Simple Frame Rust Repair/Prevention.

[shootmymime]

[MENTION=14772]shootmymime[/MENTION] how is this holding up for you after 3 years. My undercarriage (specifically the rear diff) is showing some rust on my 04 sport and I am looking for solution to convert the rust or at least slow it down. I was thinking of going the route you went and then add a layer Fluid Film afterwords.

its really good, every year i go over it again, i have not done it this year and i have some spots that are poking through the paint i have put on years ago, most of it is rock chips that mess up the paint.

but it all about preventative maintenance, doing it every year will keep your frame looking new forever. the key is to keep salt/water off of it. when it does rust, wire brush and paint. the more you keep up on it the easier it is to do next time.

 

[Hawaiian Hillbilly]

Great thread guys! Gonna get this done on my 4th gen soon...much mahalos!

 

[kolelt]

Rocker panels are know for rust and rear quarter panels on these trucks. Any tips for testing these areas.? As this is more body area rather then frame. From expo wrench I had cute a hole out on my driver side rocker panel and replaced it with new metal. About 4" by 2". I don't understand how its Rusting from inside out. But it sucks. And it's annoying because I sprayed fluid film inside the rocker panel. And now I'd like to spray east wood internal frame coating through the cavities when you take of the plastic trim pieces. But Eastwood ain't going to bond slimy, oily, rocker pannel. And I don't it's safe to use power washer as the water will probably get inside.

 

[Scramble]

Rocker panels are know for rust and rear quarter panels on these trucks. Any tips for testing these areas.? As this is more body area rather then frame. From expo wrench I had cute a hole out on my driver side rocker panel and replaced it with new metal. About 4" by 2". I don't understand how its Rusting from inside out. But it sucks. And it's annoying because I sprayed fluid film inside the rocker panel. And now I'd like to spray east wood internal frame coating through the cavities when you take of the plastic trim pieces. But Eastwood ain't going to bond slimy, oily, rocker pannel. And I don't it's safe to use power washer as the water will probably get inside.

Yea that sucks. Fluid film is for new cars or cars without rust. Fluid film does nothing to stop rust from spreading. I plan on using the Eastwood internal frame coating in the rockers too. Some how you need to get a degreaser in there & then power wash. You might have to drill some holes but that would help dry it out. The rocker panels do have some small thin drain holes already. They're like 2mm wide & an inch long. Barely noticeable. I found them by accident when I took my running boards off & was inspecting for rust.

 

[kolelt]

Yea that sucks. Fluid film is for new cars or cars without rust. Fluid film does nothing to stop rust from spreading. I plan on using the Eastwood internal frame coating in the rockers too. Some how you need to get a degreaser in there & then power wash. You might have to drill some holes but that would help dry it out. The rocker panels do have some small thin drain holes already. They're like 2mm wide & an inch long. Barely noticeable. I found them by accident when I took my running boards off & was inspecting for rust.

There's openings when you remove the plastic trim pillars inside the truck. And if you go under the truck. There are about 3-4 holes covers by a sticky tar type tape. If you take the tape of. There are good size holes for spraying and cleaning.

I just don't know what product could get in there and degrease everything ? And when you wash it , wouldn't the water splash everywhere inside ;(?

 

[Hrettig]

Looks great.. Dis u have any rust around the bottom area of radiator?

 

[Scramble]

There's openings when you remove the plastic trim pillars inside the truck. And if you go under the truck. There are about 3-4 holes covers by a sticky tar type tape. If you take the tape of. There are good size holes for spraying and cleaning.

I just don't know what product could get in there and degrease everything ? And when you wash it , wouldn't the water splash everywhere inside ;(?

I've removed the b-pillar trim before & didn't notice that I could see down into the rockers. I didn't notice the sticky tape either. I'll have to check it out.
I'm thinking the POR15 degreaser is very concentrated so I'd mix it in a spray bottle. Then a plastic painters drop cloth with tape to keep the water from getting everywhere.

 

[kolelt]

I've removed the b-pillar trim before & didn't notice that I could see down into the rockers. I didn't notice the sticky tape either. I'll have to check it out.
I'm thinking the POR15 degreaser is very concentrated so I'd mix it in a spray bottle. Then a plastic painters drop cloth with tape to keep the water from getting everywhere.

I'll take pics for you today and show you

 

[fayraree]

Thanks so much for all the information in this thread! I think this is probably the first preventative maintenance I will pursue for my new-to-me '08 4R. It only has 37k miles, but the 1st owner kept it in NYC.

I haven't inspected the undercarriage yet but I'll be sure to look at the frame very carefully. I'm thinking of asking the Toyota dealer (where I bought it) to do some form of rust prevention coating before delivering the car to me this weekend. This way I'll have peace of mind for the first season.

I noticed a few of you are from NY/NJ as well...I would love to drop by and have you take a look at the car, just to get your opinion and perhaps point out some trouble areas that I could focus on (a) rust proofing and (b) spraying during the winter--although I've heard you should wash during winter; just in the spring to get everything off, and some of the rust proofing also washes off.

Thanks again!

 

[KDKKJS]

Looks good, anything you do will help......rinse rinse rinse

 

[T4R2014]

Rocker panels are know for rust and rear quarter panels on these trucks. Any tips for testing these areas.? As this is more body area rather then frame. From expo wrench I had cute a hole out on my driver side rocker panel and replaced it with new metal. About 4" by 2". I don't understand how its Rusting from inside out. But it sucks. And it's annoying because I sprayed fluid film inside the rocker panel. And now I'd like to spray east wood internal frame coating through the cavities when you take of the plastic trim pieces. But Eastwood ain't going to bond slimy, oily, rocker pannel. And I don't it's safe to use power washer as the water will probably get inside.

The rear quarters, if you have flares, remove once a year and clean the area underneath! If you have a Limited or later SR5, tough luck with those flares. Regardless, clean the dirt that gets trapped in the lip of that wheel well. I'm amazed at what collects under there in a year. Been doing this for a few years now. It might be a good idea to put antiseize on the flare bolts. I think the chrome wheelwell trim is the worst at starting the rust. The rubber gasket of it just locks in dirt and moisture.

As much as I love driving my old cars, I think I want to get a newish car soon. Why? I need a winter beater! No worrying about rust with these new plastic machines.

 

[Mark_BC]

Thanks so much for all the information in this thread! I think this is probably the first preventative maintenance I will pursue for my new-to-me '08 4R. It only has 37k miles, but the 1st owner kept it in NYC.

I haven't inspected the undercarriage yet but I'll be sure to look at the frame very carefully. I'm thinking of asking the Toyota dealer (where I bought it) to do some form of rust prevention coating before delivering the car to me this weekend. This way I'll have peace of mind for the first season.

I noticed a few of you are from NY/NJ as well...I would love to drop by and have you take a look at the car, just to get your opinion and perhaps point out some trouble areas that I could focus on (a) rust proofing and (b) spraying during the winter--although I've heard you should wash during winter; just in the spring to get everything off, and some of the rust proofing also washes off.

Thanks again!

I am currently restoring our '97 Limited that we insure in the summer only. Problem is, a few years ago the last time we used it was November and there was salt on the road and it sat all winter with that underneath... in the humidity of the PNW. Rust everywhere underneath now. It looks terrible but upon further inspection it is mostly surface flaking, not too deep. Most components have no paint left except the frame which is actually in decent shape, just some rust and flaking paint on the surface of the welds. Some of the suspension members are pretty rusted, my front stabilizer bar is totally broken free of the end supports and just sitting there, I will fix that up. Of course the rear bumper is completely rusted out, I will pick up a new one in a couple days. I'm happy with the worst of the rust being on an easily replaceable component like a bumper! The front bumper is moderately rusted but I'll leave that because I want to put on an aftermarket one.

But the big area of concern is the rear differential cover plate. There is something wrong with the metallurgy there and I just kept chipping layers of rust off, I couldn't believe how much was coming off. This is a common problem. I finally got down to near sound metal which is not very much left, and poked the screw driver through and the oil came out... patched it with JB weld and will weld on a new plate later.

Last night I finished removing the loose rust from the differential housing and sprayed / brushed on some Rust Cure Formula 3000 which gets good reviews. I'll be sequentially moving through the whole underside and cleaning it up of loose rust and applying this stuff, or repainting black in the more visible areas.

Overall I think the thing is recoverable, most of the rust is just surface, no major structural damage done, except for the differential. Not like some I see from the salt states. The key is to keep the salt off it and to get it off quickly if it does get on. Here in the PNW it rains frequently so you can just drive it in the rain to wash it off but in the east you have to wait several months before you can do that; I don't think washing with a hose or sprinkler is going to get into all the nooks and crannies like a good powerwash from driving down the road in a nice clean rain. That is the best wash your frame could get. I guess what you want to do if you can't get the salt off is make sure any exposed metal is protected with either paint or the rust protector, and get on top of any corrosion quickly.

 

[smerhej]

I should probably try and do this before winter sets in... Maybe a stupid question but is it safe to just newspaper the parts you don't want paint getting on?

 

[shootmymime]

I should probably try and do this before winter sets in... Maybe a stupid question but is it safe to just newspaper the parts you don't want paint getting on?

Yes. I felt very accurate and no overspray (on the body) with not taping anything up and just painting the frame or what else needed paint.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[eye_bex]

I definitely have to do this. My runner spent many years in Utah and Wyoming, getting more than it's fair share of snow and salt. You can see my rust from afar.

But otherwise looks to be in great shape! Nice rig!

 

[eye_bex]

its really good, every year i go over it again, i have not done it this year and i have some spots that are poking through the paint i have put on years ago, most of it is rock chips that mess up the paint.

but it all about preventative maintenance, doing it every year will keep your frame looking new forever. the key is to keep salt/water off of it. when it does rust, wire brush and paint. the more you keep up on it the easier it is to do next time.

That's awesome. Have you seen anything develop that wasn't covered up? Or just spots that you covered up popping out? Great thread, thanks a ton.

 

[erikw9]

I just did this same thing last fall and made it through the winter with everything looking pretty good. A couple places could use a touch up but like the OP said, the assumption is it will need to be repeated each year.

 

[del mar]

Looks good! I also just spent the last two weekends prepping and applying POR15 to the entire frame and skid plates (both sides). I even hit the spare wheel with it as it had a little rust from hanging up there for 13yrs.

I then wiped everything down with acetone before applying the POR15.

How much POR 15 did you use? Why the Acetate?


It sounds like a job well done.

 

[Scramble]

How much POR 15 did you use? Why the Acetate?


It sounds like a job well done.

Not acetate, acetone, it's a great degreaser & evaporates quickly.
I've used it but POR-15 de-greaser with POR-15 metal prep work better.

 

[del mar]

Oh, sorry. I have used POR 15 on a small project, & was very happy with the results. I used the de-greaser that came with the kit.

How much POR 15 did you use and brush on?

I have a back issue and getting down and up on a crawler is a real problem for me.