Ziebart

[JR]

Any of you fellow rust belt warriors ever had a vehicle undercoated by Ziebart's? I have been toying with having the wifes new car done as with all our other vehicles we are planning on keeping it for several years. I like some of the concepts they use but like anything else it all comes down to competent people doing the install. Something thats getting harder and harder to come by Ive been doing my own undercoating for a few years now with FluidFilm, it does pretty well for the cost but the Ziebarts protects finished areas of the vehicle (lower doors, rockers, etc) where the Fluid Film does not. Any experiences are welcome and appreciated



http://www.ziebart.com/ziebart---home/protection/rust-protection

 

[jgillott]

Yes. I drive my new trucks off the lot directly to Ziebart before I put them to use. I've had every one of our new vehicles done since 1998 and haven't had a single rust issue since. The frame, springs, axles, etc. look like the day they rolled of the truck. The key I think is paying the $39 for the annual inspection/cleaning/respray.

 

[JMetzger]

I have done both my 02 Ram & 2010 Journey. My first experience with Ziebart was with my 1974 Plymouth Voyager Van. I lived in IL then & it never had any rust on it + it has made all three vehicles a little quieter. I feel it is worth the money & jgillott is right about the annual inspection.

 

[JR]

Ive actually never heard of it until recently. So when it dries does it resemble an undercoat or is it more transparent looking? Thanks for the replies guys

 

[S.Morris]

I do not recommend it. At about 5-7 years it will dry and crack (inside door panels and fenders. quarterpanels. It then becomes a trap holding water. It also plugs up the rocker, and a door drains.



Yes it will do better than non treatment in a road salt environment (and does well on underbody stuff) but in my books KROWN is superior over the long haul and is an annual deal. I have used it for 20+ years and have 12yr old rust free vehicles that are driven every winter.



Not affiliated in anyway, just my experience... ... ... google Krown and in the very beginning RustCheck.

 

[JMetzger]

I do not know about drying out after 5 -7 years. I asked them if there were any problems with that & they said there was not. They told me that that is one of the reasons they want to inspect it every year. I know that after 10 years on the 73 van it looked like the day they installed it It looks a lot under coating, it is black & some areas they use a kind of clear to real light brownish grey.

 

[mwilson]

My step-father was a Ziebart freak, had everything we planned on keeping done back in the '70s and early '80s. We were an IH dealer and also sent many customers vehicles to the local Ziebart shop. As a result of that business when our personal vehicles were sent over we got the deluxe treatment. I firmly believe if the man had owned a large hoist and a big tank he would have submerged our vehicles in the protectant.

A side effect of that was a slight smell that would never go away, we still have the last Cadillac Fleetwood that my step father owned, that was treated in 1984 and if you crack the door on it right now you can still smell the Ziebart.



But something happened, and the Ziebart shops in Maine faded away. There is one left that I recently found and that is in Biddeford, Maine. Had I know in 2006 I would have had the Maga-Cab done there.



I don't know what brought on the demise but you may want to investigate that a bit.



Mike.

 

[JMetzger]

In talking to the Ziebart people here in Greenwood, IN they do not lack for business. They always seem to have a lot of new cars in there shop to rust proof. I know that my daughter bought her new 2013 Hyundai it came Ziebarted.

 

[JR]

Ive located 3 shops within 75 miles of me so buisiness must be pretty decent for them in this area. Hey Mike, when would you say the local shops to you started disappearing? Within the last 10 years or so? Im just wondering if they possibly fell victim to the sliding economy, or if there were other factors involved. Im sure in smaller communities like we have in this area, word of mouth can make or break you. One of my biggest concerns would be the level of care/competence of the installers. Do they care enough to really get in every nick and crevice as if it were their own vehicle, or are they just giving it (and you) a quick hose job... Unfortunately thats a risk we take letting someone else work on our vehicles.....

S. Morris, I will look into the KROWN as well, thanks for the advice and thank you all for your input

 

[JMetzger]

I checked on the KROWN & the closest one near me was in Versailles, OH. You are right about if they really care about doing a good job on anything you have done but that is why you get a warranty as long as you get the yearly checkup. You can check on the places you can see, the only place that is hard to check are inside door panels etc. I know I pulled some plugs which is what they do on inspection & took an inspection mirror & light & checked, looks like they got everything but one never knows. .

 

[DavidC]

Can't seem to find one in Phoenix, Az. Maybe I should open one . All kidding aside I feel for everyone watching the pride and joy disappearing to red oxide before their eyes. After growing up in Pa. , then being in Illinois and Maine with the military and watching the cancer spread thru the panels it is a sickening sight.

Dave

 

[jgillott]

Can't seem to find one in Phoenix, Az. Maybe I should open one . All kidding aside I feel for everyone watching the pride and joy disappearing to red oxide before their eyes. After growing up in Pa. , then being in Illinois and Maine with the military and watching the cancer spread thru the panels it is a sickening sight.

Dave

I learned my lesson with my '85 Chevy and then my '92 Cummins, the trucks just rotted away. My '85 Chevy started showing rust by '87 and was rotted out by the early '90's. I kept it around as a plow truck until '98 or so, but it got to the point that you couldn't even find a solid part to weld to anymore. My '92 W250 was rusted bad around the front fenders, rockers, and behind the rear wheels by 2000 when I traded it on my '01.

Around here, you just can't justify not trying to protect such an expensive investment. We don't have a Krown vender anywhere near here I don't think, but I'm sure they would be a great choice also.

diesel4life. I use the Ziebart at 2000 Golden Mile Highway in Pittsburgh. A long way to travel for you, but they are excellent and careful with your vehicle. The first treatment on a new vehicle there takes all day. The annual updates are a couple of hours. I in fact just scheduled 2 of my trucks for their June inspection today.

 

[mwilson]

Ive located 3 shops within 75 miles of me so buisiness must be pretty decent for them in this area. Hey Mike, when would you say the local shops to you started disappearing? Within the last 10 years or so? Im just wondering if they possibly fell victim to the sliding economy, or if there were other factors involved. Im sure in smaller communities like we have in this area, word of mouth can make or break you. One of my biggest concerns would be the level of care/competence of the installers. Do they care enough to really get in every nick and crevice as if it were their own vehicle, or are they just giving it (and you) a quick hose job... Unfortunately thats a risk we take letting someone else work on our vehicles.....

S. Morris, I will look into the KROWN as well, thanks for the advice and thank you all for your input

They started to fade in the late '80s, I don't know what happened. We were no longer a dealer at that point so got out of the loop.



This is only my theory, but knowing some Mainers like I do the scenario was most likely a high incidence of claims because nobody went back for the annual touch-up / checkover or it did not exist then. The annual thingy may have been a result of too many claims. I will ask around and see if I can gather some accurate info for you. Also a lot of the cars in that era would rust no matter what you did so that could have been a contributing factor as well... ... ... ... .



Mike.

 

[goodguys75]

I noticed they have financing... ... ... how much does it cost, to have someone have to pay monthly??? must be expensive... .

 

[jgillott]

I noticed they have financing... ... ... how much does it cost, to have someone have to pay monthly??? must be expensive... .

The last one I had done was my 2010 and I believe it was $439. Cars I believe were listed for slightly less.

 

[JR]

They quoted me $520 plus tax for the Mountaineer and the annual check ups are around 50 bucks. It is alot of money but once a vehicle starts going south 500 bucks wont even get you in the door to a good body shop. So either pay now or later, and later will be considerably more. I think the annuals are a big key from the looks of things as has been mentioned. I was also looking into the KROWN as Mr Morris suggested, it is substantially cheaper at aropund 140 bucks for the same vehicle. It looks to be more of an oil based spray that has to be re applied every year where the Ziebarts is an undercoating under neath and some kind of oil based spray for all the interior panels. At least that is my understanding. While the KROWN appears cheaper up front, if you have to pay full price every year to have the vehicle re done the Ziebart looks to be cheaper in the long run. $520 for the Ziebart up front with annual inspections/touch up every year at around $50 (locked in price once you do the initial) vs the KROWN at $140 a year x 10 years (plus inflation) is $1400 give or take. Now this is assuming the KROWN does not give you any kind of a discount for your annual visit, I still need to call them and ask a few questions. I have been spraying the Fluid Film every year on our vehicles for a few years now and it seems to do pretty well but does not do anything for body panels which is as big a concern for me as the underside.



JGilliot, how close to Pittsburgh are you? It is roughly a 2 hour drive for me. If you look at a map, I am literally right off the west side of Pymatuning Lake. There is a Causeway that runs across the Lake and I can be in Pa in less than 5 minutes time.

 

[Newt]

I had an 88 F-250 Ziebarted when purchased. I drove that thing through the surf. The only think that rusted was the roof from the crappy Ford paint.

Newt

 

[jgillott]

They quoted me $520 plus tax for the Mountaineer and the annual check ups are around 50 bucks. It is alot of money but once a vehicle starts going south 500 bucks wont even get you in the door to a good body shop. So either pay now or later, and later will be considerably more. I think the annuals are a big key from the looks of things as has been mentioned. I was also looking into the KROWN as Mr Morris suggested, it is substantially cheaper at aropund 140 bucks for the same vehicle. It looks to be more of an oil based spray that has to be re applied every year where the Ziebarts is an undercoating under neath and some kind of oil based spray for all the interior panels. At least that is my understanding. While the KROWN appears cheaper up front, if you have to pay full price every year to have the vehicle re done the Ziebart looks to be cheaper in the long run. $520 for the Ziebart up front with annual inspections/touch up every year at around $50 (locked in price once you do the initial) vs the KROWN at $140 a year x 10 years (plus inflation) is $1400 give or take. Now this is assuming the KROWN does not give you any kind of a discount for your annual visit, I still need to call them and ask a few questions. I have been spraying the Fluid Film every year on our vehicles for a few years now and it seems to do pretty well but does not do anything for body panels which is as big a concern for me as the underside.

JGilliot, how close to Pittsburgh are you? It is roughly a 2 hour drive for me. If you look at a map, I am literally right off the west side of Pymatuning Lake. There is a Causeway that runs across the Lake and I can be in Pa in less than 5 minutes time.

~ 50 miles south east of the city. Not counting traffic, I can be in town in just under an hour.

 

[goodguys75]

The last one I had done was my 2010 and I believe it was $439. Cars I believe were listed for slightly less.

guess if you have to finance 500$, you might not want to own a dodge truck... . nothing cheap about our trucks... ...

 

[mwilson]

My step-father was a Ziebart freak, had everything we planned on keeping done back in the '70s and early '80s. We were an IH dealer and also sent many customers vehicles to the local Ziebart shop. As a result of that business when our personal vehicles were sent over we got the deluxe treatment. I firmly believe if the man had owned a large hoist and a big tank he would have submerged our vehicles in the protectant.

A side effect of that was a slight smell that would never go away, we still have the last Cadillac Fleetwood that my step father owned, that was treated in 1984 and if you crack the door on it right now you can still smell the Ziebart.



But something happened, and the Ziebart shops in Maine faded away. There is one left that I recently found and that is in Biddeford, Maine. Had I know in 2006 I would have had the Maga-Cab done there.



I don't know what brought on the demise but you may want to investigate that a bit.



Mike.

D4L,



Took these while I was retrieving the Mega Sunday before last... ... this car is full of Ziebart...

Mike.