Undercarriage oil based coating

I was going to say the same thing. Cosmoline goes on every bit as thin as FF and creeps just as well. When it dries it leaves a thicker waxy coating. It is a must though to put on at least 2 coats then just do an inspection each year and do a little touch up. IMO it is a way better product than Lanolin type products.

 

You don’t have to reapply fluid film to the whole undercarriage every year. Again I live in the rust belt and after applying fluid film the first time which was about 10 cans I only need to use 1-3 cans each fall to touch up high water areas takes about 15-30 minutes. The people who tell you fluid film easily washes off are the people who to high pressure car washes and power wash their undercarriage. This is a mistake the beauty of fluid film is it picks up dirt and debris which act like a shield and helps prevent the fluid film from washing off. There are excellent other items out their, just remember unless you are out mudding or doing water crossing there is really not much of a need to wash your undercarriage.

 

Yep, I use to do fluid flim on my tundra every fall. By spring it'd be all washed away from the rains, and slushy roads of winter. You'd start seeing surface rust appearing. I told myself there must be something much longer lasting. Did a bunch of research when I got my new taco. I used 2 good coats of cosmoline rp-342. It was a hot, stinky, messy job, but I was rewarded with something far better. This stuff is the ticket for new vehicles here. 3 years later, not a speck of rust. Most I had to do is a 5 minute touchup around the wheel wells where you get high abrasion water spray off the tires.

 

I reached out to them to see what sets their undercoating apart from crown. This is part of the reason I made this post to see if I was getting smoked on the price.

 

Labor rates are high no matter what state in New England. These guys gotta stay in business. Imo, I don't think its overly high.

 

I've done both Fluid Film and NHOU, and have been happy with both. The only down side I've found to the NHOU is it gets everywhere once you drive in the rain. Where as the Fluid Film seems to stay in place better, and the NHOU has a strong oder.

 

And Corrosion Free is reapplied only every 18 months.

 

Soooo....by now you realize there's more than one way to skin a cat. Bottom line.....do something, and continue treatments based on your rust proofing of choice. Anything is better than just letting it go. The guy that does mine started with Fluid Film but now uses Protection First Class as its thicker and has much more residual product left after a year. He also re-applies inside the boxes sections of the frame every year. Bottom line......my new-to-me 2018 frame is pristine.
On a side note. Since I started having this done the truck is eerily quiet. No squeeks, rattles (except for an occasional heat shield). I've heard this is a typical side effect of the lanolin based treatments. Its like driving a late model truck

 

It's pretty much an all day job if doing it yourself, something to dread having to do over a year later, or sooner if using a fluid flim type product. Imo, hard to beat cosmoline for a new chassis. It's basically one and done using 2 well applied coats. I would guess these guys that are in business to make a living at it, wouldn't want to use cosmoline for that reason. They want you to keep coming back.

 

Getting my '23 done at NHOU next week...

 

It is not an all day job my god man how long does it take you to tie your shoes. And again fluid film does not all wash off I live in the rust belt tons of snow tons of slush tons of rain and I never have to use more the 1-3 can reapplied ONCE each fall. My 2019 undercarriage looks brand new and every tine I get under the truck to work my hands come away covered in black fluid film. There are other things to use but your opinion of fluid film is way off base.

 

Going on my third spray this fall as well.
Nabbed my truck in a southern state so frame was pristine when I bought it. I’ll be damned if it doesn’t stay this way.

 

Do I need to bother to try and remove the rust that’s on there? Or should i just go ahead and go for the spray?

 

At best you are only going to be able to try to remove the rust that you can see and there will still be plenty of rust in places that you can't see or gain access to so I'm not sure that I would bother. Your truck already has pretty significant rust and nothing you do at this point is going to change that fact. I would do a thorough cleaning if necessary and remove any obviously flaking paint or rust. Give it a heavy coat of oil and reapply annually. That's your best hope for keeping it from getting worse.

 

you think that’s a significant amount? Or just surface rust?

 

First picture looks significant in that rust has gotten into the nooks and crannies so it's not just on the surface and there is no way for you to remove that rust because you can't get into those areas. Oil undercoating will wick into those areas and hopefully keep it from getting worse.

 

He hates FF and posts in every single thread about it. One man trying to shovel the ocean, I suppose.

I loathe doing FF but I put like 3/4 a gallon on my truck every year and including doing the doors, tailgate, rockers and front fenders and bedside I have never spent more than 2-2.5 hours doing it. My truck weeps FF from the frame on a 95° day in the summer. The only spot I have any rust on my truck is the absolute leading edge of my LCAs which is the lowest part of the truck and subject to all the abuse, and I suppose a tiny amount of surface under my front skid as I usually don't like to drop it as I'm worried about damaging the holes. I have 7 New England winters and my truck and couldn't be happier, except when I work on it.

 

How much do the charge?

 

Imo, its difficult to do a complete job with these rust inhibitors without taking the time to remove all the wheels, engine shield, and rear bumper covers, jacking the truck up jack stands, just to get started. I suited up pretty good taking a lot longer than just tying my shoes. Took my time spraying on the 1st coat making sure I got it into all the crevices throughout the chassis, and boxed in frame sections front to rear. Another hr watching tv while I waited for the first coat to dry. Then repeat the 2nd coat same as the first. After I finished these coatings, it was another hr or so cleaning up and putting the wheels, including the spare, engine shield and bumper cover ends back on, after waiting for the 2nd coat to dry. Imo, if you aren't doing that, you're not doing a really great job. Took me over 6 cans.

 

So, Fluid Film, Woolwax, oil spray, etc is nice and will protect everything. However, I'm one who likes to keep a clean undercarriage. Frequent washing during the winter would wash a good bit of that off. You need to keep the layers on there and get a dirt buildup. I didn't like that fact.

My 2021 was bought new so I was able to apply a Cosmoline type product.

This was after a couple winters, just touched up here and there.



Will be doing the same to my '22.