Corrosion prevention for Land Based Traveling Machine

Jaybird180

Jaybird180

Final Approach
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I posted this question in a "Type-Specific" forum, but no answer. Either not enough activity there, or no one knows the "real" answer, so I post on PoA - smarter people:dunno:

We just purchased a 2013 Honda Odyssey. Got all the bells and whistles, extended warranties, maintenance, yadda yadda...I'm having 2nd thoughts about getting the underbody coating done. We are scheduled to drop it off for the work to be done tomorrow.

Im wondering if the sales lady told us a fib. We were basically told that budget cuts caused Honda to cut corners in materials, engineering and/or workmanship and there is NO warranty on corrosion that originates outside the vehicle...but we can buy the coating and IF corrosion happens, then were warrantied against the possibility for the life of our ownership - we plan to keep it until the wheels fall off.

Looking at what we can see on other cars, I don't see undercoating much anymore. I think they may have gone out of vogue in the 80's and if you don't count the lease, this is truly our 1st brand new car purchase - always bought pre-owned and always good experiences.

So PoA, what do you say. Did I get snookered? Do I get the underbody done or not? I routinely get the underbody washed after any snow and also get it done once in awhile if there isn't a snow at an automated car wash.
 
Jaybird180 said:
So PoA, what do you say. Did I get snookered? Do I get the underbody done or not? I routinely get the underbody washed after any snow and also get it done once in awhile if there isn't a snow at an automated car wash.
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Never had an underbody coating. Other then exhaust systems, can't think of a time I've had a failure due to corrosion. Personally don't believe they are worth the money.

Gary
 
Most compact to mid size cars are painted unit body with lots of plastic throughout - not much bare steel except maybe some suspension linkages and half shafts. I don't think underbody coating does a lot these days.

But that sounds like an odd warranty statement. Sounds fishy to me. Another opportunity for the dealer to make money. Like extended warranties, which is really where they make their money, not the car itself.
 
Gary said:
Never had an underbody coating. Other then exhaust systems, can't think of a time I've had a failure due to corrosion. Personally don't believe they are worth the money.

Gary
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Needn't go to failure. I see very few cars on the road with corrosion, but some are out there, different brands, models, etc. I suspect it's locale dependent.
 
Jaybird180 said:
Needn't go to failure. I see very few cars on the road with corrosion, but some are out there, different brands, models, etc. I suspect it's locale dependent.
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I'm sure that is true. The DC area doesn't seem to use a lot of salt so your corrosion potential is lower than here in the Phila area.

Gary
 
I generally drive my cars until they fall apart (or get totalled by some other means). I can't tell you when I had a corrosion issue (and mine tend to live outside) that any applied finish would fix. The times I've had corrosion were crappy GM paint or other poor designs where things rusted from below the paint. All the undercoating and the Ziebarting or whaever in the world would not have prevented that.
 
You've been snookered.

It will probably only cost money if you do get it. A poor job can probably introduce problems (like sealing up a drainage hole) but unlikely.

Do you want your salesperson to earn a few more $$$? Then get it.
 
The salesperson making money does not factor into my decision, I'm not that selfish and understand they need to make profit.

However, my purchase should yield a ROI; if it doesn't then it was a poor purchase decision that I have a chance to undo, before its too late.
 
A new car sale has ZERO ROI from the git go.

The undercoating serves no purpose other than to further enrich the seller.
 
The fact you're being told the expensive product they just sold was built with cost-cutting shortcuts is a red flag.
 
Undercoating is a no-no in the presence of 2-4 expensive new-car HEGO sensors. They have to be VENTED to read properly.
 
If you lived in Florida and planned to routinely drive on the Daytona beach, undercoating might be worthwhile.

Otherwise, it isn't a good value. How many modern cars ( built since, say 1990) do you know of which have lost value or been retired due to corrosion?
 
As a Ford dealer, first I don't sell any aftermarket sealants or coatings, paint, fabric or undercoating, I don't believe in them. The salesperson's pitch about Honda cutting corners was disingenuous or at least misinformed, this could come from management. If you can get your money back, I would. Obviously I'm not in a snow/road salt area, but look around at the 5 yr old Hondas in your neighborhood, are they rusted out? :dunno: Good luck with the new car!:D
 
My thoughts are if you want protection, do it before all the crap is hung underneath, ie on assembly, I just wonder how effective a sprayed on coating would be with all the differing nooks and crannies created by the assemblies added to the body on assembly.
 
kyleb said:
If you lived in Florida and planned to routinely drive on the Daytona beach, undercoating might be worthwhile.

Otherwise, it isn't a good value. How many modern cars ( built since, say 1990) do you know of which have lost value or been retired due to corrosion?
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In 2007 my 1995 Nissan pickup broke in half when put on the hoist. The frame had corroded through.

This was in Iowa, where the roads are white with salt after a long winter.
 
Best protection against salt corrosion is to wash the vehicle regularly. Save the $ for the undercoat and take it to the car wash once a month.
 
Dealer undercoating, no bueno!

Best way to prevent rust is to keep your undercarriage clean, hit it with a drive through self washer once a week.

If you want to undercoat it, don't go with the dealer, they use subpar material and subpar labor to apply it, you want to undercoat it, take a little time some jack stands and go buy you some POR15.

For a minivan I woudnt bother, they will drop off in value like a brick before the rust has a chance, but if you're buying new you're getting hosed anyways
 
flyingron said:
A new car sale has ZERO ROI from the git go.

The undercoating serves no purpose other than to further enrich the seller.
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Well it wouldn't take much to "further enrich" yourself from ZERO would it?
 
That's zero ROI for the buyer.
That car has a negative ROI the second you take posession of it.

The seller gets compensated quite well.
 
So what does the actual vehicle warranty say about corrosion? The salesperson that uses that kind of line is preying on folks that don't take the time to read.

In all the cars I've bought, from DC to Ohio to NY, I've not had any of them with aftermarket undercoating. In fact, it is my opinion that if the coating is done any time after the vehicle leaves the lot it may well trap corrosive chemicals, dirt, or moisture between the undercoating and the chassis (which would accelerate corrosion). Good car washing does as much to protect as the coating.

Seriously - check the actual warranty. (I'll save you a bit of trouble: here's the link: http://automobiles.honda.com/odyssey/warranty.aspx ). It calls out 5 years warranty on corrosion.
 
wsuffa said:
So what does the actual vehicle warranty say about corrosion? The salesperson that uses that kind of line is preying on folks that don't take the time to read.

In all the cars I've bought, from DC to Ohio to NY, I've not had any of them with aftermarket undercoating. In fact, it is my opinion that if the coating is done any time after the vehicle leaves the lot it may well trap corrosive chemicals, dirt, or moisture between the undercoating and the chassis (which would accelerate corrosion). Good car washing does as much to protect as the coating.

Seriously - check the actual warranty. (I'll save you a bit of trouble: here's the link: http://automobiles.honda.com/odyssey/warranty.aspx ). It calls out 5 years warranty on corrosion.
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Thank you for the link. Prima Facie proof of the lie:mad2:, IMHO

As fortune held, we went in yesterday to ask questions before drop-off, but they were understaffed. We didn't drop it off, because they wanted to give us a Civic as a loaner! And tried to justify it! We cannot fit our family in a Civic.:mad:

There shall be some letter writing to management about how we were treated yesterday and the heinous justifications; everything we can return, we shall (and buy it from another dealer).

Only reason we bought from Pohanka Honda is they had the exact vehicle (color, option package, etc) we wanted and the best price of the 2 others.
 
In the past, buying a car was simple for me. There's the car, here's the money. I shouldn't have to feel I need to read all the fine print to ensure I'm not donating a kidney in the process.
 
Jaybird180 said:
In the past, buying a car was simple for me. There's the car, here's the money. I shouldn't have to feel I need to read all the fine print to ensure I'm not donating a kidney in the process.
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How far in the past was this?

Buying a new car has been scam-laden since at least World War II. Buying a used car, even worse.
 
Jaybird180 said:
Pohanka
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I will say this: I took my old(est) Nissan Pathfinder to the dealership that carries that name ~15 years ago to have the timing belt replaced. Which they did for an exhorbinant price. After I got it back the temperature gauge ran much hotter than normal. They disavowed any knowledge of any problem - I took it to an independent shop that determined that (the dealership by that name) had bent about half the fins on the radiator in the process. Got those straightened and cleaned... and the truck ran well.

I had similar "upsell" issues as you with Fairfax Honda when I was looking at a used Civic a few years ago. To the point that I finally looked at them and said 'man, if the car is so unreliable that you won't stand behind it and I NEED an extended warranty, then maybe I should go buy a car somewhere else". Things got easier after that.

Best auto transaction was 2 years ago at a Nissan dealer in Maryland when I bought my new truck: negotiated everything over the internet & phone, 30 minutes in the dealership to sign papers, and we were done. They retrieved the truck from another dealer.
 
Just one data point: I bought a pristine 2007 Ford F-150 4x4 in 2011, after getting my Mustang stuck in the sand twice. (We live on an island in the Gulf, which is nothing BUT sand. With 20 miles of beach to drive on, well, a 4x4 is a good idea.)

Knowing that this would be a saltwater beach vehicle, I looked around on-line for an anti-corrosion treatment, and spoke with locals. They kept mentioning "POR-15".

To me, it sounded like the "Marvel Mystery Oil" of undercoatings, but it was relatively cheap, so I bought some.

I drove the truck up on ramps, and spent a few hours underneath, painting every exposed piece of metal with the magic stuff. It went on like paint -- not gooey, like most undercoatings.

Fast forward 2.5 years. No corrosion on the undercarriage. Any parts NOT hit with POR-15 are orange with rust. The stuff works. YMMV.
 
wsuffa said:
Best auto transaction was 2 years ago at a Nissan dealer in Maryland when I bought my new truck: negotiated everything over the internet & phone, 30 minutes in the dealership to sign papers, and we were done. They retrieved the truck from another dealer.
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I thought this was going to be that smooth. A salesman met us in the parking lot when we pulled in with our trade. He was told by the manager to expect us. The new car had been washed and prepped, and he was completing the paperwork. My wife took the new car to go grab some vittles with a full bomb load, while I stayed behind with the salesman busy typing away on the keyboard.

When she returned, the accessories lady showed up, and that's when it started. I originally wanted the tow package and asked for it. She was there to sell us extra services and not accessories (never offered the mud guards, which I would have said "yes" to).

Then off to finance to sign the papers and get offered the 8yr/ 120k warranty, maintenance plan and GAP. We took em'.

Made into a long day, what could have been 1 hr.
 
Crawl under the thing and have a look at it. My two "Crappy American Cars" are fully painted under there when it comes to the steel parts. The paint on the bottom of my dodge is better than the paint on the body of some cars
 
Skylane81E said:
Crawl under the thing and have a look at it. My two "Crappy American Cars" are fully painted under there when it comes to the steel parts. The paint on the bottom of my dodge is better than the paint on the body of some cars
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...and wrinkle my finely tailored suit...YBSM?!?!...















Thanks for pointing out the obvious that I missed. The PoA collective thinks of everything. I wish I could put you-all on retainer and the posters split the gains:rofl:
 
Move to Colorado.

1997 Suburban half-ton still on its first exhaust system. (Granted, only 130,000 miles on it.)

It's dry here. ;)
 
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