Rusty shocks: should I care?

[MattJ]

Pardon the noob question, but should it bug me that my shocks look like crap? I spray them with Fluid Film, which clearly doesn't help much due to the constant weather and road wear. I've seen nice, shiny shocks on other BSJ rigs. What's the secret? Should I care?

[Richl35]

I wouldn't worry too much other than the fact that Bilsteins are expensive. If you don't have any leaking oil and the action is consistent from when they were new then it's just cosmetic.

My secret is to put my Jeep in the garage for the winter so not helpful to a daily driver.

[MDSRACING398]

Fluid film causes it.

[BlackNBlue-ISH]

Ralph clear coated his bilstein shocks before he installed them. I’m not sure how they’ve held up for the last couple years. Wouldn’t worry about yours until performance is affected.

[JeepAddict]

I hit mine with a rattle can of bedliner....virtually no rust.

[MattJ]

I did some more research. Apparently this is an issue with Bilstein shocks. Some people use clear coat and others wax them. I like the rattlecan of bedliner idea. Gary - are your shocks are Bilsteins? Can you post a couple pics?

[Frank]

We have shocks on our Jeep ? As long as they arent leaking they are working. Lightly sand them and paint or bed line them. I would guess you could add heat fade to them using bed liner as its thick and the oil inside wont be able to dissipate the heat . Vs just using paint . Just a guess FjR68

[Marky]

I did some more research. Apparently this is an issue with Bilstein shocks.

Interesting... The Bilsteins on my truck (original, 10 years old and still going strong) are a bit rusty, but I assumed that was just 10 years of winters. I put Bilsteins on my Jeep 2-3 years ago and those are still good.

[MattJ]

I asked AEV directly. Here's what they said:

"Usually you'll want to hit the shocks with a clear coat or wax to protect them. One of the guys around here used this metal protectant coating called Shark Hide that he's had excellent results with. As far as cleaning them up, metal polish and a wire brush (or if you have a wire wheel it goes a lot faster) work pretty well."

[MattJ]

OK - I spent a hundred bucks on Sharkhide and the special baby diapers they sell for applying the stuff. I'll probably use 3% of the quart, and I'm happy to contribute the rest to the next BSJ wrenchfest if anyone else has something that they'd like to coat with metal protectant. Here's the website that lists all the wonderful applications . . .

http://www.sharkhide.com

[ZAEDOCK]

Walmart flat black rattle can - $.96

[BlackNBlue-ISH]

I took a look at mine this weekend, the rears, installed last summer look just fine. The fronts, installed 4 years ago look fine. No rust, just a little aluminum weathering. Never did anything to protect them.

[MattJ]

Yep - I think the issue is that the Bilstein shocks are steel, which weathers much worse than aluminum. I'm a bit frustrated that the shop who installed my lift kit didn't mention this. Clearly AEV is aware of the issue if their own employees are using wax or Sharkhide. I talked to the owner at Sharkhide, who says he has a lot of corporate accounts that use Sharkhide among their employees for many products, but never tell customers about it. AEV is sending me new stickers. I will test them to see if they survive a coating of Sharkhide.

I'm always eager to learn about new techniques and materials, even if I have to learn the hard way! I'll post the pictures here and donate the leftover Sharkhide to anyone that can use it. Apparently its primary use is aluminum rims and boats.

[JeepAddict]

Walmart flat black rattle can - $.96

And I thought I was going high brow using $6.00 can of bedliner. Black hides many many sins....

[MDSRACING398]

Your pictures look like your shocks still have salt on them. Fluid film is every year not once and done. If you don't redo it salt etc gets trapped and it accelerates the rust. Washing the under carriage would be a great start.