YM13

My 4runner has a bit of rust underneath so I have been thinking about painting it with something. I wanted to paint it with POR 15 but for some reason I decided to use Krylon Rust Enamel spray paint. I went on their website and it said that it binds with the rust checmically and it stops it from spreading while it also coats everything else with paint and prevents any furthur rust. Also the Rustoleum stuff does the same thing.

Here is what it looks like now....





This is going to be a pretty slow moving project as I want to do everything right the first time so I'm taking the parts I can off the car to paint. So far I have only done one of the lower tube links....

here is the tubelink I painted....you can't really tell but I love the way it turned out...the paint dried very thick and it seems to have a very nice finish for those who are interested in painting something that is more visible...



Here is what the other tube link looks like that I havn't painted yet....(By the way, these were a total pain to take off and put back on...if someone can warn me about any other parts that I might have trouble taking off then please let me know before I try.... thanks a lot)



I'm very excited on how the tubelink looked after I painted it cause i picture the whole underbody looking like new...

I'll keep updating this as I go.....

*********Updated April 24th, 2007************

Here is the other side that I painted last night...and no this paint is not wet...haha...i was surprised by the gloss it put out on a rusted frame...it'll hopefully get a little flatter once the road-grime settles down on it.

91TPU

ill be doing the same thing shortly...i was also gonna use por15, but i want something in a rattle can

that one tube link looks great, thats how picture my whole underbody looking lol

YM13

yah, I'm pretty excited from how the tublink turned out...hopefully i'll be able to get everything else looking like this also....the frame will probably be the last thing I do...

Also I notice the drive shaft is pretty rusted too. I know that there are pores in there that lube comes out of...should I just stay away from this part and not paint it or what?

aurunner

where can you get that stuff??

YM13

I got it from K-Mart...But i know that Krylon is a big manufacturer that i've seen in MANY other stores. Also Rustoleum will do the same thing. I'm sure Wal-Mart would have either of the two or even both. There is also a satin black finish available if you do not want the glossier black.

HuskyRunner

Looks good. This is on my to-do list too.

Tark

hot damn that will be a lot of effort to remove parts, paint, and re-install!

May as well do bushing upgrades and such while you're under there

YM13

Yah I thought about it but I don't really know what i'm doing or what to upgrade....(although if i look at a how-to or something I will be able to) so if anyone can send a link or tell me then i'll be very thankfull

97Limited

I had done my whole underbody, frame, suspension parts, right after I did my lift...

Here's a couple shots>

91TPU

very very nice!

emptypockets

Dang that looks good! You guys are way too fussy...lol. I wish I had that kind of time to undercoat my whole rig!

97Runner

man that looks soo good. i wish i had that kinda time. hey 97limited, how much time could you possibly estimate that would take if u didnt aalready have it apart for the suspension work?

aowRS

YM13,
That is an ambitious project. You may wish to power wash the underside thoroughly before slinging paint, as you will undoubtedly find yourself painting over dirt and old road grime. I would lift the truck as high as possible on four stands (two under the rear axle and two under the frame in the front), take the wheels off, and clean like mad before painting anything.

This is something that bugs me about my 4Runner as well. I purchased the truck new in 2001 and have really taken great care of it. Currently, the truck has 125,000 miles and looks fantastic. But I'm seeing more and more corrosion underneath as a result of Toyota's virtual paint job. While not very comparable, the underside of my '95 Porsche 993 is virtually corrosion-free. I have spent a great deal of time under the car, both for cleaning as well as maintenance work, and am amazed how nice everything looks. Fasteners come undone when I need them too and nothing is rusted. Period. Not bad for a car built in 1994 with 43,000 miles.

If my 4Runner lasts for many more years, I may just take the body off someday and bead-blast the frame and major suspension components before priming and painting. Someday.

Andreas

YM13

Yah, I'm definetly washing everything before i paint it. I'm also brushing it with a wire brush to get any flakes off that could peel off if I paint over them. Yes I know this is going to take some time and as you can see I have gotten nowhere yet. I'm thinking of doing a part or two every weekend when I have time and before I know it everything will come together. Also, what paint did you use 97 Limited? It looks good I like it....

YM13

I was also wondering if I ended up painting the coils or any other parts that tend to bend like the sway bar...will the paint chip off/start cracking or should it be ok??

Edit: That would be interesting to combine some colors also to make it look a little meaner (Definitely not get overboard though and look tacky i'm talking about one more color...like red or yellow or something like that) I'll probably just stick to black though...

ornery

Me.. I'd wirewheel or wirebrush everything and use POR..

YM13

Yah POR was my first choice but I just wanted something in a spraycan for some reason...from the finish that it produced I think this will last about as long as I need it to...or at least longer than something that will eventually break and i'll have to throw away the yota....Plus its only $3 a can and it covers about 24 sq. ft.

89-4run

if you don't do that, will the rust get worse? or is it just superficial rust...

YM13

I'm sure the rust would only get worse as time passes and the parts' strength would decrease as it spread. Also the rust is just bothering me...

AuburnRunner

damn this thread...... 1 more thing to do
*reluctantly subscribed