2020 - Northeast Frame Rust

You have a brand new frame and you don’t want the pleasure of beholding toyota perfection? It’s never ever going to be more beautiful!

I bought mine new as well and I decided 4runner “maintainance” would become part of my exercise routine. I’m weird with liking all the mechanical bits.

In any case, if it’s gonna be a forever vehicle, and your back allows you to crawl around underneath, it’s a fun time to woolwax every surface inside and outside of the frame and crossmembers. Woolwax for exposed portions of frame, and fluid film or other thin wet-film product (or cavity wax) inside the frame. Don’t use anything that dries like a paint, or like a rubberized coating. When any thick paint or rubber coating fails, it will be the cause perforation…unless you catch it early and scrape it off so it doesnt act like a bucket and trap water.

Whether you decide to do it yourself or a shop do it, I’d feel bad having them drill holes in the body. The body itself is galvanized, so it doesn’t rust like the frame does. The rocker panels also have holes with plugs already to access the insides (or to drain them out when you start mudding lol). The plugs can be found underneath, nearby the threaded holes where steps are installed. So to make additional holes into body work that doesn’t have particular rust issues doesn’t make sense.

If you do get the insides of rocker panels sprayed, make sure to inspect the rocker panel drains/vents. They are small/thin and potentially could get plugged up with whatever product is used. That would be worse than not spraying them at all.

 

McSpazatron-

Appreciate the great response. I've read A LOT on this forum about different member' experiences and approaches in rust proofing their frames but not sure I've come across your suggestion of using FF internally and Wool Wax on the exposed areas before. That's also good to know about the body panels being galvanized; I had come across several posts of members whom have run across rust in the rear hatch at some point (I just assumed doors were susceptible too) but it sounds like I'm going overkill in my thinking.

As for having this done by a professional the first time, the one guy does this as a side gig after hours, so I was thinking I might see if I could shadow him while he's doing my truck (even if I have to slip him a couple extra bucks) just so I can see how it's done correctly and what equipment I'd need to pick up to do it myself the next time.

Much appreciated amigo!

TimG

 

It’s pretty easy to DYI. I recommend Blaster Surface Shield over Fluid Film. It sprays out of the can in a thicker stream and covers quicker. Two aerosol cans should be enough. Home Depot sells it. Just wear some old clothes that you can throw out and spray all the metal you can get too. Whenever you change your oil and rotate tires is a good time to spray above the skid plates and the suspension.

 

There’s a real market for mechanics that allow owners to shadow them while they work. Best of both worlds if you ask me. At a shop I even saw a sign with the shop rates. $175/hour or $300/hour if owner watches . Sure it was a joke, but the idea has some merit lol.

The galvanization of the body is the only reason people will even buy 10-15 year old 4runners for silly prices. They look great, as long as you don’t look at the frame.

The idea of using FF for enclosed areas is because it’s thinner than woolwax, so it will flow and wick into crevices better. Truth be told, if I had to do it again, I’d get a proper cavity wax from 3m to do enclosed areas of frame. Or even cosmolene type products. A lot of this stuff is available in spray cans, and you can get cheap hoses for the cans to reach into areas. The biggest advantage of FF and Wool Wax, is that it’s pretty much all Lanolin (basically it’s hair grease from dirty sheep that don’t take showers). Neither have solvents, they don’t stink like a Dow Chemicals plant, and they are both great for the skin lol. Actually, I’ve gotten some overspray into my eyes without a problem, besides smoother eyelid blinking action FF will make your 4runner smell of barnyard for a few days and ruin clothes, but that’s it.

In comparison, some steel protection products (while they might be better) will set off a migraine in a few whiffs without a good respirator.

The point about the hatch rust is a good one. There’s a ton of mechanical works in the hatch tk make our beloved roll down window work. The works are not protected from water and dust because the hatch and doors all allow water to pass through and drain out the bottom. The problem in the salt belt is the salty spray on interstate commutes. Once salty water flows in there, it’s very hard to control the rust in the long term. I plan on taking the inside panel off the hatch to see what needs taking care of on mine, since I can already see some surface rust on the galvinized structure that holds the window tracks (when I pop off the hand hold on the bottom).

 

I'm a loyal FF fan boy. That fluidity and flowiness is what allows for its "self healing" properties. I put it on everything (think Windex from the movie Greek Wedding)

 

Haha! I believe it....and yes, I highly doubt a shop would allow me to shadow them, which is why I was considering maybe having the other guy (the who does this as a side gig) spray my rig instead. The only put-off is, he wanted me to leave my truck with him overnight because he uses one of the garage bays after hours at the dealership he works at full time. I mean....nothing against him at all...he seems like a standup guy (also a 4R owner), however, circumstances being what they are....whether a freak accident, my truck being stolen while sitting at his house, etc., I don't have a warm n' fuzzy feeling about leaving my truck with a complete stranger.

Yeah, I kinda' like the idea of products like Cosmoline, etc. because they sound as though they dry and are not this gloppy, waxy, dirt attracting mess and because you don't seem to need to apply it annually as I'm told is the case with FF, Wool Wax, etc., however, there are enough members here who recommend the latter two products to make me feel good about going that route....yourself included

Ok, so I wasn't making that up in my head after all - lol Right now, I'm thinking I'm fairly safe from the salt and brine since NJ hasn't gotten any real snow in several years and on top of that, I work from home 4 out of 5 days a week, and can forgo my 1 hour commute that one day if the roads are an icy/snowy shit-show, however, we are trying to move to Maine in the next few years and I've seen what cars and trucks from Maine end up looking like. So, this would be something I'd want to do one day, too.

Thanks mucho!
TimG

 

LOL - ah yes....the Windex!!

Kidding aside, I went to Fluid Film's website and read through their "bragging rights" about how long their product has been around, and all of the different government agencies (U.S. Navy, U.S. Dept of Agriculture, U.S Forestry Service, NASA....the list goes on) that have been using it for decades on their machinery...including U.S. Naval vessels....in environments where rust thrives. Like I said in my response to @McSpazatron earlier, I'm not a fan of the idea of having to do this annually, but after dropping $51K on a truck, I'm betting I'll warm up to the idea - hahaha

Thanks,
TimG

 

There are more areas on a 5th gen than the frame to consider for corrosion protection. Not that it's the be all and end all, but here's what I did:

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

 

This is one of the more useful corrosion control posts here! Take heed all you people!!!

 

Ask around, even local mechanic shops have friends of a friend type situation. On Long Island there a few side gig bros that come to your house with a pancake compressor, few gallons of FF and a nozzle, and 4 bottle jacks and they go to town right in your driveway with just a tarp. $150 bucks and its done in like 30 mins ( not the most thorough job..but its done ). Heck for a buck fifty he'll spray your wife with lanolin

 

Also for those of us that are trigger happy, its mild to harmless on sensors and bushings and stuff.

Need I say NOT ON YOUR ROTORS please (disclaimer alert)

 

If I were doing it again, I would cover up the CV boots, steering rack boots, and not overspray onto the fender liners. The lanolin itself isnt the problem, but it gets heavier when gets saturated with dust and starts to “set-up” into the famous woolwax crust. The steering boots tend to bunch up when you’re wheeling since they loose that immediate flexibility. CV boots stand to possibly abrade a bit with any dust or grit that gets absorbed in the woolwax.



They bend back easily by hand, and straighten out after few miles by themselves, but still.

The splash shields became too heavy and basically became a sloppy floppy mess. i replaced those with heavier material.

 

My rustproofing solution is living in the desert.

 

Solid point... I often spray these with a silicon based spray to keep the rubber supple