Undercarriage care

[Perfecto Martinez]

Hello,
I recently purchased a 2018 RAM 1500....I am now a first time RAM 1500 owner. Very excited about using this truck with my family for camping trips and other excursions. In taking a look at the undercarriage, I definitely see some surface corrosion from when the truck was used for the first two years in Michigan (I am in Colorado). I just washed the under side of the vehicle to remove a lot of the caked on mess. My plan is to spray the frame with Rustoleum Rust Reformer. Please take a look at these pics after the wash down.

First, any major issues you guys see that I should be really concerned about? I was going to go to town with a 60 grit pad on my angle grinder, but that seems a little rough, you can see where I started that at the front of the vehicle. My thought now is to just go over it with a steel brush first and then hit it with the rustoleum. Is it OK to just hit the whole frame with this, including where the bolts and nuts are? Any other advice you guys can offer?

Thank you in advance.
Perfecto

 

[dale197338]

We must of had the same owner. I bought a used 18 and it looked like they dropped it in a mud pit and pulled it out. I must have removed 150-200 pounds of caked on crap from the underside.

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[Bigskyroadglide]

My recommendation would be to fluid film or krown it.

I would do the rust eliminator spray, then a full treatment of rust proofing.

About $200 with tax, stop rust in its track.

My 11 gets it once per year, I have zero rust.

I have driven nation wide in salt and snow, no rust.

 

[Mike0565]

Me personally would stay away from Rust-Oleum. I bought my 16' in 18' coming off a lease. I'm lucky that the person who leased it was meticulous. Had it "Krowned" last year for the first time and will be having it done every year. I live in upstate NY where winter's can be tough on vehicles. You can buy aerosol Krown spray cans on line.

 

[PoMansRam]

The ex-rental 2019 Ram 1500 w/ 15k miles on it I just bought looks about like that and its barely a year old.

So many bare cast iron surfaces and poor coatings.

My plan will be my usual fluid film and or woolwax given I'm almost out of FF. I've got the cheaper pneumatic spray gun kit. It works great.

Krown is great, but it all depends on the quality of the application and IMO having used them, lots of shops don't do a great job for what you pay.

 

[TheEnder]

The ex-rental 2019 Ram 1500 w/ 15k miles on it I just bought looks about like that and its barely a year old.

So many bare cast iron surfaces and poor coatings.

My plan will be my usual fluid film and or woolwax given I'm almost out of FF. I've got the cheaper pneumatic spray gun kit. It works great.

Krown is great, but it all depends on the quality of the application and IMO having used them, lots of shops don't do a great job for what you pay.

I’m happy to live in ******-fornia, only for no rust.


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[indept]

You should wire brush some of the lumpy stuff on the cross member before spraying anything.

 

[2016Bighorny]

I just sprayed a couple coats of VHT Epoxy chassis paint on my undercarriage... looks fantastic, and it has been two years in Wisconsin weather...

 

[tron67j]

I just sprayed a couple coats of VHT Epoxy chassis paint on my undercarriage... looks fantastic, and it has been two years in Wisconsin weather...

That looks awesome! I have been trying to figure out what to do with my 2018 2500. I bought it last October and fortunately has not seen salt yet. It is garage kept and I spray undercarriage to keep it clean. I like how this looks and it appears to hold up well. Did you do anything before other than clean it good?

 

[2016Bighorny]

That looks awesome! I have been trying to figure out what to do with my 2018 2500. I bought it last October and fortunately has not seen salt yet. It is garage kept and I spray undercarriage to keep it clean. I like how this looks and it appears to hold up well. Did you do anything before other than clean it good?

Thank you!!!...
I just cleaned with undercarriage flush at the carwash, let it air dry, then started spraying. Then, I tossed some stainless steel bolts in the differential cover to dress things up a bit more.

 

[Perfecto Martinez]

You should wire brush some of the lumpy stuff on the cross member before spraying anything.

Thanks. Yeah, I am going to hit it with a steel brush before I coat it. Thanks for your reply.

 

[Perfecto Martinez]

I came across this on YouTube. Very informative.

 

[Perfecto Martinez]

Me personally would stay away from Rust-Oleum. I bought my 16' in 18' coming off a lease. I'm lucky that the person who leased it was meticulous. Had it "Krowned" last year for the first time and will be having it done every year. I live in upstate NY where winter's can be tough on vehicles. You can buy aerosol Krown spray cans on line.

Thanks for your input!

 

[Perfecto Martinez]

My recommendation would be to fluid film or krown it.

I would do the rust eliminator spray, then a full treatment of rust proofing.

About $200 with tax, stop rust in its track.

My 11 gets it once per year, I have zero rust.

I have driven nation wide in salt and snow, no rust.

Thank you for your input!

 

[Canadianguy]

Get it krowned. I live in southern Ontario, Canada. Winters can be brutal and when they are they dump tons of salt and brine on the roads/highways. I always get my vehicles done by Krown. No rust. Just make sure to get them sprayed annually.

 

[Gero]

If you're in Canada here's what I would suggest.

Get the underside pressure washed. Then have it sprayed with corrosion-free now. And in the fall, have it krowned.

Get her krowned once a year. Will be prestine forever.

 

[Burla]

Thank you for your input!

fluid film dyi

I just say from what Michigan Kyle and Corey tell me you should probably spray the bottom the of truck once a year. Not with can either, but barrel. Once upfront costs are out of the way, very cheap to buy. 5 gallon size ends up 30 bucks a gallon, likely last you a few years.

 

[SitKneelBend]

My recommendation would be to fluid film or krown it.

I would do the rust eliminator spray, then a full treatment of rust proofing.

About $200 with tax, stop rust in its track.

My 11 gets it once per year, I have zero rust.

I have driven nation wide in salt and snow, no rust.

I pay $150 for Krown on my quad cab Express. I was going to buy Fluid Film but it ended up being the same cost for me to do it myself as to have the Krown shop in St. Louis do it for me. They also typically run coupons for those who get it done before winter starts.

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[Livinalittle]

Rust is a constant battle for me. But I’ll take maintenance payments over truck payments any day.

I take mine to crown every other year. I also keep a can of paint over rust in the garage; anytime I’m underneath I just spray a shot of paint wherever I think is necessary. For things like brake line fittings or coolant hose adapters I’ll just spray honey goo and try and stop the rust from spreading too quickly.

Unfortunately I also have to do a little bit of body maintenance every summer. Just waiting for some time off work. Eventually I may have it professionally done but so far duplicolor is getting the job done.

 

[VelocityC6Z]

I just sprayed a couple coats of VHT Epoxy chassis paint on my undercarriage... looks fantastic, and it has been two years in Wisconsin weather...

That's incredible lol