Spray in Tub liner as underbody coating

[adamjedgar]

Hi guys,
has anyone thought of or tried using a spray in tub liner (such as Raptor) to coat the underside of their Gladiator?

I use it for 4wding and I'm thinking about spraying diffs, the chasy, under the cabin...pretty much anywhere i can get at with a spray gun. It just seems like a good idea.

Can anyone provide any advice on this plan i have hatched?

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[wildtaco]

Any hard coating is generally a bad idea for the underside of your Jeep. Once it gets chipped/cracked, water works its way under the coating, rusting away at everything without you seeing it.

A better solution is an oil based undercoating. Something like Fluid Film or Surface Shield.

 

[jac04]

If the coating that you are spraying it over is good, and if the surface is prepared properly, and if it could be applied properly, then you might get away with it in a salt-free environment like Melbourne.

Unfortunately, the problem is that the existing paint on the drivetrain components and chassis is poor at best, and it is very difficult to prep these areas, so I think bedliner it is going to disbond easily.

My suggestion is using RustOleum oil-based brush-on semi-gloss black paint. That is what I used on the axles and parts of the chassis on my JT. I've also used it on the axles and all my skid plates on my JK that sees a lot of off-road use. It is a little messy to apply, but it is tough as nails and very tolerant to less-than-perfect surface preparation. It's also easy to touch up.

Here it is on my JT's rear axle after 19 months, including 1 salty New England winter:

Here it is on my 2014 JK. In this picture, it is on the axle housing, all skid plates, and the driveshaft. I (obviously) don't bother touching it up anymore:

 

[Hootbro]

What @wildtaco said. There is a similar undercoat system called Ziebart that does the same thing a truck lining coating would do but it is well known for letting rust and corrosion getting through a chip or other flaw in the coating and rusting from the inside out without you knowing until too late.

I would not recommend using a truck liner coating for the underside.

 

[Dhilt]

I agree with the others that it could be a bad idea. I have seen water get behind that type of product and rust it from underneath and make a real mess. A product like fluid film or equivalent would be best but needs to be re applied often. If you are looking for a paint type product as some suggested POR 15 is an excellent product.

 

[BearFootSam]

Man that would be a pain if you have had to do some real work and needed to strip it. I suggest you clean the undercarriage to keep mud and debris off, and when it's good and clean, spray it down with one of the lanolin coatings. They distribute and self-heal a bit, last relatively long, and can be easily removed if needed. I prefer the route of being able to see if the metal is ok and do a little more regular maintenance than to hard coat it and not know what is underneath.

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