Rear fender well protection

[obbop]

Lowering my lard-laden body to the gravel driveway, feeling the pebbles penetrating tender flesh, I peer upwards past the tire into the rear fender wells of my pick-em-up truck.

Hmmmmm.... exposed, nude, painted metal. Believing that the aftermarket would surely offer some type of plastic insert to protect those delicate exposed-to-flying-rocks-etc inner rustable metal panels I dilligently searched the Web. Nope. Nuthin', nada, zip and zilch.

**** .

Hmmmmm..... filters in place. Try "dam" and add yer' own "n".

Living in the rust belt I wanna do all I can to protect from rust. One way is to preserve the integrity of the paint. But, those BIG (to me) 16-inch tires regularly toss grit, gravel, road kill, slow pedestrians, etc. up against that exposed painted metal.

Art thou aware of a source for some sort of plastic or metal bolt-in protector for those fender wells?

If none are available, would placing a heavy coat of urethane-based wax and not wiping it off help preserve it?

I want to avoid the spray-on bed liner stuff for various reasons.... one being the slightest crack can hold salt and water against the metal.

Any tips, ideas, hints, loony mumblings etc. appreciated!!!!

 

[shortyb]

The sprayed bedliner material (usually a urethane) would be my first choice. Most high end dealers will guarantee the product against splits, chips, cracks, peeling etc. so you should be protected. I personally use Wurth plastic based undercoating in all my wheel wells. It dries mostly solid but has a "healing" property if the material is breeched. Its taken ALOT of abuse and no problems so far in any of the applications. Resists most solvents too unlike asphalt based undercoatings. Quite a bit cheaper than the sprayed on liner material too. Good stuff.

 

[Steel Blue Wind Rider]

After market clear coat plastic, used as bra's for bimmers and Porsches, also used on the fender wells and ground side skirts would be perfect. Buy the uncut versions to make a perfect fit!

 

[tweeker43]

tis a poetic plea for assistance...

i had something similar going on, and i bought a can of mar-hyde rubberized undercoating. i washed the car one day prior to application to make sure everything had time to dry. jacked up the arse end of the car and sprayed away.

this was 2~3 months ago, and so far so good. found the stuff at advance auto.

 

[wn1998]

I would go to your local auto parts store or walmart and get a 1/2 gallon of durabak or herckuliner truck bed liner. Then you would have to

1. Sand down fender wall
2. Clean with acteone
3. Brush on two coats letting the first one dry for a few hours.

Then enjoy, you are done and all this should cost about $50.00

 

[crashz]

An old farmer I know and my father believe in recycling their old used engine oil onto the frame, and bodywork of their trucks. It works well if you're diligent and don't mind a mess. But its not something the EPA wouldn't approve of.

 

[Kestas]

Rocks exposing fresh metal is the best way to ensure your car will rust. If you can't avoid the gravel, you'll have to take some kind of action to protect your baby. I've been playing with automotive rustproofing for over 30 years. I tried the "spray-the-oil-yearly" method once. It would dry out before winter was over.

If you want to consider a 'whole-car' rustproofing regimen, consider using Texaco rustproofing. It'll never harden, but it does dry over time and needs to be reapplied frequently (ideally yearly) in the high wash areas, less on the other areas. Or if you just want to spot-rustproof, consider using roofing tar and brushing it on.. only $3 per gallon!

In my experience, the toughest to protect is the edges of the "class A finish" panels. On my rustproofed cars, this is where corrosion starts. The inner panels and surfaces are well protected, the outer panels are taken care of by diligent spot-treatment, but the edges look ugly when rustproofed and corrosion starts there.