suspension cleaning.

[whitey]

couple of quick ones. i need to find a couple small projects to keep me sane while i save for the next major project (engine or diffs and tranny- undecided yet).

1- i always see trucks with lifts and the suspensions (boots, shocks coils) that always look so clean. so i hate paying to go to the car wash and prefer to hand wash the bronco. what do you use? degreaser like a gunk engine cleaner? would this mess with the necessary lubrcants?

2- the inner wheel well guards- looks like they are fairly easy to remove. is this true? was thinking about taking them out and respraying with an undercoating. or maybe they can be degreased and then armor all-ed. just wondering how much of a pain in the ass it is to remove and reinstall them.

3- gap guards. anyone use these things to close gaps after a suspension lift? they are fairly cheap. any alternatives?

yeah i know these are pretty basic things but, like i said i need something CHEAP to do for the next couple weeks.

thanks guys.

 

[Yardape]

The gap guards can be made by simply buying garden edging from your local hardware store or whatever you may have, trim it to fit and secure with self tapping screws, works awesome. The inner fenderwells are kind of a pain to remove cause all the bolts are exposed to the crap weather, you being from texas and now Cali maybe it would be easier for you. I wouldnt undercoat them because they are very pliable, over time it would start to flake a peel. Them would be a real pain to remove. just clean them up as good as possible,(I havent found a product yet that doesnt turn them into a white cloudy haze, but interested to hear of one) and armor all. I had the whole front end off the bronco, had to grind all the heads off the small bolts around the wheel well, as weel as most of the others. If you are able to remove yours coppercoat the heck out of the bolts when you reinstall them. As for cleaning your suspension, well umm I have never even washed mine, LOL. Big waste of time for me, When its running its wheelin'

 

[Justshootme84]

I agree with Yradape. One thing you can use is the engine degreaser at the local car wash. Spray it on the frame, suspension, inner wheelwells, but not the paint!!!, then wash it clean. I also often use DOW Scrubbing Bubbles bathroom cleaner *** a soft brush to remove grease and grime. Just don't use it on electrical connections. I melted a couple by accident.

Armor-All attracts dust, so I wouldn't bother spraying it inside the fenders on the plastic. IF you plan to go thru some mud, spray something like PAM cooking spray on the inner fenders and frame/suspension. IT keeps the mud from sticking to the metal and plastic. Most of the shiny clean suspensions you see never go offroad, that's why they look so good.

 

[noahsdad]

I agree with just shoot me all the shiny trucks in California are yuppie punks that dont know where to find a dirt road. We call them Bro's. . But if you insist on cleaning your suspension it is your biz, but becareful with degreaser because it is exactly that and if you get it on joints it will cut through the grease and make it come out and then you have two solid hours under your truck with a grease gun. Dish soap is an excellent degreaser though

 

[whitey]

well i aint no "bro" or yuppie punk if you met me you would know that right away i'm pure texan down to the lone star tattoos on my knuckles. i had a legit "non glamour" reason for the initial question:

my next project is the engine rebuild or swap (still undecided on the route i'm taking on this one) and then it will be a fairly regular weekend warrior as i take it out to hit the more remote mountain bike trail areas- which was one of the prime reasons for the lift and tires- where it will see some good dirt, mud and even sandy areas. if i can get up to higher elevations - even snow. but, when i do clean my truck i like to CLEAN it. i dont like leaving everything caked with mud and dirt 24/7. i don't feel it's beneficial to the vehicle to have it mud caked all the time. so when i see these guys with the clean suspensions i ask myself "how do they get them so clean?". because even though i know their trucks are all "sizzle and no steak" - on the other hand i would like to know the safest most effective way to break down the dirt, mud and sand.

i guess i'm just looking for ways to protect my investment after i put it through a good run and abuse. after $4000 i want it to last forever or i guess a really long time. now i may have been mistaken or it may just have been a myth i had heard all my life but i have always heard that leaving all that stuff caked on alll the time leads to premature failure and rusting etc...

and yeah these dudes in socal are a totally different breed here. being fresh from texas i'm not sure what to think about these idiots. and they drive like **** here too.

 

[noahsdad]

I know how you feel brother I am from the east coast family all from west virginia, and these guys out here just ****. They always cut me off cuz their tires are bigger and shinier. One day they are going to find out how real american steel does against their plastic toys. I do agree with keeping the truck clean cuz caked on mud does seem to inhibit the growth of cancer on a vehicle. I am also crazy in thinking that my truck runs better when she is clean. Anyways sorry about the rant about bro's and their **'s I guess I need to move soon or something or just give it five more years and then something else will be in style

 

[whitey]

wait you mean to tell me it DOESN'T run better when it's clean? /emoticons/[email protected] 2x" width="20" height="20" />.

and i hear you on the rant. i've only been here since march and already i can see myself starring in the sequel to that great movie "falling down"... /emoticons/[email protected] 2x" width="20" height="20" />

 

[Justshootme84]

O.K., ******* here's anothe tip for when you do go muddin' in dem hills. Park your Bronco in the yard, and put a lawn sprinkler under it for a few hours. IT will wsh off the mud that would cost you $20 in quarters at the car wash to remove. The local river-bottom mud is also rich in minerals, and your grass will be really green!!! This works for me and others here where the mud is a sticky clay gumbo.

Now, if your undercarriage *** engine bay has never been cleaned, like my 84 was when I bought it, it will be tough to get it all clean. 15-20 years worth of grease and grime won't come off easily, or it will take paint with it. BEst option I've found is to pull the entire drivetrain out of the Bronco, and start from scratch. Took me 4 months to do that. You'll have a great chance to do that when you do the engine/tranny swap.

Or you can get some dish soap and water, and spend hours, days wiping and cleaning. I tried that, and still rubbed off some paint in the engine bay. As far as the suspensino and frame go, you can always touch them up with fresh paint, or use bedliner like I do. Overspray that with paint and clear coat to make it look shiny.

I'm from the school that I drive off-highway more than 50% of the time, and don't mind getting the truck dirty. But I do try to keep it all cleaned, as I like to look good while having fun!!! JSM84