Stock frames in snow belt?

Just wondering how many on here have gone through a few snow/rust belt winters without preventative measures to their frame. I just bought my ‘21 TRD w/40k miles and it’s got a like-new beautiful frame that looks well sealed from the factory. Should I still coat it? Any suggestions? TIA.

 

I ran my 2021 through a Northern Michigan winter last year and did not notice any major rust underneath though the hitch receiver was showing some. Since I like this truck so much and plan to keep it for a while I had a Krown treatment done this fall and plan to continue it for the next few years. Easy $150 decision IMHO.

 

Yes, definitely coat it. Small price to pay for great preventative maintenance. It might look ok now, but left untreated it WILL rust.

 

Having lived in the Rust Belt for my entire 66 years, definitely coat it. Unfortunately, Toyotas are not known for their corrosion resistance. Number one product I would recommend: Waxoyl. Number one product I would not recommend under any circumstances: Ziebart.

Want to really do it right? Here's what I did:

Complete Corrosion Protection for my New T4R | Toyota 4Runner Forum [4Runners.com]

 

Fluid film, wool wax PB surface shield are others that folks use.

Stay away from rubberized coatings, they can trap stuff underneath them and you will never know till its too late.

 

Wool Wax or Fluid Film both inside and outside the frame.

POR 15 the welds before you coat it.

 

Agreed 100 percent put something on it. Not worth the risk

 

I didn't coat my old truck, had it 11 years and there was decent amount of rust underneath but no perforation or any safety issues because of that. We have a lot of salt on the roads in winter. So based on my old truck I'd say that without coating 4Runners will run just fine for well over 11 years, but with rust protection it looks much better and will probably cost more when you sell it.

 

yeah, i bet most would go 15-20 years untreated before things get structural. But at that point, it would be game over and not worth saving. Given most people expect their 4runners to keep running and running, rust perforation on the frame would be seen as an early death. Even though 15 years is generally considered a good service life.

 

My 15 year old fj had frame rot in connecticut. Definitely fluid film annually!

 

Living in a salt belt I'll attest to annual undercoating. Personally I prefer Krown and yah I don't care what you think is better just coat it. Just know you're only slowing the rust down not preventing it. Problem I've found is that the frames rust from the inside out. Being a fully boxed frame like the 4Runner they are hard to rustproof. Something that creeps is best. Over time they collect dirt inside and when "brined" as in a salt belt they corrode that much faster. I tip my local Krown undercoater to pay extra attention to the frame and spray the S*** in every hole they can find since new. Then I go over it again with spray bombs when I switch out my tires for winter. Even then fingers crossed. Salt sucks.

 

I’m merciless with my garden hose…lol. A few time per year I find every hole in the framerails and crossmembers and jet water into there untill it flows out the other side for a while. Still do this even though I sprayed woolwax in it.

Next year, Im gonna check inside the frame with a borescope to see how it’s doing.

 

I've lived in the heart of the rust belt for my entire 66 years and have seen and used many, many corrosion protection products. I've seen unprotected and rarely washed vehicles start seeing serious corrosion here in 5-8 years. For many folks, that's about the same time the vehicle is paid for - and totally unacceptable to me. I always have and always will use some type of oil-based coating on my vehicles. Does it work? Well, here's my 2006 Scion xB daily driver with 138,000 miles on it and Krown oil-based rustproofing.



The nice thing about Fluid Film, Krown, and other oil-based coatings is that they seep into areas old fashioned "rust proofing" coatings never got into. Those voids many times ended up being what finally ended the life of an otherwise great looking vehicle. Unless you have access to a lift and / or are willing to make a mess out of where you apply it though, really doing a job right requires experience and the right equipment. If you've never done it before, it's not for everyone. And yes, I love Fluid Film.

The bad thing about many oil-based coatings is that to be truly effective, they need to be inspected and re-applied on at least an annual basis. So, you get to make that mess every year. Then again, you do get to see how well the coating is holding up every year too - if you remember. The other bad thing is that they do get blasted off certain areas subject to road spray and debris. Oh, and I should mention that you'll never emerge from working underneath your vehicle clean again. The mess is what makes them effective if you keep after them.

The reason I'm now so impressed with Waxoyl is that it has almost all of the benefits of the oil-based products but doesn't need annual re-applications. It's a lot like Wool Wax, but seems to adhere somewhat better from what I've seen on my T4R. Sure, you can't buy it and apply it yourself, but that also means you have to get it applied by somebody who actually knows what they're doing. I love working on my vehicles, but I don't have a lift and a desire to mess up my garage with FF.

Just my 2 cents.

 

Someone in one of my local groups here in New England recently posted photos of their 2010 Tacoma that had rot holes in the frame. That is enough to make me worried. I think for $100 - 200 say every other year, is cheap insurance. Also, as somebody else mentioned it'll probably increase the resale value if you have a clean undercarriage, as well as making it easier to work on as it gets older.

I'm going back and forth on whether I actually want to do any suspension modifications on my 2013 because I'm anticipating such a struggle removing all the old stuff and being able to align it. Don't really feel like replacing all the control arms, but I fear that is what I would need to do because I'm sure the alignment cams are frozen on the lowers.

We can't have anything nice here in New England. Honestly, if one had the money, the smart move is to probably just trade the thing in on a new one every five or so years.

 

I bought my 4Runner 21 ORP hoping for 20 plus years. I am in the rust belt and seen way too many vehicles succumb to salt and moisture. I am fortunate to have an extra car (accord) and use that for winter and bad weather. I got it fluid filmed when new last summer and still not seen rain. I realize most cannot do this and don’t want to but if you can drive a winter beater. Or better yet head to Florida or similar when retired. That’s my plan. Covered up for winter

 

Most definitely. My new 4runner I'm on the second winter coming up. Oil coat it already. Had my 2012 Tacoma, spray it every year. Looked bran new. Live in northern Ohio rust belt. Must have.

 

Never thought of doing that and that's actually a great idea. Only times I ever have rust issues in a salt belt after an undercoating is usually where factory spray foam stops the spread/creep of undercoating. Krowned my old 2010 Caravan religiously yet it still rotted out at the front rear wheel dog leg an area full of factory foam that held water where rustproofing didn't penetrate. Did notice though that Krown drilled access holes in the front of my 4Runner's front door rocker/sill and put a plug in but if I take the plug out I can plainly see that there is a small gap between that and another layer of metal with little to no rustproofing penetration. I'll try to get a picture to post later.