2019 Jimny Rust Prevention

Afternoon All,

So as previously discussed in another one of my threads - I've been planning a bit of preventive maintenance over the lockdown period. I plan on owning my little Jimny long term, so I thought it would be a sound investment (of my time) getting underneath and giving it a thorough going over.

I'll walk through the steps I've taken and the products I've used, with the aim of helping others carry out the same job.

So here Goes!

STEP 1: CLEANING :evil:

So my Jimny only being a year old, there wasn't a great deal of heavy debris or crud. There was a fair amount of salt residue from winter and general grime. The following process can be used for a more heavily soiled Vehicle, you may just have to repeat the process and be more patient!

I began by driving the car up onto ramps, then jacking the front of the vehicle up using my new big boy trolley jack. Two axle stands were then placed underneath the front Radius arms (IAW the Suzuki manual).



Once I was confident the car was secure (I gave the car the confirmation wobble) - I Began cleaning.

I used a product called "BILT HAMBER SURFEX HD" which is a heavy duty alkali based degreaser (more on the alkali malarky later). I used a spray bottle to wet the entire underside of the vehicle, I did this very liberally. I let this dwell for around 20-30 minutes and went and made myself a cup of tea.


STEP 2:

The next step is to agitate the grime and dirt, this is a really important step because no degreaser no matter how fancy it is will remove 100% of the grime. I did this using a small amount of hot water with a dishwasher tab dissolved into it & a cheap dustpan brush. (This is another strong Alkali based degreaser). Theres no easy way to do this chaps, you've just got to take a can of 'man up' and embrace the fact that you're going to get filthy!
My only tip would be to use a damp brush opposed to a soaking wet brush, to avoid the horrible water down the armpit! Objective is to agitate only!



As you can see, even a one year old car is pretty gross.

STEP 2 CONTINUED...

So let's talk about Alkali Based cleaners. **warning - science lesson** An Alkali cleaner is at one far end of the pH spectrum, in layman's terms it's a salt based cleaner, Other common examples of this are fairy liquid. On the other end of the spectrum, you've got Acid/Acidic based cleaners. These aren't very common and have to be used carefully as they can damage certain substrates (plastic/rubber etc).

I Work in the Aerospace industry, typically 'on-wing' and during an engine Overhaul visit one of the most common Aero-engine Cleaners is made by a brand called 'ARDROX' they make a variety of powerful alkali based cleaners that remove all manners of contamination.

So why am I washing the underside of my vehicle using a salt based cleaner? surely the objective is to remove as much salt residue from the UK winter roads?

YES, but there's no getting away from the fact that most powerful degreasers are alkali based, They're just extremely effective.

HOWEVER the Alkali Based degreaser needs to be neutralised before you apply any sort of protective coating. Because the cleaner it self will leave a corrosive residue if left alone.

I did this using a pH neutral 'VALET PRO SNOW FOAM'. This part is great fun, get the power washer out, set up your snow foam lance to a really heavy setting and cover the underside with snow foam. This snow foam sits bang smack half way in the middle of the pH spectrum, meaning it'll neutralise any aggressive Salt based cleaner. Let the snow foam dwell for around 15-20 minutes, go and make yourself another cup of tea! (a pattern is emerging here).



More to follow..

Nice work.
I would be tempted after the clean to lower the vehicle and go for a drive (assuming the weather stays dry) - essential shop for more teabags. It should help disperse any trapped water that would normally take a few days to dry out. Should help avoid trapped water under the (I assume to be applied) wax layer.
Looking forward to the finished item.

STEP 3: Rinsing!

Once the pH neutral foam cleaner had dwelled, I planned my attack with the power washer. I decided that the best tools I had to give me good results were as following.

- A drain cleaner attachment for the pressure washer.
- Standard Karcher floor cleaner (turned upside-down). :silly:
- A standard high pressure lance.



The drain cleaner was a little gem. For those of you that haven't used one before, it's a small tipped jet that fires high-pressure water in a forward and rearword direction. It's powerful enough to propel itself forward through any box section/drain. For the Jimny, it was small enough to fit within the generous drain holes that are present virtually along the entire length of the chassis.

So I proceeded with flushing out the box section, pressure washing the underside with the upside-down floor cleaner and blasting the arches and Axle housings with a standard high pressure lance.

End Result - Gleaming! :woohoo:



Although, there are very early signs of Mr Rust. Not overly impressed with the durability of Suzuki's factory powder-coat finish on the running gear.. See below a close-up of 'one of many' rust spots. (Rear Panhard rod mount bracket)

Great thread, I'm interested to see what you do next. I wish my 2004 looked like that underneath!

Nice work. So glad I had mine Dinatrol'd after the 2000 mile check up now. Glad I didn't wait.