1957 factory undercoat?

twstnshout

twstnshout

Active Member
Last seen
Joined
Nov 19, 2021
Thunderbird Year
1957
1957 body off restoration there is a black goop everywhere on undercarriage frame inside the doors inside the fenders. Is this factory installed must be as it is even inside the doors. Seemingly the only way to remove is with a heat gun and chisel.what fun! The purpose? Maybe silencer?
 

This site contains affiliate links for which I may be compensated. As an eBay Partner, and Amazon Associate I may be compensated if you make a purchase at no cost to you.

Usually, this was done by the dealer to all cars in regions that had snow. The reason for this is to prevent salt and snow coming up under the undercarriage to prevent rust.
 
Yup, undercoating was one of the most oversold (and pretty useless) aftermarket options purchased by owners..
When done poorly it could actually promote rust. Ziebart has been doing this stuff for decades and still does.
Heating with a heat gun and scraping with a strong putty knife for hours is in your future I'm afraid.

The best prevetnion (and what I've used extensively) is Eastwoods Internal Chassis/Frame Treatment:

Frames nearly always rust from the inside out; about 6 cans will do a typical 60's American car's steel frame and you can
use it with the body on the frame if you are careful about overspray.
 
1957 body off restoration there is a black goop everywhere on undercarriage frame inside the doors inside the fenders. Is this factory installed must be as it is even inside the doors. Seemingly the only way to remove is with a heat gun and chisel.what fun! The purpose? Maybe silencer?
The factory did not undercoat the bottom any of the 55-57 Birds. They did apply sound deadner material in places like the doors.
 
My '57 has undercoating, even on the engine hood The only option it doesn't have is power seats, at least that's an issue I don't have to deal with. They really don't need them. Pretty well equipped so I figure it was done by the dealer for the original buyer who wanted all the extras.
 
Last edited:
My '57 has undercoating, even on the engine hood The only option it doesn't have is power seats, at least that's an issue I don't have to deal with. They really don't need them. Pretty well equipped so I figure it was done by the dealer for the original buyer who wanted all the extras.
Can't understand why they would undercoat the bottom of the hood. A club member has a 56 with that done, and it looks terrible. I think she finally had it fixed. If I hd a car like that, that would be the first thing to get fixed
 
Can't understand why they would undercoat the bottom of the hood. A club member has a 56 with that done, and it looks terrible. I think she finally had it fixed. If I hd a car like that, that would be the first thing to get fixed
I think the idea was to insulate and help soundproof. I don't mind the look and maybe that's because it's all I've known. Kinda like the insulation batts they later put in the hood crossmembers and still do to this day.
 
My hood and deck lid have that stuff between the support members it seems that is factory sound proofing as it is body color over it. I’ll have to reproduce the look eventually as much of it is flaking off. Probably rocker panel spray
 
My hood and deck lid have that stuff between the support members it seems that is factory sound proofing as it is body color over it. I’ll have to reproduce the look eventually as much of it is flaking off. Probably rocker panel spray
I'd like to know what you find. The underside of my hood is black. When the car was repainted over the original Coral Sand They painted the engine compartment black along with the hood.
 
I think that was just an aesthetically pleasing thing the restorer did. The 57 erector set I just started has never been over painted everything is painted the one body color engine compartment under hood cockpit inside the trunk even under the black goop undercoating is the body color.
 
I think that was just an aesthetically pleasing thing the restorer did. The 57 erector set I just started has never been over painted everything is painted the one body color engine compartment under hood cockpit inside the trunk even under the black goop undercoating is the body color.
All early Birds had the engine area painted body color, including under the hood. Also in the trunk and under trunk lid
 
Back
Top