Wheel Well Liners Promotes Rust??

[Big R ED]

Has anyone ever removed their liners and inspected the wells' steel several years after being installed?  My concern is, since the liner is not chemically bonded to the steel (eg undercoated, bed-coated, etc), there could be pockets of moisture trapped between the backside of the liner and the well steel, that never really evaporates.  I would think this collected moisture could pose a real problem, especially at weld points.  I understand that the liners themselves will protect the surface of the factory painted wells from being compromised from stones, etc., but what about small pinholes or shallow coatings that might exist in the factory paint (especially at welds).  My '19 LD came with front liners, and I'm looking for some feedback for my rears.   

Edited September 17, 2019 by Big R Ed

[BlueSilvyZ71]

Interested in what the results are as well.

[Big R ED]

Hoping to get some feedback.  PA roads being with they are, with potholes every 10 yards, its almost like commuting to work daily on gravel roads.  I have the factory liners on the front and depending on the consensus, I'd entertain pulling them off, applying a coating, and reinstalling for the benefit of sound absorption. 

[kickass audio]

I know that in the winter the little holes where the wheel liner is secured on by have corrosion marks from the road salt. The front wheels have rust starting where it peeled off the primer/corrosion protection on the lower corner where the mudflap is as well as the mounting tab just above the bumper in the wheel well. For the rear wheels I have rust starting to bubble the paint in the middle area of the wheel arch. I am playing around with fluid film and shot it on the outside of the lip just to see how it holds up as well as put it on spots of the frame to see how it looks after this upcoming winter. If it seems to help then I will pull the liners and finish spraying them as well as spray the entire frame.

 

Another area prone to rusting is the front door jamb where the hinges are. The little padded material they stuffed in there collects dirt and all kinds of junk (I had leaves and pine needles from the previous owner all in the bottom of there). I just pulled both my front wheel liners and used compressed air to blow out all the crap in there and will see next year how much junk builds up and maybe make it a routine yearly to pull the liners and blow out all the accumulated garbage in there.

Edited September 17, 2019 by kickass audio

[Big R ED]

Good info.  I work with a guy out of Buffalo - serious winter - serious road salt.  Do you think doing under/bedcoat, before doing liners, would have helped?  Do you think just doing several coats of under/bed-coat and going without liners is a better route?  I'm looking at the wheel liners like drop-in bed liners - the back side just abrades the factory paint and compromising the protection of the factory paint.

[16LT4]

Don’t forget the fully boxed frames rust from the inside out. I hose out the underside of my truck every couple of weeks or immediately after driving on wet salt roads in upstate NY and even my ‘84 has no rust on the frame, doors, or fenders...or anywhere actually. Can’t hose out the inside of the frame though... my last F150 needed a frame patch, as the rust ate through the undercoating from the inside and lifted it.

[Big R ED]

Yep.  Right now I'm concerned with the wheel area.  I also spray the undercarriage, but I go back to the pockets of salt water that are trapped between the liner and well.  Without taking the liners off each washing, that will always reside there (and I'll hear it munching away at my steel while I lay in bed at night).  Like Kickass noted, it doesn't seem specific to any one area.  Not sure about the other states, but my area of PA now immediately sprays down a layer of liquid brine solution, at the slightest hint of a snow flake.  So basically, we are driving on white roads December thu to the begining of March.

[xax]

Twice a year I remove my rear liners to clean up there. There are 3 rubber plugs in both rear wheel wells, pull them out and hose the area out/spray undercoating. Dirt gets trapped between the panels and causes the rust above the rear wheels on these trucks. Usually pull my tail lights to hose out as well.

[CDNSS]

1 hour ago, xax said:

Twice a year I remove my rear liners to clean up there. There are 3 rubber plugs in both rear wheel wells, pull them out and hose the area out/spray undercoating. Dirt gets trapped between the panels and causes the rust above the rear wheels on these trucks. Usually pull my tail lights to hose out as well.

I do same once a year I have a 2017 fabric liners front and back no rust so far not much dirt in there I do spray with fluid film. Behind tailites is were most of crude gets trapped I pull them and clean and spray with  FF

 

[Big R ED]

Thanks.  I guess the verdict is in - concerns with buildup behind them necessitates regular removal.  Sounds like extra work (the removal process) that can be avoided with a quality spray-on coating.  With the spray on, simply get up under the well and start cleaning - no need for removal.

[Eddie 70]

I took my rears out last weekend to install new liners. I didn't take any pics while the liners were out but I saw nothing to make me think there would be rust. I did take a water hose and towel and clean everything up really nicely while the liners were out. I made sure the wheel well lips were really clean before installing the new liners. There was really not much dirt behind the liners even though the old ones were worn through.

[OldBlue61]

I had mine Ziebarted (I live squarely in the rust belt), and pulled the liners when I had it done so they could spray that part of the bed.  I've pulled them each year, and have noticed no issues at all - no wear on the rustproofing from the liners and no noticeable issues of any sort.

[Grumpy Bear]

Line-X Premium that covers the body to wheel well seam and plastic attachments. What dirt you see hoses out and looks like new. Very easy to maintain.  There are a couple of plugs in the bed above the wheel wells that allow hosing with a wand with out removing the tail lamps. Good place to add oil to the seem for those so inclined. 

 

[RyanbabZ71]

I had them in my 2010 no rust issues. Cousin of mine had a similar truck with no fender liners and was a year newer and his rear wheel wells had a bunch of rust.


Ryan B.

[JMHD]

I take all 4 liners out and pull all the mud flaps off once a year before i get it oil sprayed. so far so good.