Preventing Coilover Rust

[HB 4X4]

Hey guys,
I was just curious if any of you have a good recommendation of what I could spray onto my coilovers so I don't have to worry about them rusting in the future?

 

[04 sc V8]

A guy I know has a high end Total Chaos front suspension on his Toyota and when I asked him the same question he replied that he washes it and coats everything with WD 40. The coil overs still look new.

 

[HB 4X4]

A guy I know has a high end Total Chaos front suspension on his Toyota and when I asked him the same question he replied that he washes it and coats everything with WD 40. The coil overs still look new.

Hm, never would have guessed that.

 

[04 sc V8]

Hm, never would have guessed that.

Yeah, I was surprised too. How can you compare your trucks ride and handling going from xreas to OME to SAW suspension. I will be lifting mine this year for sure and I haven't decided which way to go yet.

 

[HB 4X4]

Yeah, I was surprised too. How can you compare your trucks ride and handling going from xreas to OME to SAW suspension. I will be lifting mine this year for sure and I haven't decided which way to go yet.

The 2/1 spacer didn't change ride quality much.

The 3/2 became extremely stiff in the back, and slammed down annoyingly hard/loud when going over speed bumps. The front was very easy to bottom out when offroading.

After I got the Saw coilovers in front, and OME in back, the ride was stiff at first because 4WheelParts cranked the coilovers to 5-6 inches of lift (they are all morons). Once I adjusted them, I was only unhappy with the rear (OME) so I went with Icon.

I was again unhappy, so I swapped the Icon coils for SAW coils a little while back, and I just ordered my SAW shocks the other day. They are being built for me as we speak, and should be here next week.

IMO Icon is overrated. Unless you plan on carrying a large amount of weight such as a bumper, their rear components are MUCH too stiff. I didn't put SAW in the rear because I was being cheap and trying to save a few hundred bucks. Although the SAW coilovers are $100 cheaper than Icons, their rear products are almost twice as expensive as Icon. It appears that this is for good reason.

 

[Thai]

Wow x3...WD40? I would have guessed grease or something....

 

[HB 4X4]

I wouldn't see WD40 as something that could cause any problems, but I wouldn't have guessed it would prevent rust. I was thinking something along the lines of a type of anti-rust spray. I wonder if WD40 can actually repel rust... It helps joints/hinges move better if they are already rusted, so I suppose it's not too far of a stretch to say that it helps prevent it in the first place...

 

[Mabuse]

WD-40 displaces moisture, and therefore reduces rust. From Wikipedia:

WD-40 is the trademark name of a widely used water-displacing spray commonly sold in hardware stores and other such retail outlets. Developed in 1953 by Norm Larsen, then working for the San Diego Rocket Company, it was originally designed to repel water and prevent corrosion,[1] and later was found to have numerous household uses. WD-40 stands for Water Displacement, 40th formula. Larsen was attempting to concoct a formula to prevent corrosion, by displacing the standing water that promotes it. In the process, he arrived at a successful formula on his 40th attempt.[1] WD-40 is primarily composed of various hydrocarbons.

 

[HB 4X4]

WD-40 displaces moisture, and therefore reduces rust. From Wikipedia:

Nice, thanks Bret.

 

[04 sc V8]

Yeah, I was really surprised with my friends reply as well, but with all the road salt here in New England his 87 turbo off road race truck(that he street drives too) and coil overs still look like new. I have been using the WD 40 on my stock under carriage and in the engine compartment with no negative side effects so far. Obviously I keep it away from belts&hoses.

 

[04 sc V8]

Thanks for the suspension lift feed back HB 4x4 I wasn't trying to hijack your thread I was just curious.

 

[HB 4X4]

Thanks for the suspension lift feed back HB 4x4 I wasn't trying to hijack your thread I was just curious.

No worries

 

[rook]

I got some rust preventer spray made by Loctite. It claims to protect for 6 mos in outdoor applications. We'll see.

 

[EH007]

It's also a good idea to keep the WD40 off any suspension bushing, CV boots, etc... basically anything made of rubber shouldn't be soaked with WD40.

 

[04 sc V8]

It's also a good idea to keep the WD40 off any suspension bushing, CV boots, etc... basically anything made of rubber shouldn't be soaked with WD40.

Yeah that pretty much goes w/o saying. Oil and robber don't get along. Keep it away from the brakes as well.

 

[Annoyed]

I suppose it depends where you are. In the salt & snow encrusted Northeast, the best thing would be to leave them in the container they were shipped in.

In the winters around here, if you put them on the truck, they're going to rust.