Well yesterday I was power washing out my insertable bed liner, which has been in the truck since I bought it. I was spraying a little high on the back of it when I noticed some water dripping out under the truck. So I stopped washing and did some investigating. An hour, and some pinched fingers later I find this:

The other side on the same bolt is starting to get bad also but it hasn't rusted through yet. I figure the whole issue is my aftermarket bed liner sits below the edge of the bed instead of hanging over it. That means all the water, salt, snow, and random decomposed crap I washed out of it just sat in between the liner and the metal bed and did the damage. I am no welder so I don't have the means to patch the hole. Plus it is right over the gas tank. I cleaned the whole bed up the bed I could, spraying some rubberized coating on the spots that were rusting or has the paint rubbed off.


Next, I was driving hope from work and I starting get some vibrations on sharper turns. So I look under the front wheel and BOOM:

Snapped my stabilizer bar link. So I had to replace that last night. Luckily I already had a replacement laying around cause the snapped one had been bent from my wreck, I just never replaced it.

Poor Ranger, good truck, bad luck.

 

That sucks. I was at the ford dealer today and they told me the drop in bed liners are the way to go. People have been having serious rot issues with spray in bed liners so ford does not offer spray in liners anymore

 

yah screw plastic drop ins all about the spray in

 

I can't see your pic but that sucks. Luckily I haven't had any problems with my drop in bed liner.

 

This is why I would never have a drop-in plastic bed liner.

 

X2 for sure!

 

How would you develop rot with a spray-in liner? I'm confused!

 

Fix your pictures. They don't work.

 

yah it makes no sense at all why a drop in would be better at all. Especially since nearly every dealer will hook ya up with a spray-in when you buy nowadays.

 

Since you bought the truck brand new, or was the truck used? If used, perhaps the previous owner dropped it in just to cover up a mess? I'm pretty lucky I guess, because I've been using under-the-rail drop-ins for 21 years w/Zero problems. Just some rubbing scratches where the liner touches, but I rather have that over gravel chips and brick dents that I'd have if I didn't have a liner....

 

Ya I don't understand why the spray in liners are supposedly bad... Says the ford dealer... But I'm still getting one

 

I'm more into over the rail bed liners but this under the rail was in when I bought it so I didn't think much of it.

 

Never heard that before

 

People have been having serious rot issues with plastic drop ins for decades now. A properly applied spray on should never lead to rot, in fact, it should prevent it. I've had two Rangers with Line-X spray ins and neither one has had a single spot of rust.

 

Probably because they sell drop ins and not spray ons. Dealers are a biased, and often incorrect source of information.

 

the local dealer here quit sending the trucks to the lineX place, Im not sure why but I asked the LineX people how much it'd be for an under the rail bedliner sprayed in and they told me 400 and for over the rails its 450.

 

I think you meant to say this...

 

that dealer is wrong. spray in FTW! if spray in is bad for trucks, then dodge is gonna be in more trouble since they now offer it as a factory option, with a warranty.

 

My drop-in was a factory option, with a warranty. Didn't see any disclaimers that stated use of product would void factory corrosion warranty.