T diesel, those pictures (on the thread you linked) of the coating on your truck look nice. Did you apply it yourself? and maintain it yourself?

 

Had it done by Krown.
It's about $160.00 a year.
https://www.krown.com/

 

I will be using FLUID FILM | Powerful Corrosion Protection & Lubrication and applying myself.

 

The difference between steel rust and aluminum rust (better term is oxidation) is that when Iron oxidizes, it actually repels the oxidized layer from the surface exposing new iron to oxidize. This continues until the iron is rusted through or is gone entirely. Aluminum oxide actually binds to the surface of the un-oxidized aluminum effectively creating a barrier against new oxidization. Aluminum oxidizes very quickly, just like iron (or steel) but it doesn't progressively rust through automatically like iron. You have to expose new aluminum via cleaning or polishing to get aluminum to re-oxidize.

 

Krown is a great product. My 2000 F350 after 17 NY winters.





My 2017 two days old with Krown spray.

 

Wow a 2000, very nice!

 

Curiosity question (as our 14 year old Mercedes is having rust issues).


Im very interested in rust protection for my 17 SD.


1. Is the krown process worth it? does anyone have it on a 10-15 year old vehicle that can speak to its effectiveness?


2. Why don't all vehicles come from the factory with this stuff (if its so effective?)


Thanks

 

Sorry I missed those 17 year old pics.... Did you have it done 17 times (once a year?) Or is that a one time spray on when new? Thanks

 

I see you are in ny, where do you get that done?

 

I had my 2017 SD undercoated at the dealership when I bought it. What surprised me was how messy it was. They got undercoat on my chrome exhaust tips and some on my chrome running boards. My Rancho shocks where black and I even had some specks of over spray on the truck itself.

I was able to remove it in those areas without issue but I feel they did a sloppy job.

 

I had mine done at a local shop that specializes in undercoatings and trim care. The guys that work in there know what they are doing, and I suspect it is not because they are careful, but that the company has it regimented / procedural. A vehicle dealership probably is not performing undercoatings quite as frequently leaving a lot of the decision making what prep work to do and how to spray to the worker doing the spraying. This is my impression after looking into. My understanding was that even with overspray it often can be peeled off, albeit with some care. There are some products that are oily that have to be wiped off. The flip side, was that I found spots they did not coat, probably because of the potential for overspray. These are small very minor spots that would have taken the technician extra maneuvering to apply. Not quite disappointing, but definitely not thorough. I am thinking of buying a can of similar coating and touching it up myself when I go to do an oil change.

 

1. Likely due to so many people not keeping their vehicles long enough to deal with the issues caused by rust. Its cheaper for those owners.

2. Same reason as #1.

 

Undercoating will help reduce road noises.

 

I have used Fluid Film on all my Super Duty trucks. I'm not sure if its the same basic thing as Krown.

I bought the spray gun and bottle and wands - hook it to an air compressor and do it myself.

The upsides of Fluid Film is that is doesn't smell as bad as traditional oil, nor does it drip, nor is it black. It is a clear color. It is not environmentally harmful. It remains somewhat fluid, meaning that it naturally moves into cavities and low points where rust naturally starts.

The downside is basically that the "high traffic" areas of the underside lose their coating within 1 year of driving. Bottoms of axles and diffs, bottoms of leaf springs, front radius arms, etc...all "wash off" over time.

So my solution is to re-apply just before the onset of winter every year.

I'm only doing the frame of my 2017 since the body is aluminum. Yes, aluminum can corrode - but salt doesn't seem to affect it much. I've had aluminum-skinned Land Rovers and Range Rovers, as well as an all-aluminum Audi A8 that spent their entire lives in New England...no rust. So I just do the steel parts underneath the truck.

I bought the whole Fluid Film factory kit for about $150; the 1-gallon "paint" jugs containing the fluid film are sold for about $35 a gallon.

 

troverman, where do you apply it? in the garage, or on the lawn somewhere?
Do you use a face mask? respirator?