Do you need underbody rust protection on new Prime?

Migrating from oil change thread to the topic of rust protection.

According to Fluid Film manufacture site, OK to use on plastic, but not on non-oil resistant rubbers.

FAQ | Fluid Film

FluidFilm or WoolWax are not paintable. They are just too thick to brush it on. I do like the thinner boiled linseed oil consistency, but for a larger area without worry of over-spraying, I like using spray form either aerosol can or spray gun.

 

Good question. I don't know for sure. To be honest, I don't think I can tell rubber from some type of plastic.

 

I am getting ready to put winter wheels on my PRIME and our other cars soon. I decided to spray rust inhibitors on suspension and break area as well as any frames that are accessible without hoisting the car up high. Trying to decide what to use, I watched this video.

Apparently, most of commercial rust inhibitors work to prevent rust formation if used correctly. However, the ease of application and durability of the coating seems to be quite different depending on what is used.

I have used FluidFilm and WoolWax both in aerosol cans. Both of them in this format are very viscous and not easy to apply in uniform thickness. The WoolWax in particular was very prone to clog in a can. For this reason, this season, I am going to try using other rust inhibitors. I just ordered LPS 3 Premier Rust Inhibitor, CRC 06026 heavy duty marine corrosion inhibitor, and Cosmoline RP 342. They seems to be much thinner than lanolin based FluidFilm or WoolWax and are more durable on surface (not easily wiped off) yet not permanent as some other paint format inhibitor like POR 15. Then there is @Mendel Leisk favorite Boiled Linseed Oil. The price do vary depending on where to get, but most of them are priced around $8-18/can (10-12oz). And many of the brand sells in bulk either in 1 or 5 gal which makes the price much more affordable if wide areas or many cars need to be treated.

I will see which one is the best performer in the areas of 1) ability to prevent rust formation, 2) ease of application, 3) durability, and 4) cost.

 

I just found a part II of the undercoating material testing video.

In this video, he run ~20 or so more of brands and some home brew type rust inhibitors. What's interesting is that he did include Boiled Linseed Oil in this round of test and concluded that it work A OK, but not as good as some other commercial products out there. And more interestingly, home cooking oil did just as well in preventing rust on steel metal as BLO, plus, Vaseline did even a better job of preventing rust forming.

Also, after doing some search on the boiled linseed oil, I have found alarming fact that the BLO can be fire hazard if not properly disposed of. For that reason, I decided not to use it at least not for large area treatment. See this video for more information:

Well, after seeing those videos, I think I am going to use those 4 products on my car this year. One on each corner, so I can compare next spring how well each one did.

4 products I am going to use are:

1. FluidFilm
2. LPS 3 Premier Rust Inhibitor
3. CRC 06026 heavy duty marine corrosion inhibitor
4. Cosmoline RP 342

 

For $17/can, I wouldn't call it cheap. Although it is a largeish 17oz can. It was not in the line-up for the test video I linked, so I don't know how good it is compared to others. I ordered CRC for $7/can (10 oz).

 

OK, I placed an order for a can of Transtar 4423 Amber Rustproofing. I also picked up a can of WD-40 300035 Specialist Corrosion Inhibitor, Long-Lasting Anti-Rust Spray. I will run my version of testing those rust inhibitors this winter. More I look for the right product, more choices I find. In the end, as you say, the balance between 1) ability to prevent rust formation, 2) ease of application, 3) durability, and 4) cost, plus 5) safety and environmental factors will determine which one is the best value. Yeah, if the least expensive one lasts only a short time, then it is not very good value.

 

From the review video I linked, there seems to be 3 categories of material used for undercoating. One is material like FluidFilm or Woolwax that remains liquid even after a year. Those are very viscous and hold onto the surface, but unfortunately, they will pickup any dust and dirt because it stays wet all the time. Advantage of those are the fact it can be wiped off if you ever need to remove it. This also can be a disadvantage that the material can come off in a area where subjected to water and dirt beating on it all the time like in the wheel well.

Then there are material like CRC or Cosmoline that drys and forms hard film. They can only be removed by solvent. This can be an advantage that it stays on in an area subject to external force, but could be a disadvantage that if it ever need to be removed.

The third type is hybrid of those two, like LPS 3, which stays tacky but drys semi hard, thus resisting easy come off.

From what you have described, Transtar seems to fall in the the second category similar to Cosmoline and CRC while the WD40 is more like LPS 3.

 

I ordered LPS 3 Premier Rust Inhibitor to be used on my car for comparison of various brands of rust inhibitors. But the company I ordered it made mistake and sent me this LPS Chainmate lubricant. The store does not want the item shipped back to them. So they are mine to keep free. I got dozens of 11oz aerosol cans. Question, what can I use this stuff for? It seems it is suitable to be used on very heavy machinery. Any good use around house?

 

Yes, that was the only "chain" or "cable" I could think of around my house. I don't have bicycle or motorcycle. Oh, well, I just ended up with 12 cans of hazardous waste then.