Rust proofing underside.....

[JamesHow]

Hi

Can anyone recommend the best rust proofing system for rust proofing the underside of my mk8 transit which is already needing treatment after only 5yrs.

I'm thinking rust treatment, primer and underseal..

But which one - DIY application.

Thanks in anticipation.

Cheers James

[MilesWorld]

im just about to write a post, maybe i will get a better response !!!

[metalworker0]

it's not the external underside you want to worry about its the internal underside ..far i can make out (on fords) 99 percent of rust starts from within .
On my connect ..(yes i know its not a mk8 or whatever) ..ford have provided rubber bungs in key areas to get at box sections within. you may have to drill extra holes.
You only know of these key areas if you've explored inside like i have ....
if you're Serious i would suggest using an endoscope camera to see what's within and what needs protection first. (can be bought off ebay for less than £50 works with lap top)

Then buy the Waxoyl or what ever corrosion treatment you choose

To do a through job, bumpers and wheel arch liners, sill trims have to be removed - even wings if you want to do an even better job.
Note other key areas that can only be got at from inside the van like wheel arches etc.

First dilute the cavity wax product 50/50 with a harmless solvent ..(meaning not cellulose thinners) needs to be white spirit for waxoyl

This will get the stuff PENETRATING into the seems and hidden areas ..

Let dry for a few days ...then put it in heated up and undiluted (put the can in a bucket of boiling water)

Buy the injection kit...the air powered one works with a shultz gun

Search here for restorations and rust repairs to see where the problem areas are and how bad they become - to get and understanding on how rust starts and how to prevent it .

Here's a picture of an inner sill ..i think not transit ..but it gives you and idea what you have to protect and the rust traps lurking within. any overlapping panel will hold moisture so vehicle has to be dry to start with .. these overlaps are why a thinned down application is recommended, thinned down it will be drawn into the joint like plumbers solder.

all the best.mark

[MilesWorld]

Many thanks Mark,
i have been looking at this lot www.rust.co.uk
they make a penetrating oil and a thinner version to be used first in bad cases,
The rust is not bad on my van, but its really bad manufacturing that designs in moisture-rust traps into vehicles, they should be coming out of the factory internally waxed,
im gonna go for a rust converter followed by 2 part expoxy primer on external rust / wax on the internal, thin then standard (shutz gun), and then again in the spring.
many thanks Miles
p.s. your sheet metal skills are awesome, i love making stuff like that - lets hope i dont have to

[ned]

For the last 7 years I’ve painted the undercarriage of my old mk6 with hammerite every year, it seems to have kept the metal stitcher at bay

[metalworker0]

Many thanks Mark,
i have been looking at this lot http://www.rust.co.uk
they make a penetrating oil and a thinner version to be used first in bad cases,
The rust is not bad on my van, but its really bad manufacturing that designs in moisture-rust traps into vehicles, they should be coming out of the factory internally waxed,
im gonna go for a rust converter followed by 2 part expoxy primer on external rust / wax on the internal, thin then standard (shutz gun), and then again in the spring.
many thanks Miles
p.s. your sheet metal skills are awesome, i love making stuff like that - lets hope i dont have to

I'm not too sure about that rust converter ..think it does not penetrate into the rust as far as i would like it to ...it will turn the rust a blacky blue colour ..but only the first 0.5mm of it ..once dried and you scrape it with say a wood chisel you'll still see the brown stuff underneath .

Much prefer the strait phosphoric acid ..wire brush as much as you can off ..put on the acid and with more wire brushing you eventually reach un-rusted metal..then you know its right.

With rust converter ..you are hopefully sealing it in for good, then you are covering it with more products ..so when the time comes when it starts to blister it will take in more water ..it will be worse ..I say i don't have that hope ....unless you see the van as just a 5 year thing.

the underside exposed floor etc ..I've just blitzed the whole underside of a car with 1/8 inch of waxoyl in the past ...over the rust (mild rust staining) and it kept it at bay - my experience, most of my cars went to the breakers with an accumulation of faults that added up to more than they were worth.

Since owning a ford van , i see they need special care to prevent rust ..more so than any other vehicle I've owned. hopefully now I've given my van that special care ..i can just ignore any rust prevention measures and drive without worry.
The work ive put into this, will see it lasting beyond ten years ...i don't want to be doing it again ..so i do it right. and hopefully it will reward me.

Fords, i had a mk1 Fiesta (Spanish made) ...bought when it was 12 years old kept it for another 8 years before someone pulled out on me and wrote it off.
A sierra (German made) 12 years old ..rebuilt the engine and waxoyed it ..no problems with rust ..kept it for 10 years

These were years ago ...ford parts from ford in those days were at a fair reasonable price, which is how i could hold onto them for so long ...- what's happened ? example - wheel arch clips ate £9.60 each! and i hear labour at £76 an hour ..


all the best..mark