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Gladiator Maintenance - Undercarriage Washing; How Necessary Is It?

ShadowsPapa

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I pressure wash the underside of my vehicles every time I take them to town for a commercial wash.
When I wash them at home, I always use the hose with nozzle and wash them good underneath, too.
Maybe it's why I have a 1982 car that to this day is RUST FREE. I've never had a vehicle I bought new show any rust.
Even in non-salt areas, well, if you've done the repairs and restorations I've done, you'd know it's not only salt.
Dust, dirt, sand, all get into the spots where panels are put together. Water wets that dust, dirt and sand - the dust, dirt and sand hold the water - and keep things wet for long periods of time. Doesn't take "salt" necessarily, but other chemicals from the road or the air can cause rust.
I do plating and from the time I clean parts to ready them for plating - unless I treat them the instant they come out of the last process, they are already starting to rust. That's just from the stuff in the WATER and air.
So dirt and dust and sand can cause rust by holding water against the steel. Dust and dirt are not inert.

I wash under there to keep drain channels open, wash out the dirt and dust and of course in the winter times, I wash more frequently under there. You aren't going to push things into areas they'd not normally get. I've got photographic proof of that from my restorations.

Yes, I use high pressure. Yes, I want to blast that dust and dirt outta there. No, it won't cause worse issues (Just don't focus really high pressure on electrical connections and areas.)


I drove on the beach a lot with my jku. Id rinse the under carriage after every trip, but still got funk under there. I took to once a year hitting most of the underside with rust converter and then black engine spray paint. Kept it so nice the dealer always commented on it during service.

havent done this for the Jt yet, but its in my radar.
This ^
I also clean any rust I see starting and use a rust CONVERTER and repaint the area.

Below - 1982 car. Been in Iowa since 2007. Has been driven in winters in the past. No rust. I wash it under there regularly. The car below has over 193,000 miles on it.
My 77 AMX got washed real regular underneath. I washed out all drain holes - putting the nozzle right up to the hole and washing the inside of boxed frame channels and in the sill and rocker area and front gussets under the fenders. When I traded the car with almost 90K on it there was not a single sign of rust underneath - and it was my daily driver, summer and winter, blizzards and all, it was how I got to work and back from living in the country on gravel roads.

I'm working on restoring another where it never got washed and the dust and dirt gathered and stayed wet and rotted things where panels overlap and join because they stayed WET and were never washed out.

Jeep Gladiator Gladiator Maintenance - Undercarriage Washing; How Necessary Is It? 20190701_183110_HDR


Jeep Gladiator Gladiator Maintenance - Undercarriage Washing; How Necessary Is It? 20190716_142212
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I read that Jeep was one of the few companies that still had rust-proofing done on all its vehicles.

But given that it's meant for a rougher life, do you think it's just better to make peace with the idea that at some point it will get some funk on the undercarriage?

Don't get me wrong, I want to keep my Gladiator for as long as time lets me. But I'm starting to wonder if it's better just to live it up with the Gladiator and accept what happens, stress-free. (lol, that latter sounds impossible.)
Without a doubt it will. For me its more about mitigation than anything. I cant prevent rust and ware, but i can try and slow it down.
 

The White Rabbit

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IMO, a pressure washer is good at pushing salty water/sand/debris into places it would not normally get, and places you don't necessarily want it to be. I recommend a relatively low pressure flush.

I wash out the undercarriage and fenderwells of my Jeep JK a lot - almost every time I go wheeling - to get mud & debris off. I have found that a multi-pattern watering wand is the best tool for this (FYI my house water pressure is 50-60psi). I like the telescoping type, and they are only about $20. The design lets you wash down from all angles and reach into tight spaces instead of just spraying water up from underneath. You can gently flush areas like brakes and the insides of the wheels with the shower pattern, while you can use the more aggressive fan pattern for the fenderwells. The jet pattern is good for flushing out the LCA and shock mount areas. And you can reach all these areas without crawling under the Jeep, or worrying about damaging something or forcing water & debris into places it shouldn't be.

When the mud & dirt is caked on and dry, I soak with water first then use a pump sprayer to liberally apply a car wash & water solution and let it sit for about 5-10 minutes. This helps loosen up the dirt.

This is the type of wand I use:
Jeep Gladiator Gladiator Maintenance - Undercarriage Washing; How Necessary Is It? 20190716_142212

Melnor RelaxGrip 33 in. 8-Pattern Watering Extension Wand-R8639 - The Home Depot
RelaxGrip handles are designed to provide a more comfortable grip, so you can get more chores done with ease. Adjust the water flow with the thumb control, eliminating extra strain on your hands. The pivoting head makes it easy to adjust the spray angle. Choose between 8-patterns to water the...
www.homedepot.com
Just added to my cart.
 

The White Rabbit

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Good subject! Being on the beach often here in coastal Texas I was wondering the best way to deal with the salty sand and air. Very few car washes with undercarriage washing and the ones that do usually aren’t operating properly.
 
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Rei

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I pressure wash the underside of my vehicles every time I take them to town for a commercial wash.
When I wash them at home, I always use the hose with nozzle and wash them good underneath, too.
Maybe it's why I have a 1982 car that to this day is RUST FREE. I've never had a vehicle I bought new show any rust.
Even in non-salt areas, well, if you've done the repairs and restorations I've done, you'd know it's not only salt.
Dust, dirt, sand, all get into the spots where panels are put together. Water wets that dust, dirt and sand - the dust, dirt and sand hold the water - and keep things wet for long periods of time. Doesn't take "salt" necessarily, but other chemicals from the road or the air can cause rust.
I do plating and from the time I clean parts to ready them for plating - unless I treat them the instant they come out of the last process, they are already starting to rust. That's just from the stuff in the WATER and air.
So dirt and dust and sand can cause rust by holding water against the steel. Dust and dirt are not inert.

I wash under there to keep drain channels open, wash out the dirt and dust and of course in the winter times, I wash more frequently under there. You aren't going to push things into areas they'd not normally get. I've got photographic proof of that from my restorations.

Yes, I use high pressure. Yes, I want to blast that dust and dirt outta there. No, it won't cause worse issues (Just don't focus really high pressure on electrical connections and areas.)




This ^
I also clean any rust I see starting and use a rust CONVERTER and repaint the area.

Below - 1982 car. Been in Iowa since 2007. Has been driven in winters in the past. No rust. I wash it under there regularly. The car below has over 193,000 miles on it.
My 77 AMX got washed real regular underneath. I washed out all drain holes - putting the nozzle right up to the hole and washing the inside of boxed frame channels and in the sill and rocker area and front gussets under the fenders. When I traded the car with almost 90K on it there was not a single sign of rust underneath - and it was my daily driver, summer and winter, blizzards and all, it was how I got to work and back from living in the country on gravel roads.

I'm working on restoring another where it never got washed and the dust and dirt gathered and stayed wet and rotted things where panels overlap and join because they stayed WET and were never washed out.

Jeep Gladiator Gladiator Maintenance - Undercarriage Washing; How Necessary Is It? 20190716_142212


Jeep Gladiator Gladiator Maintenance - Undercarriage Washing; How Necessary Is It? 20190716_142212
Hi ShadowsPapa,

I really appreciate how knowledgeable you are in regards to cars, trucks, and maintenance.

May I please ask for clarification’s sake - which part of the undercarriage should I avoid high pressure washing, specifically the underside components where you mentioned electrical components and areas?

I was considering the extended wand mentioned above, as well as just using a garden hose with a nozzle. I was just wary about spraying underneath the engine bay, where I might hit the alternator, the electrical box, or anything I wasn’t meant to get wet.

Pardon any stupid question, or phrasing. The extent of my car maintenance skills is gassing up, and cleaning the interior. /nervouslaugh
 

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ShadowsPapa

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Hi ShadowsPapa,

I really appreciate how knowledgeable you are in regards to cars, trucks, and maintenance.

May I please ask for clarification’s sake - which part of the undercarriage should I avoid high pressure washing, specifically the underside components where you mentioned electrical components and areas?

I was considering the extended wand mentioned above, as well as just using a garden hose with a nozzle. I was just wary about spraying underneath the engine bay, where I might hit the alternator, the electrical box, or anything I wasn’t meant to get wet.

Pardon any stupid question, or phrasing. The extent of my car maintenance skills is gassing up, and cleaning the interior. /nervouslaugh
LOL- everyone started somewhere and keeps adding every day. People find their comfort zone or areas they prefer or like and take that branch in the road.

The Home Depot "wand" linked to earlier looks like a good idea - easy to reach under, enough force to break loose mud, etc.
My gas powered pressure washer has something like 4 nozzles. The top 2 are overkill and the top one would likely strip the rubber off the hoses. It's mean.
The biggest thing is to keep drain channe.ls open, keep the sand and dust and dirt out of the frame where it's boxed or from in between things. It holds water. I used to take the garden hose every weekend (when I had more time on my hands) and literally hit every drain in the rocker panels, front gussets (AMC unibody cars), where the quarter panel joined the inner panel and trunk floor (again, unibody), any place there was an intentional drain, I made sure to flush it out. The amount of stuff I got out was amazing, even in the summer after a rain the amount of grit and sand and dirt that had gotten into those places was crazy. I could see it dripping onto the driveway.
Alternator and most electrical connections on the JT are up high. I had to be careful on my now classis cars because the alternator was mounted low and spraying the bottom of the engine meant spraying the alternator. Pure water isn't bad, but avoid soap and chemicals there - if you do get soap in things like the alternator, rinse the heck out of it with pure water.

Modern electrical connections are water resistant. They have seals in them but high pressure water could still be forced in. Just avoid direct aim at them.
Clean out the frame rails- there's a lot of holes to allow stuff up in there and ledges and edges for dirt and sand to collect on.
 
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Rei

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LOL- everyone started somewhere and keeps adding every day. People find their comfort zone or areas they prefer or like and take that branch in the road.

The Home Depot "wand" linked to earlier looks like a good idea - easy to reach under, enough force to break loose mud, etc.
My gas powered pressure washer has something like 4 nozzles. The top 2 are overkill and the top one would likely strip the rubber off the hoses. It's mean.
The biggest thing is to keep drain channe.ls open, keep the sand and dust and dirt out of the frame where it's boxed or from in between things. It holds water. I used to take the garden hose every weekend (when I had more time on my hands) and literally hit every drain in the rocker panels, front gussets (AMC unibody cars), where the quarter panel joined the inner panel and trunk floor (again, unibody), any place there was an intentional drain, I made sure to flush it out. The amount of stuff I got out was amazing, even in the summer after a rain the amount of grit and sand and dirt that had gotten into those places was crazy. I could see it dripping onto the driveway.
Alternator and most electrical connections on the JT are up high. I had to be careful on my now classis cars because the alternator was mounted low and spraying the bottom of the engine meant spraying the alternator. Pure water isn't bad, but avoid soap and chemicals there - if you do get soap in things like the alternator, rinse the heck out of it with pure water.

Modern electrical connections are water resistant. They have seals in them but high pressure water could still be forced in. Just avoid direct aim at them.
Clean out the frame rails- there's a lot of holes to allow stuff up in there and ledges and edges for dirt and sand to collect on.
Thanks, ShadowsPapa!

I have a SunJoe SPX3000, but for cleaning the underside of the Gladiator, since I'm not 100% sure where the electrical components are (Although Im crawling underneath the truck to get a better sense of them), I'll use the wand mentioned earlier. At least this way, I avoid using high pressure in places I shouldn't hit. I'll definitely focus on the frame rails, and any drainage channels I see.

In regards to the alternator and the electrical components in the engine bay, I'm using a RV filter that reduces minerals, chemicals in the garden hose line. Since those components are higher, is it safe to just use the wand and direct it underneath the engine bay? I was assuming, given the low psi on a garden hose, that should be enough to clean the undercarriage, under the engine bay, without compromising the water resistant components you had mentioned.

Thank you, again. Much appreciated
 

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Depends on where you live and how dirty it gets but….for me, in eastern coastal NC, I had the Line-X underbody anti-corrosion treatment done. Was a three day process for $525 and well worth it in my opinion. For an extra $125 or so they’ll spray the inside of the frame. I opted for that too. Since that, I just spray my undercarriage off with a garden hose the best I can after mud running. A buddy of mine puts an oscillating lawn sprinkler under his and let’s it run for an hour or so and moves it around from time to time. Makes his driveway look like a mudslide.
 

ShadowsPapa

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A buddy of mine puts an oscillating lawn sprinkler under his and let’s it run for an hour or so and moves it around from time to time. Makes his driveway look like a mudslide.
Wow, that's an idea!
 

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Am I the only one who parks in a river or drives through a river before they head home from wheeling?
 

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Seeing as my leg gets wet when the car wash sprays the undercarriage, I can only imagine how much water would get inside when sitting in a river deep enough to soak it.
 

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I think that washing the undercarriage is every bit if not more important than washing the top.. the underside is going to see all the salt, sand, mud, oil and other nasties that your top wont see.. its especially important if you go anywhere thats salts the roads… ill even use the spray wax on the bottom, obviously not on brakes and hot parts.. . I had a friend who had the same year, make and model of truck that i had. I washed mine regularly, he didnt, and the difference was very evident. After many years his had surface rust just about everywhere on the frame and mine still looked really good
 
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Take it to the dealer. They will wash the top and bottom at the same time.

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Just an aside, I drove 40 miles on a dusty, rutted road, in a non-Jeep vehicle, and had a vibration like an unbalanced tire at 70mph. Had recently gotten new tires so went back to the tire dealer thinking I threw a balance weight, nope. Went to car dealer for regular service and asked them to check. They power washed the underside and fixed the problem... That fine dust and dirt clogged up the undercarriage...
And, if you worry about hurting anything, think about the rain storms and puddles you go through normally at 40 or more mph...
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