Underbody Coating

AIM: To make a dertailed report on under body coating and its purposes, pros and cons.

INTRODUCTION:

As you all are available of the Indian road conditions i.e., muddy water, potholed roads, stones and other obstacles on the road. In this manner, a cars underbody is most prone to corrosion and rust. In order to prevent from the corrosion and rust undercoating is done. Under body coating provides long term protection from corrosion to cars underbody. It also protects parts like internal body panels, frame rails and other inner cavities that are not physically accessible but are prone to corrosion.

Underbody coating can also make it easier to clean your car. Besides this, the coating provides a bit of thermal insulation making travelling by road easier even during summers. Risk of corrosion, because of the effect of rain and salty grit used on roads to prevent icing in winter. Overtime, this corrosion can cause significant damage to the vehicle.

Under Body Coating - Underbody coating is usually a dense cladding (often based on rubber) applied uniformly to the undercarriage of the automobile. It is normally sprayed or painted on when the car is just out of the dealership and is clean. But even if you are getting the undercoating applied after a couple of years, it’s fine too. This is because it can prevent further damage to the undercarriage.

The main purpose of undercoating is to check rust especially in the body components like frame rails along with other exposed metal parts. Underbody coating can also reduce wear and tear.

Due to the highly competitiveness of new car sales, car manufacturers have pressure to reduce the manufacturing cost, so that they reduce or even completely eliminate the use of underbody coating where it is not to be easily seen by car owners. As a consequence, our car service life will be greatly reduced.

Many car owners know to regularly maintain the vehicle by changing the engine oil and having the paint polished, but little attentionhas been paid to the bootom of the car. There are many cars whose surface looks glossy, while the underbody's already rusting.

Types of Under body Coating-

Having undercoating professionally applied to your vehicle can be expensive, but fortunately, if your budget is tight, you can do it yourself for a fraction of the price. Here are some of the various types of undercoating available:

1. Rubberized Undercoating -

It is easy to apply and offers sound-cushioning as well as protection from dust, moisture, and dings or dents.

In addition to your undercarriage, rubberized undercoating is also safe to use on wheel wells and quarter panels, and dries to a soft rubbery finish that prevents further rust, damage, or moisture seeps. The coating can be painted over and, if necessary for bodywork, can be easily removed with an undercoating removal spray.

Overall, it is generally the best option for protecting your vehicle's undercarriage, as it provides the simplest and best protective measures against rust and moisture.

2. Wax Based Undercoating -

A paraffin-based undercoating will be the cheapest and quickest option available with which to protect the undercarriage of your vehicle. However, keep in mind that it will wear off quicker than other types of undercoating and will need to be stripped and reapplied at least once every year.

Wax-based undercoatings never truly harden. During application, they drip or flow into seams and cracks to provide protective properties. They are usually available in a spray gun canister or in an aerosol can and offer at least a base protection in moderately humid climates.

3. Polyurethane Undercoating -

The other option for undercoating your vehicle is to use a polyurethane-based sealant. This type of vehicle undercoating is a little bit quicker and easier to apply.

Oftentimes, polyurethane undercoating will come in canisters ready to preload into an application gun. This type of sealant works by seeping into all cracks and seams, displacing salt and moisture and oozing around rusty areas to bond with and protect unoxidized metal. It also sands quickly in case you'll need to perform bodywork and can be painted over.

On the flipside, this type of car undercoating generally requires a little bit more surface prep work before applying -- sanding and applying an etching primer to bare metals before using are generally recommended.

4. Asphalt-Based Undercoating -

For standard vehicles, any of the aforementioned types of undercoating will provide sufficient protection. For large trucks and heavy machinery, asphalt-based undercoating provides a bit of extra durability against rocks, chips, and moisture.

Asphalt-based undercoating generally contains a little bit of rubberized material that sets up firmly and also helps soften noise. Generally sold in five gallon containers, this type of undercoating also needs more cure time than the other three, and is NOT paintable, making it best to use only for undercarriages.

Best suited for lorries, trucks and large vehicles this provides a greater degree of protection compared to rubber-based coatings. However, asphalt-based coatings contain little amounts of rubber for sound-insulation purposes. The process of applying this coating is a bit time-consuming though.

Modern Automotive Coating Processes:

2. Electrodeposition - E-coating involves dipping automobile bodies into the coating solution & passing an electric current through the body & the liquid ED paint solution. Because of the charged nature of this coating process, the ED paint penetrates into places a spray would not reach.

3. Rust Proof Materials (Sealer / PVC) - The third step is underbody coating & seam sealing using PVC. displays the lower door sections & rocker panel locations where PVC or urethanes are applied as an anti-chipping protection, & shows the cross section of this layer with respect to the other coatings on the body parts.

4. Primer - The fourth coating step is the primer. It can be water-borne, solvent-borne, or a powder. The primer fills & smoothes minor imperfections & scratches that may be created during prior steps & by the intermediate sanding or grinding used to remove small imperfections. It also provides additional protection against corrosion & maximizes adhesion between it & the E-coat & basecoat; thereby, the primer incrases paint durability.

5. TopCoat - The final step in the body coating process is to apply the topcoat, which consists of two layers the basecoat & clearcoat.

Advantages of Under Body Coating :

Undercoating gives you an extra layer of protection against rust and corrosion, protecting your car. Undercoating will eventually wear out, but you can get years of protection from it. Even vehicles in warmer climates gain protection as debris is repelled and kept away from eating at the vehicle.

• It extends the lifespan of your car

The protection against rusting gives you the biggest advantage, which is the long-life of the vehicle. If undercoating is done the right way, then it will provide protection for up to 10 years. In some cases, the time span is more than ten years, which extends the lifespan of your vehicle.

• No more loud road noise

The undercoating serves as an extra layer of insulation, reducing the noise from penetrating inside components. Thus padding acts as a barrier between you and the source of the noise. If the road noise bothers you while driving your car, truck, or SUV, then applying to undercoat can help you.

• Prevent from stone chip

There are thousands of pieces of stones on the road, and they are constantly hitting your car on the under body, wheel arches, sills and the trunk lower part while driving on the road. In some cases, the under body might be scratched by uneven road.

• Prevents Paint Chipping

Running on the highway or while pacing through a city road, you will often encounter sharp gravel or any other unattended object hitting the belly of your car with high momentum. This scrapes and chips off the metal from down below. A thick layer of Underbody Coating definitely comes to aid and minimises the effects of such contacts on the body.

• Reduces NVH (Noise Vibrations Harshness) Levels

Our country is filled with roads having uneven patches and potholes and while we manoeuvre our cars through such sections, the unpaved crumbs, and pebbles hit the car from underneath or get stuck in the wheel wells. The underbody coating’s consistency is so thick that the layer it creates absorbs all the unpleasant noises and vibrations and marginally improves the driving experience.

Disadvantages of Under Body Coating :

• It is less helpful if corrosion is already present.

For an undercoating to be the most effective, it should be in place before the underbelly of your car begins to rust. If you apply it over corrosion, you will still isolate the metal from further moisture and airflow, which is good, but the existing oxidizing/rusting process will still continue to occur. After rust is already present, applying an undercoating will slow the continuation of the corrosion process and will make your vehicle look better… until the rust breaks its way through the layer of undercoating you’ve applied. If you have rust present, it is better to remove the rust and then apply the undercoating.

• It works best on new cars.

If you’ve purchased a used vehicle, then the cost of preparing the underbelly for an undercoating might be more than the value of the car. You must remove all the residue from the bottom before it can be applied. Failing to do so will seal in the debris that is present already, which can lead to more problems. The best time to have an undercoating applied is when a vehicle is purchased new because it offers a superior level of protection then.

• Most vehicles make it five years before corrosion begins to show.

For vehicle owners who purchase something new every 3 to 5 years, then rustproofing may not be a good use of your cash. Although an undercoating does add value to a used car, that only applies when the rustproofing product used provides a transferrable lifetime warranty. Most vehicles that are on the road today are able to make it five years before any corrosion begins to show. It may be 7 to 10 years before the functionality of the vehicle is negatively impacted by the lack of an undercoating.

If you wash your vehicle regularly, especially during the winter months, then you might be able to save the time and money required for this service.

• A third-party undercoating service might void your vehicle’s warranty.

Some new cars no longer need the undercoating service provided because the structure of the vehicle has it built-in already. If you hire a third-party provider to apply an undercoating, you could void the corrosion-perforation warranty that is factory-provided. Most vehicles today that leave the factory floor are all provided with included rust-proofing.

If you are purchasing a used vehicle, an undercoating to a clean underbelly could extend the life of the vehicle and give it more value. For new vehicle purchases, you should ask the dealer what rustproofing options are included before paying for a separate undercoating option. Ask for documentation of what is provided instead of taking the word of the salesperson or the service personnel.

Many dealers have language in their terms and conditions that only written agreements are binding.

• It adds weight to the vehicle

Although the amount of weight added to a vehicle with an undercoating is minimal (between 10 to 20 pounds for most vehicles), there is a small element of fuel economy to consider. When your vehicle weighs more, the distance you can travel on a single tank of fuel is reduced. The undercoating might reduce your efficiency by up to one mile per gallon, which creates a small additional fuel cost over time. Still, the effect on mileage of this additional weight is negligible compared to the effect a driver can have by the way they drive.

CONCLUSION: