Undercoating Truck

chevyman16 · October 30, 2003

What do you guys reccomend on undercoating a truck. I live in Nebraska. There is alot of snow and salt. Should I get the truck coated underneath for rust protection or am I wasting my money?

tmf6902 · October 30, 2003

to my knowledge the frame already comes coated with a rubbery greasy mess.....change your oil or a fuel filter and wear a white shirt....it'll come off on you. Speaking of which, it comes off pretty easily. When I changed my fuel filter some came off when I was wiping off spilled gas, but I just bought a can of spray junk from the store and touched it up. But then again, we don't get much snow down here in FloriDuh

tmf

gm4x4 · October 30, 2003

u may want to try ziebart i got it under the truck and in side the doors .... it cost me $1xx .. ziebart is good stuff

it's almost like the oil stuff they put it in the road black rubber after the ziebart dry.

i got the ziebart for a year now no rust

JimWilson · October 31, 2003

I'm a big fan of undercoating, especially in areas that get nasty (winter) weather.

About the only places around my area that do it any longer are body shops. Seems most of the dealers couldn't be bothered. But they wanted about $400 for the job, so I did it myself. I went and got 6 cans of 3M Rubberized (ONLY use rubber undercoating -- the rest is junk). Then, I pulled the rear of my truck up onto ramps, taped off everything that I didn't want to get coated (especially the exhaust system) and sprayed away. Not as good as the pros, but it's a lot better then nothing. Cost me all of $30 and 1/2 a days work (and runined the t-shirt I was wearing too ).

The coating on the frames now is wax-based, so it comes off very easy. Too easy, actually. But that only covers the frame, the underbody doesn't have any special coatings, so when I did it I sprayed the frame and the body.

chevyman16 · October 31, 2003

I was thinking of going the Ziebart way, but I just can't stand the idea of everything underneath getting coated. I had my 92 undercoated by Ziebart and they just coated everything. The 92 doesn't have an ounce of rust on it but has been garaged kept and is washed quite a bit in the winter. Did Ziebart help that much or did keeping it clean and garaged do it. I'm still undecided. What to do, What to do!

Gilbert · November 1, 2003

Provide a good coat or 2 of some quality rubberized undercoat.

Before you undercoat clean/wash your trucks undercarige very well, and let it dry for a good day or 2. Then you can do it yourself or have someone with experience do it for you.

Beware of the dealerships, undercoating is a very messy job and they typically have some flunky spray the crap out of everything, including your tranny, engine, axle housing, etc.

Not only will the undercoat provide you with added protection and pease of mind, but it will also give you a quieter experience inside the cab.

After you have it undercoated, don't get on the highway for at least 3 or 4 hours. Let your undercoat dry for a minimum of 24hrs before going into any rough terrain.

Good Luck!

422 SS · November 1, 2003

If you plan on keeping the truck for 300,000-400,000 miles it would be a good move.Anything less than that and it's a waste of money IMO.I bought a 96 K2500HD new and while I don't own it anymore it has 300,000+ miles on it without any rust and was never undercoated.I live in Ohio,we get plenty of snow and exposure to salt.

gmcjoe · November 1, 2003

Do not have your truck undercoated

It clogs the factory drain holes in places and allows water to sit and begin corrosion from the inside out.

I have 95K woth of Michigan roads on my 2000 GMC and it still looks new

LARSONEM · November 3, 2003

I wouldn't fool with rustproofing either. They drill holes in door sills, rocker panels, doors, fenders, etc to get their tools in to spray the stuff on. Every place they drill, breaks the bond on the paint and allows a place for rust to start.

My last rustproof job was a 1985 GMC Jimmy - full size. I had as much rust on it as if I hadn't had it done to begin with because of all the holes they punched in the body. There's another thread in Product Review

GM-Truck.com

and you can read my comments there on rustproofing. Believe me, Ziebart's warranty isn't worth the paper it's written on, esecially if you miss one of their stupid inspection periods, which used to cost you $30 annually to have done.

Best advice is, keep your truck clean, scratches and chips touched up and with the better quality of todays vehicle builds, you should go a long time without problems.

antig24 · November 4, 2003

Our 89 C1500 has been Ziebarted and doesn't have any rust on it whatsoever. If I were to buy a new car/truck I would personally get it Ziebarted.

n8huntsman · November 5, 2003

Mine came from the factory with undercoating, so I doubt that its a waste of money. Its a Hawaii truck so I guess their air is salty from the ocean, but im not sure because i've never been there.