Is it worth to have undercoating?

[pinoyboy]

Hey guys! im new here in this awesome community. pleasure to join.

Im planning to have undercoating/chassy paint done to my new 4r. Is it worth it? and any advice how many coats/products and which parts to cover during the painting process like drive shafts etc? thank you so much!

 

[Jono.ful]

Hey guys! im new here in this awesome community. pleasure to join.

Im planning to have undercoating/chassy paint done to my new 4r. Is it worth it? and any advice how many coats/products and which parts to cover during the painting process like drive shafts etc? thank you so much!

They started spraying liquid salt on the roads here this year, so I painted my frame, LCA's, and axle housing with por15 this fall. The powder coat on my Total Chaos LCA's was pretty beat up, so they probably got the heaviest coat, the rest got two good coats. Pretty happy with it so far.

 

[arehman11]

I plan on using Fluid Film on mine.

 

[Runn4est]

Fluid Film is legit. You can spray it in the frame rails too. You can rattle can it, or buy an air gun kit.

 

[MaddoxPics]

Yes if you live in the areas where you're going to see snow and salty water. Not sure its necessarily a huge need in areas like Arizona, though I'm sure someone could chime in on that.

Family member is going to do mine free so not sure what he uses, but for NY I'd recommend it.

 

[pinoyboy]

I plan on using Fluid Film on mine.

thank you for introducing this product. I must have been living under the rock. I did some research and only got positive reviews. Now im hesitant going to toyota and let them do the undercoating lol. could save hundreds $$. Maybe let them undercoat and I spray fluid film after ? thanks

 

[lbaschi1]

I did Fluid Film on the entire undercarriage last NY winter and everything looked great when i checked it this spring. I believe I went through 2 cans and I bought this attachement for hard to use areas
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00CLUGXFI/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1

It looks a bit overpriced now and if you're handy maybe you could fabricate one, but that little thing helped me get in crevices i wouldn't have been able to otherwise.


how much are they charging for an undercoat?

 

[chaosrob]

Yes, unless you want to wind up doing this. I eastwood the inside of the frame and por15 the outside on all my box frames now.

I do not care what they blamed it on but after 3 new frames on my first gen tacos and 2 repairs I was stuck doing myself I will not take any chances

 

[Sleeping-bear]

I've used fluidfilm for years through east coast Canadian winters and the stuff is awesome to say the least. My former FJ looked brand new after 4 winters where friends with FJ's and other vehicles without undercoating or inferior products looked like they sat on the bottom of the ocean...

 

[Argyle Edison]

I pay a guy with an outside lift to spray bomb my vehicles with Fluid Film annually. HE snakes the inside of the frame rails and all the nooks and crannies. Well worth the $150

 

[slippers]

When I bought mine, ran down to NAPA, bought a dozen rattle cans of their rubberized undercoat. Found a spray nozzle that would fit, taped everything off, totally hit everything I could. Sprayed into all the little frame holes, took tires/wheels off, any sheet metal I could reach, spent about 1/2 a day.

Put it in the garage for 2 days to let the stuff completely dry.

4Runner was new, still clean, surface contamination was zero.

Will it help?

I hope.

Let you know in 3-5 years...

 

[chaosrob]

I failed to mention above that if I drive my truck on chemically treated roads over the winter I also wash the underneath religiously as soon as weather permits, inside the frame where I can get access and outside. The salt really starts affecting the metal as the weather warms up so I try to get it out of every area possible

 

[Ronin61945]

Does Fluid Film have to be done annually? I saw something on the net about every "few years."

 

[Haas360]

So I live in Utah so I definitely need this! Just wondering what and who I should ask to have this done for me. I do not have a lift and would rather spend some money to have it done right.

What/who should I be asking?

Toyota Dealer didnt know what I was talking about, they are idiots.

 

[Northern 4Runner]

Like what everyone is saying, use fluid film, I use rust check here in Canada. Krown is another good choice. You want a rust proofing that doesn't dry out. Most of that crap the dealers use dries out and by the time you realize it's rusted out in behind its too late.

You want the inside of the boxed frame done for sure

 

[muscle_doc]

My 4Runner is 3 years old, and has been through brutal Syracuse winters. Would using Fluid Film now on the undercarriage and whatever else I can reach still be beneficial? Do I need to do a thorough cleaning of everything before I spray it down??

 

[Crocket]

In my opinion getting your vehicle undercoated is a must. Follow it up a few months later with a yearly rust protection spray and you should be good to go.

One bit of advice though, once the undercoating is applied by the dealer (or 3rd party) INSPECT IT CLOSELY!!! The 4Runner undercarriage is quite a bit more complicated (and large) compared to your typical car undercarriage. The dealer that sprayed my 4Runner did a real lousy job, so I had to get it resprayed by a second dealer (and deal with all the BS that came along with that request) to catch all the areas the first dealer missed. This pissed me off as I bought my 4Runner last winter and did not notice the crap job until the spring, so parts of the undercarriage were left unprotected. Even the re-spray was not 100% to my liking, which is why following it up with an oil spray will ensure complete protection.

Good luck.

 

[Argyle Edison]

So I live in Utah so I definitely need this! Just wondering what and who I should ask to have this done for me. I do not have a lift and would rather spend some money to have it done right.

What/who should I be asking?

Toyota Dealer didnt know what I was talking about, they are idiots.

I have a John Deere dealer here that sells fluid film. They told me about the auto shop where the guy has an out door lift he uses. He sprays all the town vehickea also so it’s profitable for him.

 

[lbaschi1]

How does using the spray cans compare to buying the gallon and using a sprayer? do the cans go a long way or no?

I managed to do a very thorough job with 2 cans on my 4runner

 

[lbaschi1]

u use and extension wands or anyting like that? or just coat the frame etc and be on your way. also how did it hold up ?

I used the extension wand in hard to reach places, and made sure to coat inside the frame wherever possible. I did this coating last october, had a generally mild winter(10-12 days of salted roads). At this time there are no signs of corrosion and i would recommend fluid film.