Minor undercarriage rust

Hey everyone,
I noticed some rust on my front UCA's and stock TRD OR skid plate where ive scrapped before. I got my truck undercoated a while back but its my trucks first winter in New England. I just want to be proactive. I'm assuming a fine wire brush will be fine to remove the rust then some grease? Any ideas and tips would be appreciated! Thanks in advance!

 

I do not know if there is snow... and if so, salt where you live, but I would protect your under carriage with something.

 

Look for undercoating products discussed throughly on this site. fluild film, crc…. Your choice. But coating is a good idea no matter where you are

 

I can tell you living in new england is salt land with snow, and ice. Best when seeing rust is to wire brush it away, and use some rustoleum rust converter. Once that stuff dry's, go over it with some good black chassis paint. Once dry hit it with cosmoline.
So far i've found cosmoline best for a new truck frame. You might have to do minor touchups after a couple years depending on the roads you travel. I live off a 2 mile dirt road thats really bad from late fall to late spring. So far after 2 years the cosmoline has held up better than expected.

 

Youre good man it will last a decade even with no protection. Rust is normal. A lot of fear mongering in here. Spray it down once year with whichever treatment and dont stress it.

 

When l do my oil change and tire rotation is when l usually wire brush and spray any spots.

 

I wouldn’t worry much about rust on your OR “skid plate”. It’s barely functional and easily replaced for free. If you think your potential tinder dates are worried about a blemish on it, you can sand off the rust and repaint it.

I sand and touch up the paint on my rock sliders and hitch receiver every fall. Rust is unavoidable, but mostly just annoying… unless we are talking about much older trucks.

 

Thank you!

 

Amsoil makes some really good stuff called heavy duty metal protectant. Anything I put on gets a coat or two on the bolts and at any metal to metal contact. Everything looks new after the winters. It dries to a wax and resists power washing. Good stuff, not that expensive, can goes a long way.

 

This is my exact routine (fluid film instead of cosmoline - can't get cosmo in my area), works like a charm. I try to do this in the spring when I take my winter tires off, no worries for the rest of the year.

 

Exact stuff I use. No rust anywhere visible yet.

 

Tell that some tacoma owners here and they'll laugh at it without any rust protection. I've seen chevy, and ram trucks less than a decade old with half their frames gone from salt buildup when traveling these interstate new england highways every weekend. One local dealer had tacoma, and tundra frame stacked against one side of their building to the roof like cord wood one year. I suppose if in the south, or southwest you have nothing to worry about.

 

Wool wax in the fall. Wash in spring after all the salt is done. After a year or 3 the wool wax will build up and it gets easier and you'll use less.... messy shit though when your doing repairs and such on the underside....

 

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