Dan said:
Accumulator, what other products have you used that you did not like? What do you think of the Valugard stuff?
Not really anything I didn't like, just prefer the Eastwood stuff for undercarriage bits that show since it looks nice and black.
I've used the ValuGard aerosol and it's fine, BUT you have to be careful how you apply it lest you get "pockets" due to improper application. Those gaps can harbor moisture and lead to rust. Just the nature of the sorta-thick product coming out of a spray can; their bulk stuff, shot out of a quality undercoating gun, oughta work a lot better as long as you use a pretty high air pressure and a good gun that'll really fog the stuff on nice and thin/uniform (Ketch got me some but I never did get around to spraying it
).
In the aerosol category, the Wurth stuff is also good; I've used that on German cars with no issues. But it's another one that dries yellowish-tan so I don't like it much for areas that show. It *was* virtually identical to the OE undercoat though, so it was nice on that M3 where my cleanup was a bit too effective (removed a bit too mich of the OE stuff).
Products from Eastwood and KBS that're made for shooting inside frame rails are good IME, but they're *VERY* thin, the idea being that they seep/wick into seams. Messy messy, and I don't know if they really work all that great or if it's just a case of my not having problems that needed solving anyhow or maybe selling the vehicle before any problems becam apparent.
The Amsoil HD Metal Protector (do you have that, or their "regular" one?) is great for when you don't mind the "filmy oily coating approach"; I use that on under-vehicle sparetire mounting hardware and it holds up great, even after winters and regular cleanings with APC. IF you spray it thinly enough it doesn't look all that awful and it doesn't attract/retain dirt as badly as I'd expected (does do it a bit though).
Wurth's Rost-Off is good for cleaning up surface-rusted bits; it's like a "rust-removing version of WD40/Amsoil". Leaves such a light film that it's not really great for long-term protection, best to retreat with something more durable for ongoing maintenance.
Another odd product for a semi-related issue is Autoglym's Bumper Care of all things! I've used that on surface-rusted bits with good results. It cleans oxidation off of some metal surfaces incredibly well; used it to spruce up the alternators and hood springs on a few vehicles. Does leave a bit of a "slimy mess" behind, but it's not all that awful.
And finally, for matte/flat/satin black bits with a little surface rust, BF's Paint Cleaner stuff, topped with BF's All Finish Paint Protection (is this the same as BFWD? Nobody seems to have a definite yes/no :nixweiss ) can be surprisingly effective; I used that on the rear brake drums of the MPV and it worked so well I've since used it on a lot of underhood items with that sort of black finish.
I'm probably forgetting something, but those are the products that come to mind at present.
Well, that's all I'm thinking of *besides* the Paint Over Rust approaches, of which my least fave by far is POR15. I've done much better (and more consistently better) with the Eastwood, Rust Bullet, and KBS products of that type; sometimes I've managed to do OK on *really* nasty-rusty bits that I thought for sure would be too far gone to stay nice, including door seam rustout that never should've turned out OK (it's only been two years, but zero sign of the rust returning).
and I just don't have problems as long as I keep the underneath detailed.