So I just bought my first car, and it's a 4wd. And I've been told that to take It on the beach/light off roading that I have to get it rustproofed as I want to take it to straddie in the new year for a bit of fun. So Im asking all the 4WD QGL nuts (Jim) on where/how to get my little 4bee rustproofed..?

Do I have to get a licensed mechanic to do it? Or can I do it myself?

Any other Tips before I take it on the beach?

And just to help here's some more details:

99 Pajero io 4x4
1.6ltr 5 Speed Manual, 4 cylinders

and a picture...

http://i145.photobucket.com/albums/r235/seanwands/IMGP2305.jpg


All help's madly appreciated.
cheers :D

lanolin, lots of lanolin. f*** the environment.

there's a few different ways to go about it, professionally is a good idea, they'll often give you a warranty of sorts iirc

also
mirage on stilts

/edit: what'd it cost ya? $9k? How many kays? I think you'll find it's actually a 1.8L.

last edited by hardware at 23:19:40 18/Dec/09

Underbody Oil Spray. Heaps of places do it. Worth it, usually last a few years.
Electronic kits for cars are cons.

A very very thorough cleaning after any trip is still you're best bet.

my boss has 20L of chlorine spill in hes car 4 years ago.. 2005/6 patrol.

that s*** would rust up within.. well i dunoo but yea.. hes only protection is electronic.

was enuff got me to go for it

I either use fishoilene or sump oil. With either one take off all the door cards and brush it in the bottom of the doors, I generally tape up the door's drain holes so the oil can dry a bit. With the guards, try to get access between the inner and outer guards and either spray some fishoilene in there. Pretty much anywhere that will rust, cover it in oil. Tar works well also. Underneath the car, how about some more sump oil. :)

I'm a skeptic of the electronic one but in that way where some people are fearful of god so they kinda believe just in case it turns out he is real (except my fear is rust)

so anyway, lanolin / fish oil - coat that s***++
you can pay to get it rust proofed but honestly, they're all dodgey as and chances are they will just charge you, park your car, let you pick it up later and say "ey, we sure did a nice job on it"

so yeah, DIY is best
also I put electronic rust proofing on mine just to be better safe than sorry

orsm ride, amirite obes?

don't know much about rustproofing, if I go up the beach I steer clear of actually driving in the water/really wet sand just use the underbody carwash thing and that's about it

I fit probably one of the best brands of electronic rust prevention units on the market at work quite a bit and while they may not prevent rusting all together, they most definately slow the process. With some of the old beach/farm 4wds that are regular customers, you'd expect to be rusted out buckets but damn the lack of rust on them with the units fitted is quite suprising.

Also, that's a wannabe 4wd.

whatever pal iO's aren't too bad imo. they're a real 4wd, just a little one.

Yo Articuz, grats on the first car dude. It's a hell of a lot better than my first car which was a 1983 Ford Telstar hatch. I paid for my first car with my own money though at least, unlike most of my friends who mummy and daddy helped out. Props to me for being self-sufficient.

Here's a snap of my first car. Digital cameras didn't exist, sorry. Yeah, I wrote it off.

http://img706.imageshack.us/img706/9835/n6238906384819335045.jpg

Oh awesome thanks guys, Im going to go with the DIY Lanolin method and do it properly. Looks like I cant afford the electronic one. And it dosent look like it's gonna be as hard as I thought it would be. So thanks heaps guys! I literally had no idea about this..

what'd it cost ya? $9k? How many kays? I think you'll find it's actually a 1.8L.

yeah.. a little over 9k, with 150,000ks on it. Was owned by an old bloke out in Alice Springs, good service history and has been in the shed for most of it's life with not one problem.
And it's definately the 1.6ltr model.. absolutely sure of it.

Also, that's a wannabe 4wd.

but... it's my first car? LOL I love it! I didnt want anything big just something small that does everything that I want it to do..

I paid for my first car with my own money though at least, unlike most of my friends who mummy and daddy helped out. Props to me for being self-sufficient.

Yeah.. I definately dont want to write this one off.. there arent too many pajero io's around. sucks about the telstar, and I saved many years of hard work and labour for this car by myself (no mummy daddy help). I wanted something that wasnt terribly old and that I didnt have to work on that would do everything that I wanted it to do.

Any other Tips before I take it on the beach?

Check tide times.

Don't just rely on rustproofing give it a huge clean after beach also. Make sure you clean inside the chassi rails etc. You'll probably keep finding hidden sand for months after.

my boss has 20L of chlorine spill in hes car 4 years ago.. 2005/6 patrol.

that s*** would rust up within.. well i dunoo but yea.. hes only protection is electronic.

was enuff got me to go for it

strong bases prevent steel from rusting (passivation). if it was a car battery that tipped over it'd be a completely different matter. the electronic protection had no effect.

And it's definately the 1.6ltr model.. absolutely sure of it.

okey doke.
don't expect to have even remotely a drop of power, 75kw pushing 1230kg through a 4x4 system - good luck....

strong bases prevent steel from rusting (passivation). if it was a car battery that tipped over it'd be a completely different matter. the electronic protection had no effect.

The chlorine gas that floats around at work seams to rust steel pritty quickly

you're a knob, the gen 1 pajeros have 82kw pushing twice that weight and they do just fine.

The chlorine gas that floats around at work seams to rust steel pritty quickly

you realise its possible they aren't the same thing? (pool chlorine is actually sodium hypochlorite, if its liberating chlorine gas you have done something very wrong.)

the gen 1 pajeros have 82kw pushing twice that weight and they do just fine.

nah, only 30% heavier plus they have more torque

It turns me on when people get all knowledgeable and s*** :)

2400kg isn't anywhere near 30%.

though if lack of power is an issue i'm sure he could convert it to LPG.

For a first car do you really want all that power from gas under the hood anyway?
Wouldn't be able to handle it I recon.

Also, A good clean is better then any rust protection. Underbody spray/oil/lanolin is your next best thing.

If you want to think you're doing something, but not actually do anything. Pray.
It's much cheaper then the electronic systems people con you to buy.

yeah pretty sure 1200kg is quite light for a 1.6
Suzuki Sierra

My mate's into suzi's, he had a siera with a swift GTI motor in it. I still give him s*** about getting owned off the line by a prius :p

His dad has an ERP system and says it helps, my guess is it's like the sacrificial anode or whatever they put on boats, that s*** rusts out first to prevent the boat from corroding but it doesn't prevent it all together.

don't expect to have even remotely a drop of power, 75kw pushing 1230kg through a 4x4 system - good luck....

though if lack of power is an issue i'm sure he could convert it to LPG.

Dude at work has a ford raider, stuff all power & doesn't go very fast but he says it's a great 4x4 although it's been converted and tuned for LPG (it won't run properly on normal fuel anymore).

just got me a 4x4 too. only because of the 50% tax credit. It'll make me or break me. I was a sucker for 2500 worth of extras. Oh well it a tax write off anyway.

2400kg isn't anywhere near 30%.

quite right. That's why they're 1590kg, The RGVM is 2400kg. So 30% still stands.