on the roads. Get a winter beater.

The classics always got put away in October. Is what it is when living where salt is.

This is more for the newer stuff. Paid a small fortune for my 3500 when I bought it and would like to keep it from rusting away especially……..And the wifes daily lol.

The fluid film seems like the way to go. Buy a sprayer this fall and get to it. I will miss the 300+ days of sunshine out here in the desert but it’s cheaper and a better quality of life for the family so we are on the move next year, Just another chapter in the adventure of life!


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