Underseal done!

Hey folks, just thought I’d share this because nobody else is going to see the underside of my car and get excited about it with me!

I just had a full Dinitrol under-seal done by the guys at Stagshaw in Team Valley - They’re LR Defender specialists, but they’re endorsed Dinitrol specialists so are more than happy to take on other vehicles. They also did it for a reasonable price, way cheaper than some other places that were quoting me £800+ in the area. Totally recommend them if anyone is looking to get under-sealed locally, Josh really knows his stuff and is a great bloke to chat to. They also definitely don’t make you feel like an outsider despite the fact that the 5 is on the other end of the spectrum to the Defender.

There were a few other bits and bobs that needed attention, but I’m really pleased to say that they found no big holes, and the sills are completely solid! For a 56 reg with 83k miles I consider myself pretty lucky. Just for reference, this is one of the before photos.

Can’t wait to see some of you folks out there when some meets and drive-outs start again. I’ve joined at a bit of a funny time it feels.

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Looking good! I just got my MX-5 in December, and one of the first things I did was get it booked in for underseal treatment.

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I am not sure that I would do that to an old car, I would rather be able to see what’s going on with the rust than cover it up. If I bought a new car then yes.

I’d agree with you if they were just spraying Dinitrol over the top of the rust, but everything is cleaned beforehand, and the rust is treated before the Dinitrol is applied. The garage I took my car to also do free annual check ups, and only charge you for any areas that need treated again.

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What a crazy idea wanting to see your rust grow.
Mine is booked in in April with Anand Vaid and it will have all existing under seal removed, upholstery removed and all cavities treated then freshly under sealed so no need to even bother looking for rust for a good many years after.
I’ll post photos in April …

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That looks great, nice job.
Had mine done with Dinitrol about 18 months ago and it still looks good underneath.
Please take this as a constructive observation but I’m not sure it is a good idea to coat the heat shield above the back box as this gets pretty hot and might start smelling or smoking. I think they left this untreated on my car for that reason…

I might well be incorrect just a difference I noticed on your picture…

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Hey, so the entire thing was jet washed, wire brushed and properly cleaned before applying a rust converter across the entire underside before applying the dinitrol. They also did full cavity treatment and sealing. I’m confident that it’s not just “hiding the rust” because they do a really thorough job.

As for the heat shield it had been previously removed due to it breaking away, so there’s currently not one attached.

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Not had a heat shield on my Mk1 for a couple of years.
So saying, when used the car is always (or was!) on the move in the countyside.
Cannot say it’s caused any issues.
Clearly the NC is a different design…
Equally, they are fitted for good reasons.
Perhaps in the UK our general low air temperatures provide sufficient cooling bar being stuck on the M25 in a rush hour heatwave.
Remember them?

A heatwave? In Scotland?! :smile:

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It gets warm in the NC’s boot via that back box, especially on longer journeys say over the border​:grin: Gawd knows how warm it would be without the heat shield :thinking:

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Aye.
First division oxymoron in the making! :smile:
Hoots Mon…

If you dont mind me asking, how much did you hand over.

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I’ll drop you a pm mate

I had my Mk 3.5 NC teeated with dinitrol products 2 years ago and I’ve just had the underside checked over again. All good. Fred S

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Looks like a great job. Did you get an annual top up done or just leave it as is?

When the job was done, I got a whole set of photos showing the various stages of the treatment. I could see my car with all of the plastic trims removed. I was told that my car was in ‘almost new’ condition. I had the treatment done to keep it that way. I have had the underside checked each year since. No top up has been necessary so far. I haven’t done very many miles in the last 18 months. Partly because I only take the car out of the garage on days when I can drive top down and of course because of restrictions during the pandemic. Have you been advised to have an annual top up? That would seem a tad excessive. Especially when I read the guarantee statement from dinitrol. I suppose the ‘top up’ is for areas where the product may have come away when a stone hits it, or something similar. Cheers Fred S

That seems fair enough - Sounds like you’ve got a mint car!
It’s not “advised”, but I’ve been offered a free top up and inspection in 12 months which is, like you say, for stones coming up and chipping it away. Definitely worth it when it’s free! I daily mine as well, so keeping it in top shape is important.

Keeping on top of it is very important and especially when it’s your daily. My Mk3.5 2.0 litre Sport-tech, had less than 6,000 miles on the clock when I bought it in the summer of 2018. It was in mint condition, but of course I had to pay quite a bit more to get the car that I wanted. I spent too much time on my previous fun car, which was a classic MGB Roadster. I just want to have fun with this one. Cheers Fred S

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Could I ask? What does Anand charge for a clean 5 with virtually no visible rust evident?

Got my 2005 NB 2.5 Sport booked in for a Dinitrol treatment in May. The car is in very good nick but some very light surface rust was pointed out to me when the car was on the ramp at my local MOT centre. They were keen for me to see it as they thought the car was, otherwise, in such good condition. The garage doing the treatment have quoted me a couple of quid over £700.00. For the extensive amount of work they are doing (that includes a warranty certificate, follow up check and full photographic evidence of what was done) I think this is a pretty good price. they will have the car for three days. I did get a quote for Waxoyling - this was substantially cheaper but was going to be done on the same day.

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