Piston having an undercrown surface with coating and method of manufacture thereof

A method of manufacturing a piston for an internal combustion engine, comprising the steps of:

• providing a piston body extending along a central longitudinal axis;
• the piston body having an upper combustion wall forming an upper combustion surface and an undercrown surface opposite the upper combustion surface, a ring belt region depending from the upper combustion surface, a pair of skirt panels depending from the ring belt region, and a pair of pin bosses depending from the undercrown surface, the pin bosses providing a pair of laterally spaced pin bores;
• the piston body including one of an open outer cooling gallery forming a portion of the undercrown surface, a sealed outer cooling gallery forming a portion of the undercrown surface, or an outer galleryless region forming a portion of said undercrown surface, and the piston body include a central undercrown region forming a portion of said undercrown surface;
• applying a coating to at least one of the portions of the undercrown surface and not applying the coating to at least one of the portions of the undercrown surface;
• and
• the step of applying the coating including applying a base layer including nickel to the undercrown surface, and applying a catalyst layer including rhodium on the base layer.