Chassis protection

[SteveyP]

Hi all.

What are people's thoughts on chassis preservation? Currently I have a very solid chassis on Vin 4468 with no rust (Texas sourced, therefore nicely baked).

What can I do to keep it this way (apart from never drive it in the wet LOL). Has anyone got anything good to say about wax oiling a D chassis? On other classics this would be the very first thing to do. But it doesn't appear to be such a common thing to do on a DeLorean. Any reasons why? Is it an aesthetic thing .i.e looks messy?

I know a lot of people have galvanised their frames. And this is of course the correct thing to do. But I don't have the time, money, space and skills to do this now. So not an option for a long while.

Just thought I'd canvas opinion before getting anything done.

Thanks
Steve

[Rich Hanlon]

For now, enjoy your car!

Later, its worth a look inside the front part of the X-frame where the fuel tank goes, that can hide nasties. (remove large triangular coverplate underneath).

Engine 'cradle' section at the rear - two large black rubber discs will be found on the inside of the cradle. These are close to the exhaust manifolds and get baked and crispy with the heat, then drop down inside the box section letting the weather in. You can try and rustproof these cavities through these holes and replace the bungs. I did some work on this area and replaced the lower-most sections (the 'floor' of the box, effectively) as that was getting crusty, but with the addition of two water drain holes.

Elsewhere, if the epoxy is good, well stuck,(i.e doesn't sound hollow when tapped) and not crazed and letting water in, then see part 1.

[Chris Williams]

As Rich wrote really, a lot of people seem to try and fill the box sections with rustproofer but all it's doing is sitting on top of epoxy, though if it does crack at least it should seal it and stop any water getting in. I have just done this to my car including the area around the front frame extention as there was some flaky epoxy I removed and then treated.

Chris

[SteveyP]

Rich

Thanks for this advice. I did have the usual brake master cylinder leak that melted all the epoxy coating around the fuel tank area and adjacent cross member. The coverplate was removed. grinded back and repainted at this time too.

Basically the only corrosion it had was a result of either the brake or clutch cylinders leaking and removing the epoxy to expose the frame to the elements. This has all been treated now though.

As you say enjoy the car first, and keep an eye on it I guess. It's not a sugar lump? Therefore won't dissolve with the first drops of rain . However as the frame is so strong currently, I just wanted to take some preventitive actions now that would pay off in years to come.

As you say, then if the epoxy is solid all over ('not crazed or hollow sounding'). Then injecting the frame at various points with wax oil couldn't harm I think? It's a relatively easy thing to do. And total cost is pretty negligible really.

Thanks
Steve

[Chris P]

I agree with Chris W, I use Waxoyl every where, just then wipe it off the bits that show. I do on all my cars. It ensures that all nuts bolts, brackets etc will come undone in the future if needed.

The opposite of this is my current car, that had been left outside much of its life....including a few years on the beach near Barmouth! Some restoration work had been done and the chassis waxoyled, that bits fine.... but the rest? ..... Hammer and chisel and sharp drills, hacksaw.....yes use your waxoyl

[Rich Hanlon]

Sorry, yes, agreed, I had meant to imply that the areas I mentioned were the most prone areas, and the ones where the protection will do most good, absolutely agree, no harm in it going anywhere and everywhere so long as you avoid hot bits!!

[Rissy]

...I wonder if anyone has any experience of using this stuff for cars, or more specifically, a DeLorean chassis? Seems too good to be true? How long does it last etc. Very impressive video though.

http://www.spillcontainment.com/everdry

[stunned_monkey]

Protecting the chassis with waxoyl is next to useless as it will simply sit on top of the layer of epoxy and makes working on things later a messy affair. Later cars had a sort of black grotty coating applied at the factory and for some reason those frames seem to rot worse than those from untreated earlier cars.

If you're worried about fasteners becoming seized, take them out now (if they're already seized, no amount of waxoyl will protect them) and apply copper grease.

For longer term protection, I'm firmly in the galvanise and powder coat camp (I'm dying to do a silver one!), though I agree the epoxy must be properly stripped first if nothing else than to properly reveal any repair work that needs doing.

[Chris P]

We are all entailed to our opinion Martin. I know what I think. Every car I have ever owned has had the Waxoyll type treatment. ( even my new Kia).

My opinion started to shape in the 1960's when I was an apprentice garage mechanic, working in the service bay on the cars of that era, most were starting to rot away and the only bit of solid body work on the whole car was where the oil and grease had been thrown from the prop shaft! The garage started to offer a spray under the car from an oily type stuff, designed for use on the leaf springs of the day. Including drilling holes in the sills and blowing the stuff up there. It helped preserve them. But it soon got washed off exposed places and could cause rubbers to swell, so was not ideal.
Then came the waxoyl type treatments, which were better suited to the job.

If you have cracked epoxy that is difficult to get at, or suspension that is rusting, a "high pressure" blast of waxoyl in the area can do no harm and WILL preserve it from further rust until it can be sorted out properly.

Vin 522 is a classic example.....the restoration, prior to me buying it had only got as far as the running gear and chassis, then it was left outside for about a decade, on the beach. It had been so neglected that I literally have "dry rot " in the wood work ( at the bottom) behind the seats. The carpets had turned to rotten fragments and looked like something you would unwrap off an Egyptian mummy! But where I have cleaned off the surplus waxoyl, its like new underneath.
Its a testament to the car's construction that it is still in one piece, now running and 75% restored.

Your choice reader, but I know what I will continue to do to my cars.

[stunned_monkey]

But other classic cars do not have a thick layer of "plastic" applied to their frames to begin with. Suspension arms are a different matter but are also very accessible to repaint.

I agree waxoyl won't do any harm but it makes future work on the car a very unpleasant messy job. I've had to do several accumulators covered in gunk because people think "oh look, a hole, I'd better "protect" stuff in there".

[Chris P]

It was sprayed all over my plastic underbody, wheel arches etc. a right horrible job to get off. but i have left it on the rest.

[flux3d]

I'm no expert on treatments, and to be fair waxoyl can be good. One thing I do know is when 10719 made it over here to the UK was that it had been treated with waxoyl type stuff. It made everything a knight are to work on. I've spent hours and hours stripping it off and dealing with som problem areas that the waxoyl had covered. The surface rust was still there, the waxoyl had just made it much harder to see it.

I'm not sure if in the LNG run the treatment had helped to keep the frame in general good condition, or if it had just contributed to covering up any rust. One thing I'm very sure about is that I'm VERY happy it's all but gone.

As I say, I'm no expert. I've even got a brand new tin of waxoyl on the shelf I was going to use to touch up places. Maybe I should have done that, who knows.

[Rissy]

Rissy Wrote:...I wonder if anyone has any experience of using this stuff for cars, or more specifically, a DeLorean chassis? Seems too good to be true? How long does it last etc. Very impressive video though.

http://www.spillcontainment.com/everdry

"Augh, yeah Chris, wow-wee, this stuff looks cool! I wonder the same thing." whisper whisper...yeah, cool. wonderment wonderment. :wink:

[stunned_monkey]

Rissy Wrote:...I wonder if anyone has any experience of using this stuff for cars,

It's bit of a "hands up if anyone has done this"... I think by the lack of hands in the air, you can assume the answer is "no".... :wink:

#2 in the FAQ says

Quote:This coating will generally last 2-8 months in direct sunlight and outdoor conditions before recoating of the top coat would be required.

Not a very long term solution for a car chassis then.

The main problem areas in a DeLorean chassis are the engine cradle, the front frame extension, and the boxed sections between rear suspension turrets and the main backbone.





Trying to prevent rust forming here without stripping the epoxy back and coating with something better is IMO a waste of time. Chasing the cracks in the epoxy would be a headache and in an area you can't see as well would be night on impossible.

[Thrust Washer]

Theres only one product I could recommend and that's called Gravi tec plus by Upol.
One coat application ....no need for wax oils or other...will give your chassis that new look.
The grey is a near exact match to the Delorean epoxy coating , I apply it with an underseal spray gun.

really good stuff highly recommend it!