I should be getting my paint work done soon, and I've been throwing around the idea of possibly undercoating my car at the same time. Anyone have input on this? Is undercoating worth it, and what kind of price range would I be looking at?

 

living on the coast i have all my vehicles undercoated. dont pay much attention to the cost though. lol. this one is not done yet, wanted to get the work done first. last time i had it done cost 100 bucks and they cleaned it first. helps with sound too.

 

And might as well get the acid rain protector for the interior and scotch guard for the paint too. Or is that the other way around?
Better yet, have all the paint lifted off the body, apply a rust protectant, then reattach the paint!!!
On a more serious note, are we talking about inner cavity rustproofing, or spraying the underside of the car?
Coating the underside can be worthwhile to help make the car last. Just make sure the body is prepped so that it sticks well, and doesn't trap in existing rust.

 

The problem that I have with undercoating is that it can trap road salt and other gunk in areas that you can't see, and can't rinse out. Plus, if you have any rust starting in a hidden area, the undercoating will just trap it in there and it will look good from the outside. But the rust is doing its damage and will eventually come through.

Most of the newer cars are pretty well protected from the factory. And unless you live in an area that they do a lot of salting in the winter, should last a very long time.

On the plus side, undercoating can help to lessen road noise.

 

ha. already got my acid rain protection. in case the t-tops leak.
but i'm just talking about spraying the underside. i know the guy who is doing the paint/body work will do it right and not rip me off, just trying to find out if it's worth the money.

 

Oh and I'm not hugely concerned with the cost... if it is worth doing then I will do it. I was more or less asking just to see an average.
And right now I live by the ocean, but I will be moving back up to PA soon enough and I'm trying to prepare for salted roads.
BTW thanks for the replies.

 

Pictures?

How good a job was done? Hope they didn't spray all over your exhaust and other things that should not be undercoated!?

 

last one done was the truck and they did a good job. steam cleaned it first. last camaro was already done.

 

If you are moving to PA, do not worry about rust or undercoating. You should worry about the car remaining in one piece. We, in PA, are proud to have the worst roads in the country, and perhaps the world. Since moving to PA from NY about two years ago, I managed to bend 3 wheels and blow out one tire. The good thing about all the bumping and bouncing around is that it shakes out all the dirt and rust from the car, including any body work that is not bolted or welded to the rest of the car. lol

 

Lol. Well I started thinking about the undercoating after my experience with my Monte SS... It was a PA car all it's life and when I brought it to VA in 2006 there was practically no floor pan left. Most of it is rusted out aside from where the seats bolt down. $500 for floorpans....I don't want that to happen to the Camaro too. So now I'm kinda torn again about what I should do.
& Yeah come to think of it I do remember how crappy PA roads can be. I grew up there & then my mom dragged me to VA lol.