A method for imparting corrosion resistance onto a surface of a substrate, the method comprising: contacting the surface of the substrate with an electrolytic plating solution comprising: (a) a source of deposition metal ions of a deposition metal selected from the group consisting of zinc, palladium, silver, nickel, copper, gold, platinum, rhodium, ruthenium, chrome, and alloys thereof, and (b) a pre-mixed dispersion of fluoropolymer particles having a mean particle size, which refers to the arithmetic mean of the diameter of particles within a population of fluorpolymer particles, between 10 and 500 nanometers, wherein the fluoropolymer particles have a pre-mix coating of surfactant molecules thereon; wherein the fluoropolymer particles are characterized by a particle size distribution in which at least 30 volume % of the particles have a particle size less than 100 nm; and wherein the surfactant molecules comprise: A) - a first cationic surfactant and - one or more additional cationic surfactants, wherein the surfactant coatings have an average charge per surfactant molecule of +1, or B) - a first cationic surfactant, - one or more additional cationic surfactants, and - one or more non-ionic surfactants, wherein the surfactant coatings have an average charge per surfactant molecule between + 0.1 and +1, wherein the first cationic surfactant is selected from dodecyl trimethyl ammonium chloride, cetyl trimethyl ammonium salts of bromide and chloride, hexadecyl trimethyl ammonium salts of bromide and chloride, and alkyl dimethyl benzyl ammonium salts of chloride and bromide; wherein the electrolytic plating solution comprises one gram of surfactant for every 100 m 2 to 150 m 2 of surface area of fluoropolymer particles; and applying an external source of electrons to the electrolytic plating solution to thereby electrolytically deposit a metal-based composite coating comprising the deposition metal and fluoropolymer particles onto the surface. contacting the surface of the substrate with an electrolytic plating solution comprising: (a) a source of deposition metal ions of a deposition metal selected from the group consisting of zinc, palladium, silver, nickel, copper, gold, platinum, rhodium, ruthenium, chrome, and alloys thereof, and (b) a pre-mixed dispersion of fluoropolymer particles having a mean particle size, which refers to the arithmetic mean of the diameter of particles within a population of fluorpolymer particles, between 10 and 500 nanometers, wherein the fluoropolymer particles have a pre-mix coating of surfactant molecules thereon; (a) a source of deposition metal ions of a deposition metal selected from the group consisting of zinc, palladium, silver, nickel, copper, gold, platinum, rhodium, ruthenium, chrome, and alloys thereof, and (b) a pre-mixed dispersion of fluoropolymer particles having a mean particle size, which refers to the arithmetic mean of the diameter of particles within a population of fluorpolymer particles, between 10 and 500 nanometers, wherein the fluoropolymer particles have a pre-mix coating of surfactant molecules thereon; wherein the fluoropolymer particles are characterized by a particle size distribution in which at least 30 volume % of the particles have a particle size less than 100 nm; and wherein the surfactant molecules comprise: A) - a first cationic surfactant and - one or more additional cationic surfactants, wherein the surfactant coatings have an average charge per surfactant molecule of +1, or B) - a first cationic surfactant, - one or more additional cationic surfactants, and - one or more non-ionic surfactants, wherein the surfactant coatings have an average charge per surfactant molecule between + 0.1 and +1, A) - a first cationic surfactant and - one or more additional cationic surfactants, wherein the surfactant coatings have an average charge per surfactant molecule of +1, or - a first cationic surfactant and - one or more additional cationic surfactants, B) - a first cationic surfactant, - one or more additional cationic surfactants, and - one or more non-ionic surfactants, wherein the surfactant coatings have an average charge per surfactant molecule between + 0.1 and +1, - a first cationic surfactant, - one or more additional cationic surfactants, and - one or more non-ionic surfactants, wherein the first cationic surfactant is selected from dodecyl trimethyl ammonium chloride, cetyl trimethyl ammonium salts of bromide and chloride, hexadecyl trimethyl ammonium salts of bromide and chloride, and alkyl dimethyl benzyl ammonium salts of chloride and bromide; wherein the electrolytic plating solution comprises one gram of surfactant for every 100 m 2 to 150 m 2 of surface area of fluoropolymer particles; and applying an external source of electrons to the electrolytic plating solution to thereby electrolytically deposit a metal-based composite coating comprising the deposition metal and fluoropolymer particles onto the surface.