Rustproofing a 10-year-old Volkswagen T5 with Lanoguard

We recently had the opportunity to treat an ageing Volkswagen T5 campervan with our Underbody and Chassis Care Kit - keeping it protected and preserved for a long-term future with the owners as a family vehicle. We'll run through what made this T5 the perfect contender for a Lanoguard treatment, as well as how you can effectively (yet easily!) use our products to stop rust in its tracks.

As a 10-year-old vehicle frequently used by it's owners and not yet treated with any underbody coating or underseal, we went in expecting some surface rust. The vehicle, albeit rusty, was at the same level we find many older vehicles... some existing rust exists, but certainly not enough to warrant the costly and time consuming process of extensive rust removal.

Surface rust... An issue for many rust treatments - No problem for Lanoguard.

It was in the perfect state for us to go in and give the van a little care. Due to Lanoguard's ability to displace oxygen and moisture, providing a hermetic seal on the surface, surface rust is no problem. Infact, due to lanolin's natural attraction to metals, the products will actually seep underneath rust and slowly push off the oxidation over time.

This T5 also had an unusual amount of plastic coverings and casings on the underside. Again a benefit to our formulas which, unlike most petroleum coatings, aren't perishing to rubbers or plastics and therefore don't require any masking up (another time consuming and dull task!). After these initial observations of the vehicle, we set to work with our care kit... 

The Treatment

Treating vehicles with Lanoguard can vary depending on the end result you want. It can be applied in as little as fifteen minutes if you're going for a very light coating, or with extensive and thorough applications inside box sections and inner sills a forty-five minute application is more likely. 

After having prepared the vehicle (we scraped off flaking bits of rust, pressure washed the vehicle and then left it to dry) we set to work preparing our tools and equipment. We used our Moto Spray and Moto Grease (both sold together in our underbody kit) alongside our 360 Injector Wand, some gloves, goggles, a mask and a paintbrush. We left the spray and grease containers in some hot water to make winter application a breeze.

First things first was the Moto Grease application. Our grease is a super-concentrate product which provides a very heavy duty rust protection, waterproofing and anti-seize. We recommend using a paint brush to brush this onto any thick patches of surface rust or areas very vulnerable to rusting (leaf springs, suspensions, nuts and bolts etc. The grease applies an off-white colour and dries after a few days to be translucent.

After applying the grease to these areas, we moved onto our Moto Spray - which is a very easy to use, slightly thinner yet still heavy duty protection. We applied it with our trigger sprayer set, but you can use any pressure sprayers, compressors or solvent-compatible sprayers (they all atomize well and give a great coating!). Moto Spray is designed to seep and creep really well into crevices and gaps in the underbody. Spray it over the entire underbody (only thing to avoid is brake discs) and it'll provide a jet-wash resistant and road spray resistant translucent coating which will repel moisture and cause water to bead-off. 

We then decided, as an extra protection, to use our injector wand and apply some of our spray into the many holes and plastic coverings on the van. A good thing to do if you can - as these areas can be much more hidden and difficult to reach and protect.

That was it with application. A brushing on of the hot grease, a spray over the whole underbody of the warmed up spray, and a quick injection of spray into the hidden areas of the chassis. A short treatment - which required very low prep time and very minimal clean-up afterwards. No black goop to clear up and no heavy masking up or removal of surface rust. 

We'll check up on the vehicle in 6 months time just to see progress - and possibly give it a quick 15 minute top up spray. These products are designed to allow the user to DIY and feel empowered to care for vehicles.... We certainly felt empowered to get this camper well looked after before it was too late - and we look forward to seeing this van last much much longer.

See a video of this treatment below - we show you the vehicle, how we treated it, and how we keep our trigger sprayers clean and ready for the next treatment. 

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