New fangled chassis protection?
Discussion
All,
Any recommendations on protecting a Tuscan chassis? It's in great order so i'd rather not cake it in old-fashioned gloop.
Once thoroughly cleaned, i'd prefer to utilise a (non-snake oil) transparent product that lets thd chassis condition show through.
It will be a high days and holidays car, and not used during the salty months.
I've seen various adverts for products that i know nothing of, so i'm looking for first hand experiences.👌
Any recommendations on protecting a Tuscan chassis? It's in great order so i'd rather not cake it in old-fashioned gloop.
Once thoroughly cleaned, i'd prefer to utilise a (non-snake oil) transparent product that lets thd chassis condition show through.
It will be a high days and holidays car, and not used during the salty months.
I've seen various adverts for products that i know nothing of, so i'm looking for first hand experiences.👌
For argument’s sake. If the chassis is good inside and covered in an epoxy primer prior to any powder coat and never used on a Salty road it will last a very long time without additional gloop.
I have a now 23 year old Ford Fiesta never driven on a winters salty road and the underneath is very good. Never covered it in anything other than what Ford applied when new. Rear wheel arch started showing rust last year but underneath its solid.
I have a now 23 year old Ford Fiesta never driven on a winters salty road and the underneath is very good. Never covered it in anything other than what Ford applied when new. Rear wheel arch started showing rust last year but underneath its solid.
If the paint/power coat shows bare metal then that area should be repaired a bit like the body of a steel car. You wouldn’t coat a steel car with gloop just in case. You would keep it clean and touch up any chips.
So if you are under the car, clean the chassis and keep an eye on chips to the coating. Areas behind the wheels notably, areas the exhaust runs close and areas dirt and damp accumulates. You know the score.
So if you are under the car, clean the chassis and keep an eye on chips to the coating. Areas behind the wheels notably, areas the exhaust runs close and areas dirt and damp accumulates. You know the score.
Ok, so leave the paint 'exposed' and just maintain.....makes sense.
Is there a ready made touch up paint available that matches the early powdercoat RAL?
As stated earlier, it'll not be driven in wet conditions so doesn't really need coating beyond missing paint.
It's all assumptions really anyway as i don't collect the car until prep has been completed by the dealer.
👍
Is there a ready made touch up paint available that matches the early powdercoat RAL?
As stated earlier, it'll not be driven in wet conditions so doesn't really need coating beyond missing paint.
It's all assumptions really anyway as i don't collect the car until prep has been completed by the dealer.
👍
RobXjcoupe said:
For argument’s sake. If the chassis is good inside and covered in an epoxy primer prior to any powder coat and never used on a Salty road it will last a very long time without additional gloop.
I have a now 23 year old Ford Fiesta never driven on a winters salty road and the underneath is very good. Never covered it in anything other than what Ford applied when new. Rear wheel arch started showing rust last year but underneath its solid.
You’re comparing a mass produced, well stored monocoque, which then had basically under seal blasted over it to a set of tuscan tubes. I have a now 23 year old Ford Fiesta never driven on a winters salty road and the underneath is very good. Never covered it in anything other than what Ford applied when new. Rear wheel arch started showing rust last year but underneath its solid.
I use International paints TOPLAC Yacht enamel (Atlantic Grey IIRC is a good match to my convertible chassis ... primer and top coat .. my thinking if OK a boat then OK for a TVR
But the outriggers are always a problem , because you can't see or get behind them... so I just force as much paint up there as I can.
I prefer to see what's going on rather than spray gunk on .... I have a 4 post lift that helps too
But the outriggers are always a problem , because you can't see or get behind them... so I just force as much paint up there as I can.
I prefer to see what's going on rather than spray gunk on .... I have a 4 post lift that helps too
Seeing the state of the average TVR Chassis when bodies eventually get lifted I’d say it absolutely needs protecting.
The simple reality is you can never discount bad weather if you say go on a long journey or a long weekend away or god forbid you take it on a tour.
As can be seen by some contributors here they have managed 1000 mile a year over a 15 year period which is less than I did in my first two years of ownership……
Horses for courses of course but most chassis that are not protected from a very early age are rotten as a pear!
I don’t think throwing touch up paint at rusting areas is going to be much use as nearly all the areas that rot first are inaccessible with anything which will remove the rust.
If you are sure your chassis is fully intact with no broken PC then paint may work.
Basically the chassis tend to rot on top of the rails until pin prick holes appear then water ingress into the tubes does the rest.
It’s also a problem on chassis plates that body bolts too and rubs PC away.
The problems with outriggers are well documented and the basic reason why they rot at twice the rate of the rest of the chassis is muck thrown up at high force off the tyres when travelling at speed clogs up the gap between body and tops of tubes with said crud and sits there damp breaking down any coating that’s been applied.
As even during the summer months there is often damp patches of road and puddles on your nearside which mixes with all this road muck, it’s almost impossible to avoid.
Outrigger protectors as sold by Peter Essling ( I believe) are the best solution to reduce this road muck ingress onto tops of rigger rails but get caught in rain and even they won’t fully protect those tubes.
So for that reason I’d say it’s a prudent move to coat the chassis (BEFORE) it starts rotting and especially around outrigger tubes.
My other thought on keeping the tubes free of build up of crud would be a purpose made tool that can be fed up between body and tubes and regularly scrapping away the crap.
Something with a plastic tube shaped edge that won’t scratch the PC much but will remove often stones and grit trapped up there.
Keeping that channel free is probably the best maintenance you can do then possibly jet washing from the front corners back and visa versa on rear corners would do the rest.
I think mostly it’s sharpe edge stones that smash there way up there and pin prick breaches in almost any form of chassis coating start to form, water gets under the PC or paint and starts to oxidise and attack the now quickly rusting tubes.
For that reason I’d use a flexible oil based protective layer that can often withstand these high impacts much better than both paint or PC ever will.
You have to decide if your going to use the car or postpone any journeys that involve a wet road.
Almost impossible to plan for 9 months of the U.K. year or bite the bullet and protect as best you can then crack on using the car…. I know which I’d prefer to do and after 40,000 miles in my Chim and a lot of happy memories later and now a nice new painted chassis the later is what I’ll be doing.
I might sell the car though so I’ll leave my newly coated chassis white as a selling point
The simple reality is you can never discount bad weather if you say go on a long journey or a long weekend away or god forbid you take it on a tour.
As can be seen by some contributors here they have managed 1000 mile a year over a 15 year period which is less than I did in my first two years of ownership……
Horses for courses of course but most chassis that are not protected from a very early age are rotten as a pear!
I don’t think throwing touch up paint at rusting areas is going to be much use as nearly all the areas that rot first are inaccessible with anything which will remove the rust.
If you are sure your chassis is fully intact with no broken PC then paint may work.
Basically the chassis tend to rot on top of the rails until pin prick holes appear then water ingress into the tubes does the rest.
It’s also a problem on chassis plates that body bolts too and rubs PC away.
The problems with outriggers are well documented and the basic reason why they rot at twice the rate of the rest of the chassis is muck thrown up at high force off the tyres when travelling at speed clogs up the gap between body and tops of tubes with said crud and sits there damp breaking down any coating that’s been applied.
As even during the summer months there is often damp patches of road and puddles on your nearside which mixes with all this road muck, it’s almost impossible to avoid.
Outrigger protectors as sold by Peter Essling ( I believe) are the best solution to reduce this road muck ingress onto tops of rigger rails but get caught in rain and even they won’t fully protect those tubes.
So for that reason I’d say it’s a prudent move to coat the chassis (BEFORE) it starts rotting and especially around outrigger tubes.
My other thought on keeping the tubes free of build up of crud would be a purpose made tool that can be fed up between body and tubes and regularly scrapping away the crap.
Something with a plastic tube shaped edge that won’t scratch the PC much but will remove often stones and grit trapped up there.
Keeping that channel free is probably the best maintenance you can do then possibly jet washing from the front corners back and visa versa on rear corners would do the rest.
I think mostly it’s sharpe edge stones that smash there way up there and pin prick breaches in almost any form of chassis coating start to form, water gets under the PC or paint and starts to oxidise and attack the now quickly rusting tubes.
For that reason I’d use a flexible oil based protective layer that can often withstand these high impacts much better than both paint or PC ever will.
You have to decide if your going to use the car or postpone any journeys that involve a wet road.
Almost impossible to plan for 9 months of the U.K. year or bite the bullet and protect as best you can then crack on using the car…. I know which I’d prefer to do and after 40,000 miles in my Chim and a lot of happy memories later and now a nice new painted chassis the later is what I’ll be doing.
I might sell the car though so I’ll leave my newly coated chassis white as a selling point
I don't see the point if its purely a dry weather car.
Sure you may get caught in a storm once in a while but no real issue.
Better to keep an eye on the clean chassis.
No doubt a modern good quality rust proofing product works but it's a horrible messy job.
Maybe spray some on the top of the riggers only if you can get an extension tube in there.
Sure you may get caught in a storm once in a while but no real issue.
Better to keep an eye on the clean chassis.
No doubt a modern good quality rust proofing product works but it's a horrible messy job.
Maybe spray some on the top of the riggers only if you can get an extension tube in there.
Most new cars got used by unsuspecting owners in all weathers for at least the first few years of its life. The damage was nearly always done because by the time most TVR service centres started offering these products rust was already forming.
The reason why later chassis and well used cars often have such corrosion is because the chassis never got coated early enough and storing/ prep of chassis at the factory was poor!
A Griff owner on FB showed pictures of his car with good mileage on the clock ( I can’t remember exactly ) and a chassis Dinitrol or similarly protected from a very young age was entirely intact when a body lift was done to check.
My car at 40,000 miles and 10 years old when I purchased it must have had serious rust on the front corners and tops of rigger tubes by then because 10 years later they did’nt exist at all
So clearly cars that got subject to more weather from new suffer the most.
If my car had been protected better from new and maintenance keeping rigger tops free of muck i’m sure my chassis would have lasted a lot longer.
And that’s with it being used as a daily
The reason why later chassis and well used cars often have such corrosion is because the chassis never got coated early enough and storing/ prep of chassis at the factory was poor!
A Griff owner on FB showed pictures of his car with good mileage on the clock ( I can’t remember exactly ) and a chassis Dinitrol or similarly protected from a very young age was entirely intact when a body lift was done to check.
My car at 40,000 miles and 10 years old when I purchased it must have had serious rust on the front corners and tops of rigger tubes by then because 10 years later they did’nt exist at all
So clearly cars that got subject to more weather from new suffer the most.
If my car had been protected better from new and maintenance keeping rigger tops free of muck i’m sure my chassis would have lasted a lot longer.
And that’s with it being used as a daily
nawarne said:
...^^^But then, you tell the truth, Alun!
Horses for courses, that's for sure! Zero point in having a car if it doesn't get used.
Nick
Thanks. Horses for courses, that's for sure! Zero point in having a car if it doesn't get used.
Nick
No point pulling punches here.
It’s all or nothing when it comes to TVR and knowing them reasonably well it’s all, all the time
But when it’s good oh boy is it good.
The powder coating on my Tuscan convertible (2006) is totally different than that on my chim ( Malaysian 2001), its much more glossy and almost plastic by comparison to the more matt rougher finish on the Chim . The welds are the worst place for rusting , I use a my B&D Wizard to clean it down to clean metal and treat if required before painting.
The Tuscan gets used less in winter but the Chim has Snow proxies and gets used in all weathers , but I do avoid going out on treated roads.
The Tuscan gets used less in winter but the Chim has Snow proxies and gets used in all weathers , but I do avoid going out on treated roads.
m4tti said:
RobXjcoupe said:
For argument’s sake. If the chassis is good inside and covered in an epoxy primer prior to any powder coat and never used on a Salty road it will last a very long time without additional gloop.
I have a now 23 year old Ford Fiesta never driven on a winters salty road and the underneath is very good. Never covered it in anything other than what Ford applied when new. Rear wheel arch started showing rust last year but underneath its solid.
You’re comparing a mass produced, well stored monocoque, which then had basically under seal blasted over it to a set of tuscan tubes. I have a now 23 year old Ford Fiesta never driven on a winters salty road and the underneath is very good. Never covered it in anything other than what Ford applied when new. Rear wheel arch started showing rust last year but underneath its solid.
Reading what’s been posted after I can agree with what all are saying. Experience is key and we do have varied experience.
If I did my Griff again, I would have all outriggers and wishbones galvanised first before epoxy primered and powder coated. Unfortunately I sent mine to a specialist wrongly thought what I wanted. s
t happens I suppose You can match the colour exactly. Rustoleum do any RAL colour. Year 2000 Griff is grey/white RAL9006 from memory. Would need to check..
If it stays dry. Just use WD40 to clean and dispel water. That’s all I use.
The powder coat will fail, TVR never used an undercoat (? To my knowledge). So any pin pricks allow water in. It is also not well adhered once you start to peel it back. So, good powder coat doesn’t mean no corrosion.
Nic
If it stays dry. Just use WD40 to clean and dispel water. That’s all I use.
The powder coat will fail, TVR never used an undercoat (? To my knowledge). So any pin pricks allow water in. It is also not well adhered once you start to peel it back. So, good powder coat doesn’t mean no corrosion.
Nic
I have a 2004 Mk 2, it was covered early in its life in Dinitrol. I hate the stuff, prefer to monitor a clean chassis and accept the physics, but I lifted the body and spent hours upon hours scraping and scrubbing the Dinitrol off, then when I was finished I stood back and took a good look at it and thought ‘by heck, that Dinitrol has worked a treat!’
Apart from areas where impacts had damaged the powder coat, the rest of it came up nearly as new. I had it blasted and required no repair work. I will however, not be coating it again, but ensuring it is kept clean.
Apart from areas where impacts had damaged the powder coat, the rest of it came up nearly as new. I had it blasted and required no repair work. I will however, not be coating it again, but ensuring it is kept clean.
I designed and made these for my cerbera and they become a very popular item for cerb, chim and griff owners.
I have them for the drivers side of the tuscan, but when test fitting a prototype on the rear there is just not enough room for them to be used. Tyre rubbing issues as there is not enough clearance.
I have them for the drivers side of the tuscan, but when test fitting a prototype on the rear there is just not enough room for them to be used. Tyre rubbing issues as there is not enough clearance.
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