Leaf Undercoating

D

DJP

Active Member
My family lives in Vancouver and Halifax and we have a Leaf in both locations. In Halifax when buying a 2016 Leaf we followed the dealer's advise to have undercoating applied. When buying a 2018 Leaf in Vancouver, the salesperson there said that undercoating shouldn't be done to Leafs. I didn't ask why, but I presumed that it may interfere with the battery pack's ability to transfer heat from the pack to the outside air.

Recently the Halifax dealer suggested the car have the undercoating reapplied (obviously looking for more money), but it did make me wonder what Nissan specifies. I filled in an online contact form asking what their advice is. Here's their answer, "We are unable to provide technical advice as the technicians at the dealership would be able to do this. Please contact your Nissan dealership as they will be in the best position to assist."

I find the response curious, to say the least, as I would have thought that it would be Nissan advising its dealers on what should be done with the cars they manufacture, especially when undercoating could affect the health of the battery pack.
 
I have found dealer undercoating to be a crock and waste of money. I started having my vehicles oil sprayed by Krown starting around 2001. I have a 1999 Saturn Wagon (Saturns could rust quite badly underneath the plastic panels) and all the floor and frame components are in great shape after 20 Ontario winters and all
the road salt that goes along. My daughter still drives the 2006 Chev HHR that I sold her and likewise the exterior panels and underbody are in great shape.

The local Nissan dealer in 2016 (they have since lost the franchise) tried to discourage me from having the vehicle oil sprayed as they drill small holes in select places
to get the oil inside panels and frame members. They then put plugs in the holes they drilled. The dealer insisted that they could drill into the high voltage wiring
and damage the vehicle. Didn't scare me! The oil seeps into all the same places that salty brine will if it gets the chance. Sprayed on gunk won't. don't be fooled.
 
Hi, I would agree that undercoating is not needed and is a money grab by many dealers. Yes we get road salt in Canada and my advise is wash the car every couple of weeks in the winter to remove it.
 
Kenneth Bokor said:
Hi, I would agree that undercoating is not needed and is a money grab by many dealers. Yes we get road salt in Canada and my advise is wash the car every couple of weeks in the winter to remove it.
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Have to disagree with you on this one Ken. The salty water works its way into every nook and cranny underneath the vehicle. Not only will washing not get rid of
it but if the wash water seeps into areas with dried salt remains it reactivates the corrosive effect of the salt. And if you haven't sprayed any silicone around the
door seals they may freeze shut.

This being said, I do rinse my vehicles off periodically during the winter just because they look so awful and it gets hard to see out the windows. I use only low pressure fresh water so as not to drive the salt in deep. Be aware that some car washes re-cycle the wash water so you may be washing the car with salty brine.
 
Paul K said:
Have to disagree with you on this one Ken. The salty water works its way into every nook and cranny underneath the vehicle. Not only will washing not get rid of
it but if the wash water seeps into areas with dried salt remains it reactivates the corrosive effect of the salt. And if you haven't sprayed any silicone around the
door seals they may freeze shut.

This being said, I do rinse my vehicles off periodically during the winter just because they look so awful and it gets hard to see out the windows. I use only low pressure fresh water so as not to drive the salt in deep. Be aware that some car washes re-cycle the wash water so you may be washing the car with salty brine.
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Understand Paul, very much ok to disagree! I still stick to my first comments on this as most cars 5 years unlimited milage perforation warranties, which is fine for me. I've owned several post YR 2000 cars and one for 11years - and no issue with any major rust. Some minor underneath for sure, but nothing going thru the body, or even bubbling paint, etc. Of course, it's up to each owner to make their own decision, but I'v only rust-proofed one of my over 30 vehicles I've owned and never had any bodywork issues.
 
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