Undercoating Pros and Cons

**Ratchet Thunderbolt** · 08-29-2009, 01:50 PM

I have a new Silverado and live in MI the salt capital of the U.S. I am thinking of getting the truck undercoated. Does anyone have opinions of getting a vehicle undercoated or not? For those that have their trucks undercoated who did you use and were you pleased? Thanks for any information.

**CornhuskerChevy** · 08-29-2009, 01:58 PM

I just bought my truck. The previous owner had an undercoating/rust stopper put on when he got it new. It now has 25k on it and the stuff is already flaking/peeling/chipping or whatever you want to call it from driving on the gravel. Not sure how it works with salt, just my expirience.

**pmf608** · 08-29-2009, 05:15 PM

they are good, but they need to be well maintainted. mine is very flaky at 278,000 km, and the frame is starting to have surface rust as the paint peeled with the undercoating, but its still intact in some places. if you are willing to have it redone every few years, its a good idea.

**kendonhank** · 08-29-2009, 10:22 PM

If you undercoat, you void the corrosion warranty.

I know, I am suing GM now for undercarriage corrosion.

Best think is wash the undercarriage to keep salt off it and park in garage if possible.

**pmf608** · 08-30-2009, 03:42 AM

Originally Posted by kendonhank

If you undercoat, you void the corrosion warranty.

I know, I am suing GM now for undercarriage corrosion.

Best think is wash the undercarriage to keep salt off it and park in garage if possible.

I should also add that anyone else's should hold up better than mine. my stepdad NEVER washed the undercarriage - first time was 7 years later when i did it. salt was never kept off - probably contributed to my peeling/flaking rocker panels. and not always parked in garage. some dealers do undercoating that should be covered by corrosion warranty as it is dealer-installed, such as on my moms buick lucerne.

i digress a bit, but oh well... the dealer my dad works for had a bit of a mishap a couple of years ago when they were undercoating a truck. the truck was not put on the lift properly and the slid off on one side. this left it hanging only by the frame on one side of the truck. luckily the frame of the 07 silverado HD they were working on was strong enough that it didnt get damaged in this incident except for scratching the new undercoating off where it rubbed.

**daddytech** · 08-30-2009, 04:03 AM

Wonder if that Rhino liner would work as a good undercoating or not ...

**suede** · 08-31-2009, 12:39 AM

I also was kinda curious on this, The pickup i bought has some rust issues on the lower side skirts and cab corners, i had an idea of tryin to get as much of the rust off as possible, then hitting it with 3M's rubberized coating to try and slow it down...

anyone done this or bad idea?

**tattooed4life** · 08-31-2009, 01:18 AM

I've been pondering doing the same on my truck. The 2 things holding me up--#1 do I want the rockers black? and#2 the time the truck needs to be down for it to "cure". I better decide soon, Michigan winters are coming soon and this is definantly a summer job.

**Ratchet Thunderbolt** · 09-07-2009, 08:17 AM

Originally Posted by suede

I also was kinda curious on this, The pickup i bought has some rust issues on the lower side skirts and cab corners, i had an idea of tryin to get as much of the rust off as possible, then hitting it with 3M's rubberized coating to try and slow it down...

anyone done this or bad idea?

Rust needs two things, oxygen and moisture. If you just clean it and cover it the small amount of rust left still has oxygen in it and will continune to grow. You might try cleaning it and using a product called pour 15. It actually bonds with rust and stops it. I used it with and old F-150 and it stopped the rust for years. It's expensive $40 per quart and has a short shelf life if you leave the lid open. Humidity is what cures the stuff.

http://www.por15.com/

Good luck.

**Ratchet Thunderbolt** · 09-07-2009, 08:23 AM

Originally Posted by tattooed4life

I've been pondering doing the same on my truck. The 2 things holding me up--#1 do I want the rockers black? and#2 the time the truck needs to be down for it to "cure". I better decide soon, Michigan winters are coming soon and this is definantly a summer job.

I am on vacation now but when I return I am going to check with GM to make sure Ziebart does not void any warranty on the truck. I am also going to check with the Ziebart people to see how they avoid spraying the internal locks and such. Their product tends to gum up moving parts especially when it's cold. If all the answers are correct then I'm going to get mine done before winter sets in.