OT- Fighting rust on pickup

DairyFarmerInMA · Apr 8, 2014

Wondering about what people use to treat their truck frames, cabs, beds etc with in order to fight rusting.
I have an '03 superduty the bed is too far gone I didn't spray it with anything and am looking for ideas of what to treat the rest of the truck with and how folks go about it
Thanks in advance
Will

Dick2 · Apr 8, 2014

The best way that I can think of is to move to the desert country in Arizona. My 11-year-old truck has no rust anywhere.

RyaninKS · Apr 8, 2014

around here it's best just treat it like going bald, let it happen gracefully and embrace the thought...I'm sure it's worse up north with all the salt but I swear our mud around this area is acidic and eats away at our trucks!

flembo · Apr 8, 2014

We store my wifes 88 Pont. Firebird in the barn all winter it has never seen snow or salt and has no rust she won't take it out untill no signs of salt left.

mkirsch · Apr 8, 2014

Anything you can afford to do is a waste of money. Ziebart undercoating only covers what you can see. What you CAN'T see is still exposed, and what's worse, it is up in areas that can trap and hold water/salt/mud, accelerating the rusting process.

In order for a treatment to work, you need to cover EVERY INCH of the frame and body with it, or the rust will form on the exposed metal. The rust will attack the metal at the edge of the coating/treatment where it is weakest, and spread.

You can't get to every inch of the frame without completely disassembling the truck. Then you have to be absolutely careful to not scratch or ding the coating, because that makes a weak spot where the rust will form. Anything kicked up off the road can cause dings and scratches in the coating, so you have to constantly monitor and repair any flaws in the coating or rust will form.

Foghorn Leghorn · Apr 8, 2014

You can't stop the rust. It is just that simple.

Mike M · Apr 8, 2014

Oil spraying will do alot of good.

RLA · Apr 8, 2014

I high pressure my truck off underneath
twice a year, Once it is dry I use
Quaker state Golden Chassis lube paint it
on with a brush on the highly beat area"s
& spray used motor oil with some heated up
80w90 used trans grease.. 99 truck still has
all 4 corners & orginal spring hangers...

ih_bug · Apr 8, 2014

oil spray with used oil every nook and cranny . pull all plugs out of body spray oil in replace plugs if no plugs drill holes spray oil in and buy plugs to fill holes.
if you do a good job it works.just look at how you vehicle is built and figure out how to get oil in the cavities. as for underneath just paint it with used oil (sprayed on)twice a year is best.
makes them dirty but also a lot easier to work on with no seized nuts or bolts and no rust on components.

DaninKansas · Apr 8, 2014

Wash it regularly in the winter spending lots of time on the underside. If its already rusted out its too late. To be honest an 03 shouldn't be rusting that much even if you are driving in salt.

G1355 · Apr 8, 2014

I don't know if I'd use used oil, I use dry lubricant in a can, keeps it lubrciated and won't rust, but it won't let and dirt stick to it.

showcrop · Apr 8, 2014

You can't stop the rust but you can bring it down to so slow your grand kids can inherit the truck. Here are two examples: First, the bottoms of the doors will rust out pretty quickly if all you do is wash. But, if you lift the weather strip at the bottom, you will see rust where the outer skin laps over the inner. There is sealant there but it lasts only about four years. Keep checking it and when you see it rusting take a screwdriver and drag it along the top of the overlap to clean off the rust and lifted paint. Then spray WD-40, give it a day to soak in good between the inner and outer skin, then spray it with aerosol chain lube. The lube goes on very thin and penetrates then sets up stiff so that it will last for months against water and salt. The second is if your body is not rusted out yet, look up from underneath ahead of the wheel well, looking up and to the rear. You will see where the inner fender and the outer skin come together. You can spray WD- 40 up in there very easily so that it runs down between the metal panels and the block of foam rubber that is there to dampen vibration. Again, allow it to penetrate and displace moisture then follow up with the aerosol chain lube. 2-3 applications a year depending on climate and you will have the rust under control.

Anonymous-0 · Apr 8, 2014

we have used used oil since about the mid 70s 70 pontiac 78 chev pickup 80 ford pickup 91 dodge 250 and more never had a rust problem in any spray at 100plus lbs spring and fall when they are dry do every crany under floormats ect also the electic rust controlers work to very well stillrunning the 80 ford no rust in a very salt used area

mattwillson · Apr 8, 2014

My 1993 F150 is in mint condition, it s been goober snotted with krown since new. On a hot summer day you can see the silouette on the ground where it was parked.

farmer boy · Apr 8, 2014

The only answer is Krown. Problem is you have to go north of the border for it.

T in NE · Apr 8, 2014

Yeah, but he"s in Taxachussettes, they need to tax the crap out of him so they can put down enough salt to rust out his 10 yr old truck.

Bret4207 · Apr 9, 2014

(quoted from post at 14:11:00 04/08/14) Wash it regularly in the winter spending lots of time on the underside. If its already rusted out its too late. [b:09b944cfca]To be honest an 03 shouldn't be rusting that much even if you are driving in salt.[/b:09b944cfca]

Written by someone who doesn't live in a high salt/bare roads state! :lol: Trust me, anything over 5 years old could have holes rotted right trough the frame.

Bret4207 · Apr 9, 2014

Things that help- regular washing of the underside as well as the rest of the vehicle, mud flaps or running boards, soaking the underside and inside of cavities with used oil, making sure the drains in all cavities are open and rinsing the cavities with fresh water, coatings like POR15, Rinoliner, paint, etc on exposed surfaces, box liners.

Nothing is 100%. I now of a Chev dealership nearby that recommends annually undercoating their customers cars. Some people have very good luck with that. IME it's a crap shoot. Truth is that if you want to prevent rust in the salt belt, chances are you're going to have to invest in some sort of spray gun capable of spraying drain oil with a decent length wand on it. Getting up under the vehicle and soaking the snot out of everything you can get to works pretty good if you do it 3-4 times a year. Getting inside the doors and fenders helps for sure. But your vehicle WILL smell and drip for days. I'm a big fan of undercoat in a can. You see a lot of trucks in my area with the bottom foot or 18" solid undercoat. It helps with stone chips.

Geo-TH,In · Apr 9, 2014

My last new truck is a 2007 GMC. On the way home from dealer I dropped it off at Z-tech for an undercoat, sprayed bed liner and a wax job. Just washed it yesterday. Paint job still looks great.

Well worth it. My experience with trucks and cars is they rust from the inside out. Try to fight existing rust and you will most likely lose.

mkirsch · Apr 9, 2014

I did NOTHING to my '03 except run it through the carwash a few times a year, and it "still looked great" at 7 years old too.

It's starting to look like a heap at 11 years. Driver's side rocker panel is GONE. Paint is starting to bubble and rust stain all over the place. Won't be long before there's nothing left.

NNP · Apr 9, 2014

spray, brush oil and then drive down a dirt road, or one that has had a fresh oil-stone treatment.
Look carefully for any body lips or seams that collect salt debris. Clean out and use heavy grease in those areas.
If you don't like oil mess, treat the underside like the outside.
clean it and get under there and paint it with rustoleum or equivalent regularly.
Outside, chips must be repaired, repainted right away.
Rust IS like cancer. Rust areas must be removed, by cutting out or part replacement. Once it starts, it will continue no matter what you do.

Oil will work. Working on a 60's Ford once that had a front seal leak on the rearend for a very long time. The oil-dirt crust on the underbelly was very thick and tough to remove. Like new factory paint under it.

David G · Apr 9, 2014

Run it through a car wash with underbody wash.

OT- Fighting rust on pickup

Member

Well-known Member

Member

Well-known Member

Well-known Member

Member

Well-known Member

Well-known Member

Member

Member

Well-known Member

Well-known Member

Well-known Member

Member

Well-known Member

Well-known Member

Well-known Member

Well-known Member

Well-known Member

Well-known Member

Member

Well-known Member

Similar threads