Underbody Coating
Underbody Coating
The Car underbody is most prone to road obstacles, muds, water, and gravel. One can be driving on different roads, sometimes smooth and sometimes rough with a high amount of pebbles and gravels. These pebbles hit the car underbody with a very high impact force. Over a period of time, these can make the lower part of our body weak and prone to corrosion which drastically reduces the strength of the lower parts. Often, these lower parts of the car are not visible to human eyes and that's why we don't give much attention to it. But over a course of time, ignorance can cause a lot of money in repair. Therefore, it becomes important or absolute necessity to do underbody coating. This will provide long term protection to the car's underbody.
Almost every car has a protective undercoating but to do cost-cutting, many manufacturers reduce the area of this protective film and the buyer can't see this, and ultimately the service life of the car is reduced.
Purpose of Underbody coating:
1. Protection against rust formation and Corrosion
Metals are prone to corrosion and when they find themselves in ideal conditions, which is mostly the presence of Water and Oxygen, they start to corrode and drastically reduce the strength of the part. Therefore, Underbody coating is important to prevent metal components from corrosion.
2. Reduces NVH Levels
The thicker the layer of coating, the better it is for the car. While going from one place to another, the car moves through different kinds of roads. It could be a smooth road or an unconstructed road filled with stones and unpaved crumps. The stones and the pebbles hit the car underneath. This is not a good condition for the Car and also the person sitting inside can feel vibrations and unpleasant noises. A thick Underbody coating absorbs all the noises and vibrations and gives a pleasant experience for the driver and fellow passengers.
3. Prevent Paint Chipping
The sharp stones and gravel particles always hit the belly of the car with high momentum. This constantly scrapes and chips off the metals. So, if a thick underbody coating is there, it will definitely reduce such contacts.
4. Protects Vital components
Seeing the bigger picture, a lot of Car parts like Engine, Silencer, etc are exposed underneath. One can't let these parts get worse with time due to rusting and in the end, pay a hefty repairing amount. So, underbody coating is a must and also very less expensive as compared to the repairing amount.
5. Increase Service Life of the Car
If the underneath parts are well maintained, it will increase the service life of the car
6. Increase Resale value
Ignorance of Corrosion can lead to some permanent damage and rapidly depreciate the value of the car. The reselling value of the car will decrease if it's not well-maintained.
A picture to show Underbody coating.
Types of Underbody Coating:
1. Rubberized Underbody Coating
It's an easy option and provides better cushioning to protect the underneath of the car from dust, pebbles, moisture, and dents. It is one of the simplest methods and the best solution against rust and corrosion.
2. Polyurethane Underbody Coating
It uses a polyurethane-based sealant. The sealant works by seeping into the cracks, displaces moisture and salt, and protect the unoxidized metal. It requires some sanding and applying primer before use.
3. Wax-Based Undercoating
It is the cheapest and quickest solution available in the markets but it wears off quickly as compared to other undercoating methods and needs to be reapplied once a year.