I tend to get rust accumulating on the bottom edge of my truck’s tailgate, so thinking of installing mudflaps? Good idea? Bad idea? Product recommendations?
I don’t think that would help. The water that gets to my tailgate comes from the bed. Unfortunately mine has a drop in liner that collects rainwater, pools in the bed then flows to the tailgate when the truck is driven.
Possible a spray on wax, spray on, do not wipe or buff.
Pick up another tailgate from a junkyard while you can still find one. You could even have one powder coated.
I think it’s a good idea but to keep the road debris, like dirt, mud, sand, etc… from being thrown up at the panels from the tires. The water mist from the tires will get everywhere no matter what when you consider the wind turbulence around a tire at speed.
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+1
My '74 Volvo had mud flaps, and the amount of road spray that it threw was minimal in comparison with most of the cars on the road. Because my current ride didn’t come from the factory with that accessory, I had the dealership add them when it was in for its first service visit.
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My F150 has mudflaps, they do absolutely nothing to protect the tailgate. To protect the tailgate you would need a full width mud flap like this:
I still say keep the tailgate protected with wax. If already rusted, replace the tailgate, after all your original has lasted you a long time.
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Another vote saying that mudflaps probably won’t do a thing to keep the tailgate clean.
But you’d better figure something out. If the tailgate is starting to rust at this age, it may be only another 30-40 years before it needs to be replaced! 
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I think that George should contact the Ford folks at the corporate level, and tell them that it is unconscionable for a vehicle to develop rust after only 50 years. Demand that they replace the tailgate–gratis!
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Pickup bed too. If the tailgate is rusted the bed must be too. How dare they?!
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As I wrote in Post #3 above, I believe that Mud Flaps are a good idea. I also wrote that they cannot control the flow of water, rain, slush, or other liquid or semi-liquid as all of that is at the mercy of the wind turbulence from the tires and body design.
So, to protect the tail gate, I do not believe Mud Flaps would be of much use… If you search “truck tailgates and gas mileage,” you will find lots of opinions on the effects of wind and turbulence. Tail gates seem to be very similar to the old Station Wagons of long ago, they seem to attract dirt and debris like the station wagon’s tailgates
But since a Truck is so much more than just a tail gate, a tail gate that than be lifted off and replaced in the time I write this… Consider what else the mud flap protects…
So; are Mud Flaps a Good Idea? The “proof is in the pudding.” I have four vehicles with mud flaps. Photo #1 is the wife’s '85 Toyota Corolla, factory installed; Photo #2 is my '01 Dodge Ram, aftermarket, I installed…
Photo #3 is the Valance Panel or splash Panel behind the rear tire of the '85 Toyota with over 230,000 miles on it… Pretty clean with no noticeable wear and tear…
Photo#4 is the Valance Panel or splash Panel on the '01 Ram with over 70,000 miles on it and it also shows no wear or tear from road debris…
Photos #5 and #6 are the '20 Honda Fit and the '19 Toyota. These Mud Flaps were OEM Dealer Installed Mud Flaps. Although they are relatively small, they seem to be doing the job protecting the Valance Panels from road debris…
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Yes, that type of mud flap/mudguard is necessary if you drive on dirt/gravel roads, or live in snow country. Back when I purchased a Focus station wagon I had them installed, I am in Florida, rains a lot, a lot of stuff is thrown up when it rains.
Do you recall which brand they used?
I bought them from the Lexus dealer’s parts department, and had them installed when the vehicle went in for its first service. They are the OEM mudguards.
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If it’s ford, it rusts.
Mudflaps may help somewhat but it also is a courtesy thing ford knows nothing about thus no factory flaps.
It’s not nice to throw mud and rocks at the windshield of somebody behind you…
lol … I’ve definitely noticed whenever the classic car restoration guy Danny (The count) on his tv show takes on a 60’s Ford pickup, he usually ends up spending a lot more money than he bargained for, and seems lucky just to recoup his investment. This doesn’t phase him though, he seems up for doing it again.
If they showed you all the builds that were easy then they would not have much of a show, the hard ones are what draws you in, can they repair it or is it hopeless, stay tunned… lol
Plus they all (that are shown working) are paid by the network (on top of what Danny pays them), so business wise he may be barely getting by on a few builds, he is really still making money on them off the show… And a longtime profitable business can afford to absorb some brake even and or some loss every now and then, or even wright the losses off on taxes… So don’t think for a minute he is where he is by not making a lot of money off almost all his builds because he is making lots of money…
You don’t own a large vehicle collections when you aren’t making good money… Besides his Net Worth is around $13 Million… He didn’t make all his money from the show, but the $100,000+ per show didn’t hurt him either… lol
Absolutely. Mike Brewer could never afford his daily driver, a Porsche Taycon, if he wasn’t paid by the networks his show appears on.
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