Just wondering, I'm going to be driving my truck over the wonderful MI winter this year, and I'm afraid it's gonna start to rot. Right now it only has surface rust, bubbles here and there, the inside of the bed is pretty rusty, but there's no rot in it. Now, protecting it, I'm gonna wash it every weekend until Spring, I drive it back and forth the school everyday and to my friends houses now and then but I don't drive it too far. This Summer hopefully we're gonna sandblast it and repaint it, put in a spray/roll in bedliner, POR-15 the frame, and undercoat the insides of the body and bottom of the cab and bed. Then I'll have to drive it for one more Winter and hopefully after that I'll have a Ranger or something to drive in the Winter. Do you think I can make it that long without rot? How are your trucks holding up and what are you doing to protect them?

 

I drive mine everyday, well unless I am modifying it, but it is my daily driver. I have driven it for the past two winters and I just spray the underneath out every once in a while during the winter.

No problems so far and the Chicago area gets it fair share of snow and salt every year.

 

That's good to hear, I forgot to mention, I have a coat of wax on my truck too...

 

This is my second winter with my truck. I just make sure to pressure wash off the salt from underneath the truck whenever I can. Remember, these trucks are over 30 years old. They didn't get that way by bio-degrading in one year. I'm willing to bet they all got driven in the winter time everyday for the first ten years or so without issue.

 

True, lol, I know as a fact it was driven in the Winter of 2008/2009 because I found February 2009 McDonalds recipt in the glovebox. lol

 

Sure. But the definition of "winter" can and does vary w i d e l y.

It doesn't snow here but I avoid driving it in the rain.. rain sucks when yer driving 4,500 pounds of steel with four-wheel drum brakes.

 

'07 FX4, '03 Forester, '01 Mercury, '95 and '92 T-birds ... and the '77 4X4 F150.

If it get's really bad and I have to go up the road to the market or drug store or get gas for the generator, I'll take the Dent most likely.



On this day, I was using my snow blower to clear a path to my police car still parked way up in the woods where I my wife had pulled it using the '77 at 2am that same morning as I came home from a 16+ hour day. This day was about 7 am and I had another 16 hour day ahead of me. Police car did not have chains the night before, but it did after I cleared out a place to install them before leaving this morning. Snowing like crazy and that was the first time I had uised my 3 year old snow blower.

The '07 never moved from parking spot.

 

No trailer queen here, my rig sees duty year around, driving in the snow is half the fun of owning a 4x4 dent.

 

I drove mine the previous two winters. Basically because of it's beater status. It is now in a few pieces. Once back together I don't think it will see another winter.

 

mines a daily driver plus i use mine for responding to fire calls.full lights and sirens

 

Buy a few cans of undercoating and protect it a little more. I use mine whenever I feel the urge but I still keep it clean.
The flatbed on my work truck is only 4 years old and it gets washed regularly but even with that, i wish I would have used more undercoating when I first purchased it. It already has rust bubbles under the powdercoating .

 

When winter comes I throw the chainsaw in the cab and park the car....

 

I have driven my '79 every winter since I bought it in July of 1979. Reworking the wood deck on the bed and surprisingly little rust.

 

Once mine is on the road, it will be my daily driver. Se will be wearing a set of R85-16 (37" ish) Buckshot Mudders, studded & siped for winter and 37-12.50R16.5 Wrangler MT's for summer. My Dad's 73 F250 was his daily driver for many years, from new in 1973 until about 1990-1992 when he sold it. I really miss that truck and that's why I am building the current ride.

 

I guess Im on the minority.. Parked from November to April. I've seen a dent that a guy brought up from Georgia a few years ago. Now it's got the typical bed/cab corner rot. He daily drove it. What a waste.

Winters are brutal here in MA due to constant salt and slush. My fathers '04 F250 has some lousy bed rot, on the bracing where the bed bolts to the frame, and I think I can push through the rear bumper in places if I tried. Lower edge of the tailgate is starting too.

Mine can sit parked off the driveway.