How bad is this frame rust?

[Jf888]

Like many of us I have some rust on my frame. I was able to grind it away without going through the frame in the rear which is where it is worst.

I was just wondering how bad you guys would consider this rust to be and if sanding the frame where I can reach it, repainting, and then using fluid film would get me a few more years out of this frame.

Thanks!

 

[JEEPCJTJ]

That is certainly rust on your frame, and other places. The second picture shows what looks like the worst rust but that may not be true.

The main place to worry about is where the skid plate and frame used to touch each other and the skid plate drop between them. Sanding and painting all 3 of them would definitely help add some time to it's life. Your best bet is to take those three pieces apart to be able to reach the rustiest hidden surfaces the best. When I did mine the first time I just loosened one side and removed the opposite side to work on it, then put that back together loose and did the other side. After all my painting was done I sprayed Fluid Film where they were going to touch each other then tightened everything back up.

A nice gallon of fluid film and a small compressor work wonders on coating the whole inside of the frame which should buy you even more time.

Since you asked about getting a few more years you need to do the fluid film at least every fall.[/QUOTE]

 

[Superduty71]

Yeah... you have some rust, but if that is a CT Jeep I don't think it looks that bad. I would say definitely savable with some maintenance (& maybe a little investigation). We just did rear frame repairs on both sides of our '99; yours doesn't look to bad to me, but I would check the inner frame as well... & Fluid Film / Wool Wax are definitely your friend in CT if applied properly & regularly.

 

[Jf888]

I had my skid plate off a couple weeks ago to put in a new exhaust and the rails were not rotted too badly. I'll probably take the whole thing off again to sand the rails and the plate itself.

And yes this has been a CT jeep for the past 8 years. Its taken its toll on it for sure. Ive never used anything on the frame just washing it and its clearly not working too well. Im hoping the fluid film will slow the rust down.

 

[Superduty71]

Heck the fact your Skid plate bolts are even removable in CT is impressive.... lol... When you have them out again anti-seize them...

So my only recommendation would be... clean, sand, (prime), & paint (even if it is just rattle can) anything you want to prior to you doing Fluid Film... not that easy to do afterwards... There are plenty of good paint products out there... but still Fluid Film afterwards....

I have been using Fluid Film for the past 8+ years on equipment with good results... (nothing is perfect)... Trying a new product on one of our trucks this year.... verdict is still out on it....

 

[JEEPCJTJ]

For 8 years of CT I'd say washing it didn't do too bad. I've seen worse happen in just a couple years.

 

[Superduty71]

For 8 years of CT I'd say washing it didn't do too bad. I've seen worse happen in just a couple years.

That's what I was thinking....

We have a 2014 Ford that looks worse

 

[Jf888]

It pretty much sat for 3 years and then I started driving it as a daily driver. I wash it at least every other week in winter focusing on the frame. I try not to drive it right after it snows

 

[Superduty71]

Well in my opinion you are not in that bad of shape at all for New England...
The issue with the product they use on the roads in our area (& others) is it is activated by moisture; so after it is on you vehicle & you go to wash it off... all that is happening is a new chemical reaction (corrosion). Yes this is true... #ThankYouGreenGoverment... (OK off my soapbox)...

Really your Jeep is not bad at all.... just keep on the maintenance... you have much more than a couple of years out of it...

 

[Chris]

I see the start of frame rot there. The inside of the frame looks way worse than the outside, I can guarantee that.

 

[Jf888]

I see the start of frame rot there. The inside of the frame looks way worse than the outside, I can guarantee that.

Its definitely not perfect in there

 

[Westtown Willy]

Its definitely not perfect in there

I'd get in there right away with an endoscope and take a good look at every inch of it. After you identify the bad spots then you can figure out how to mitigate the damage and slow/stop further damage. There are plenty of threads here on how to do that, but suffice it to say they all involve physically removing the scale, chunks & surface rust one way or another, or a combination of ways, then re-sealing the bare metal with something, either paint, fluid film, oil or whatever, but I believe the important thing is to get it cleaned out as best you can and do something to put a barrier between the inside of the frame and future incursions of water/salt. Then it's all about maintenance, flush the rails when necessary (after you've gone offroad & submerged them you'll want to get rid of anything that floated in) as well as after you've driven in salt. Be sure to also add drain holes if you don't already have them, they're particularly helpful when flushing the rails. Every time I go off road I immediately flush the rails at a self-clean carwash at the bottom of the mountain & if I've done a lot of water crossings what comes out of the drain holes for the first few seconds is typically black & pretty nasty. I run that water through until it runs crystal clear & I do that at every large round opening on the side of the rails, takes some effort but there's not so much as a grain of sand left in there when i'm done & that's what you want.

 

[bromel]

Have you drilled drain holes yet? That is probably the single best thing you can do to prevent rot.

 

[Jf888]

Have you drilled drain holes yet? That is probably the single best thing you can do to prevent rot.

It looks the the previous owner put holes in the front of the rails but not the back. I will be putting one right before the rear control arm brackets this weekend.

 

[bromel]

It looks the the previous owner put holes in the front of the rails but not the back. I will be putting one right before the rear control arm brackets this weekend.

Good plan. All in all, your Jeep looks very good for being from Connecticut. You'll need to flush the inside of the frame and treat with fluid film. I would not worry too much about those rear sections. For some reason they always tend to rust, even though water does not collect inside. Looks mostly like surface rust, but worst case scenario Safe T Cap makes replacement sections.

 

[Jf888]

but worst case scenario Safe T Cap makes replacement sections.

Im hoping I can make it a few more years before needing any major frame repairs but I'll just have to see how cleaning it up goes and go from there.