Product Review

Since purchasing the 2001 Wrangler, I knew I wanted the best protection from the start. Something that would protect the body from all forms of weather and abuse. I researched many different products including: Line-X, Herculiner, etc and finally arrived at Rhino Linings. Some of these products have their place, but I was looking for something permanent from the start that would last the life of the vehicle. The do-it-yourself (DIY) style kits, just don't have the durability and long life of the spray on liners. I've seen many of the do-it-yourself kits peel and fade over time requiring reapplication of the product.

I also wanted the ability to vary the thickness of the material in different areas of the tub. For example, in the back bed area and foot wells, I wanted a very thick coating, but under the main roll bar mounting plate, I only needed a thin coat to protect the metal, and still allow me to align the roll bar mounting bolts. With a DIY style of bed liners, most only allow for a thin coat. If you buy enough of the material to put on a really thick coat, then you are approaching the cost of the more expensive spray on liners which in my opinion are much better.

Next, I didn't want a really rough surface. This is not the bed of a pickup that no one ever occupies. Also the surface needed to be somewhat rubbery in that when I put something in the bed, I didn't want it sliding around on a slick surface. Rhino Linings was exactly what I was looking for, something that bonded to the metal of the body, could be put down thin or extremely thick and had a rubber like surface that didn't allow things to slide around too much.

Now that my research was done, next was to talk in depth with Rhino Linings USA to determine what could and couldn't be done with the product. What I found out was there was not much that Rhino Linings couldn't be sprayed on. I not only wanted the material on the inside of the Jeep, but also on the outside and underside as well! I knew that I would be bolting on exterior armour to the Jeep and living in an area where salt is put down in the winter. I knew I would be playing a waiting game with rust. My intention was to get a material that would bond to the paint then allow something to bolt on top of it essentially sandwiching the Rhino Linings between the two steel parts to prevent rusting. I'm sure those of you living in salt ridden areas know what I'm talking about. The results was Rhino Linings sprayed throughout the whole tub, along the area where the rocker guards would bolt, the outside of the rear corners and finally in the rear wheel wells. Spraying the rear wheel wells allowed me to remove the plastic liner. No longer does the plastic trap salt and dirt between it and the metal of the body.

Since I would be having some of the Rhino Linings sprayed on the outside of the white Jeep I asked about the different colors that the Rhino material could be sprayed in. I was originally leaning towards white on the outside, but Rhino Linings USA said that the white color was more for show. For real abuse it would require more work, and a special paint to be applied to it. It seems that white is the only color this applies to, so I was out of luck. I decided to go with black knowing many of the accessories on the Jeep were already black.

I discussed in length my plan for the Jeep with the local Rhino Linings dealer. Once he was confident that he knew what I was looking for I made an appointment.

The next big task was to completely disassemble the Jeep. The more I could take apart, the more coverage and protection I could get from the Rhino product. I had considered removing the dash, but finally decided that the firewall was very unlikely to ever rust or need the protection that the Rhino Lining provides. So the Dash was the only part left inside the tub. On the exterior, everything was removed including the tailgate, lights, license plate, inner fender well guards, flares, etc.

The appointment was for 7am so they could get started early, and of course it poured down rain the whole way there. Once there, I met the owner, and the sprayer that would be working on my Jeep. We all went around the Jeep and discussed the game plan once again. Here is a summary of what we went over:

We started on the outside and I showed him the lines I drew on the tub indicating how far the rocker guards would come up. This is how far I wanted the Rhino to be sprayed. I showed the curve near the bottom of the door, and how the Rhino would "run out" from the door sill down to the rocker area. We looked underneath and I showed him how far under and where the rocker guards were going to bolt. We looked at the rear fender well area, and the back of the Jeep. We talked about the tailgate, and exactly where I wanted the liner sprayed on it. Next to the door jam area, where we both tried to figure out how to protect the area where the dash bolts to the door jam all the way up to the windshield frame.

Then we looked inside, of which basically everything was getting shot from back to front as far up under the dash as possible. Once there I had removed the driver seat, shifter and transfer case shifter and the gas pedal. The most important part of the inside was how thick to spray the material in different areas. Starting at the front, more material in the foot well area is preferable since that will be a high traffic area. It does not need to be as thick directly under the seats. Thick again in the rear foot well area, but very careful to put a thin coat under the mounts for the roll bar. Too thick under the roll bar will give you problems bolting it back in. Once again very thick on the floor of the rear cargo area, and on the fender wells. One area I forgot to have him spray thin was where the rear tailgate striker mounts. Since it ended up being quite thick in that area, I ended up having to spend quite some time to get that to work later, so this would be an area for a thin coat. Finally we talked about the top of the soft top rails, and I knew that I needed to leave some area exposed so that the soft top retainers would push into the groove. After looking at it, and playing with different ways to mask it off, we finally settled on what seemed to be the best approach, which was coming up to just underneath where the rail hangs over.

A lot of people have asked whether or not having the Rhino on the top of the rails has posed any problems with the soft or hard top, and it does not. Both my tops fit fine. In fact with the added rhino around the rails, my soft top's lower retains fit more snugly in the groove.

Once that was done, the next step was cleaning every area that was to be sprayed, then roughing up all the surfaces to be sprayed to remove any wax and make a rough surface for the Rhino to adhere to. Then finally probably the longest task of the day was masking. Every edge and every hole had to be masked properly. Remember if it's not masked, it will get sprayed. The holes probably took the longest, because if you don't put something in the hole, the Rhino will "bridge" the hole, and you may not find it again. We used rolled up masking tape to stuff in the hole to mark the positions. Trust me, there were a LOT of holes to mark.

Finally we were ready to spray. They covered the rest of the jeep with sheets of plastic, and sealed off the area to protect from over spray. Also they used a large portable propane forced air heater to heat up the area and remove as much moisture from the air as possible. The less moisture in the air, the finer the spray that can be applied. I did not want to risk getting the Rhino on my camera, so I just poked my head in a few times to watch. The spraying only took about 30-45 minutes to complete. Once finished, we opened up the garage bay door to circulate some air, and let the Rhino set. The Rhino material dries very quickly, in fact it starts drying immediately. Within a half hour or so, the Rhino was set up enough to start working on removing all of the masking tape. Where there needed to be straight edges, they use a wire impregnated masking tape. So after the Rhino is applied, you pull the wire up through the rhino to make a straight edge as shown in the photo. The rest of the job, was removing all of the masking tape wraps from the holes, and trimming the Rhino around the holes using a utility knife. This stuff is so thick, that blades would dull after a few trims of the material! They key was to work quickly before it completely set.

It was getting quite late, and I finished by bolting back the shifters and linkages. They had me put some plastic between my seat rails and the floor just in case the rails decided to stick to the floor overnight. After my drive home, I removed the seat and plastic, and let the Jeep dry for 24 hours. Then was the long task of reinstalling everything that I had removed. Sometimes it was difficult to fit parts because of the added thickness of the Rhino, but mostly for things like the wiring harness plastic. The one problem I did have that I mentioned earlier was the tailgate striker bracket. I tried everything to grind down and shave down the Rhino around this area, and it took me hours to get it all to fit correctly. Having them spray this area thick was an oversight on my part. I did finally get it, and it works and looks great now that it is recessed into the Rhino Lining.

Finally, everything was installed the way it came. I even took the opportunity to replace those darn Torx head bolts with hex head bolts. All that work had finally paid off. The Jeep looked great, and I know that it will be protected for years to come. This is probably one of the best modifications I have made to my Jeep. There is not a day that I get into the Jeep that I don't think that I'm glad I spent the time to have the Rhino Linings sprayed. Especially on those days when it's pouring down rain, and I don't have any windows in.

Finally a few after pictures.

  

After having the product on the Jeep for several months I have had no problems with it at all. It cleans very easily is a breeze to take care of, and would seriously recommend this treatment to anyone wanting to protect their investment. I simply can not say enough times how good I think this product is.

Rhino Linings USA can be found at: http://www.rhinolinings.com