BrewCityF150

Am I missing something here? I understand spraying the frame and metal components under the truck, but the body is aluminum. Aluminum doesn't rust like steel. It does corrode, but it self seals itself if exposed bare. For galvanic corrosion between steel and aluminum, I'm not sure what, if anything, can be sprayed if there isn't a sufficient barrier used in the manufacturing process. I'm not an engineer, so please correct me if I'm wrong.

When I do get a new aluminum truck, I'll certainly get the undercoating, but treating the body seems useless. My 2 cents.

tareed94

The ONLY part that can benefit from undercoating is the frame, axles, and whatever else is steel. Aluminum does not rust, it will corrode but only if exposed which it is not at any point on your truck. There's little protection added by this as it is impossible to fully coat the inside of the frame, and WILL rust inside of there.

ajsturtz

My 2012 doesn't have any body rust issues at 151k miles. I cover Iowa/Dakotas/Minnesota/Wisconsin for work, so it sees EVERY snowfall all winter, and spends a lot of time driving down brined roads.

Instead of trying to use a rust preventative, I keep it outside in winter (warm garage speeds up the oxidation and rust), and wash it only monthly through the winter.

The front bumper is rusting badly, but rock chips are the root cause of that...

tlzkaasen

I appreciate all the responses. Tough call. Maybe Just sink the money into regular car washes this winter.

tom231

Love that movie!

FirefightinFX4

Anything to keep the salt/bring away from the aluminum is a win. Having dealt with aluminum fire trucks for the last 15 years I know that corrosion is a big deal with anything thats made of aluminum. I'm not going to give it any more reasons to corrode than I have to.

tlzkaasen

agreed.

solarity

The only reason I am looking at the F-150 is that aluminum doesn't rust, else I might would get a Silverado so my brother doesn't disown me.

IMHO I see no reason to under coat your truck, maybe with the exception of the frame. I don't drive my car for a day or two, I can already see the orange spots on my rotors. My grand fathers John boat from the 60s still floats. My boat's out drive holds up well in the water, with the aid of sacrificial anodes. In 20 years there will be a lot more F-150s on the road with nicer bodies than Silverados. Iron/Steel oxides when it is in the presence oxygen and moist air; salt speeds that process up. While aluminum does corrode, it creates a protective layer on it. Iron/Steel will rust, flake off exposing more steel and the process continues, until you have a hole in your rear quarter panel. So long as they have something to insulate the Aluminum from the Steel, you should be fine (Galvanic corrosion/Dissimilar Metals).