The aim of this work is the improvement of the electrochemical behavior of 4140 steel substrate using TiCN/TiNbCN multilayered system as a protective coating. We have grown [TiCN/TiNbCN](n) multilayered via reactive r.f. magnetron sputtering technique in which was varied systematically the bilayer period (Lambda), and the bilayer number (n), maintaining constant the total thickness of the coatings (similar to 3 mu m). The coatings were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), optical microscopy, electron microscopy and transmission electron microscopy assisted with selected area electron diffraction. The electrochemical properties were studied by Electrochemical Impedance Spectroscopy and Tafel curves. XRD results showed a preferential growth in the face-centered cubic (111) crystal structure for [TiCN/TiNbCN](n) multilayered coatings [1]. In this work was obtained the maximum corrosion resistance for the coating with (Lambda) equal to 15 nm, corresponding to n = 200 bilayered. The polarization resistance and corrosion rate were around 8.6 kOhm cm(2) and 7.59. 10(-4) mm/year, these values were 8.6 and 0.001 times better than those showed by the uncoated 4140 steel substrate (1.0 kOhm and 0.57 mm/year), respectively. The improvement of the electrochemical behavior of the 4140 coated with this TiCN/TiNbCN multilayered system can be attributed to the presence of several interfaces that act as obstacles for the inward and outward diffusions of Cl(-) ion species, generating an increment in the energy or potential required for translating the corrosive ions across the coating/substrate interface. Moreover, the interface systems affect the means free path on the ions toward the metallic substrate, due to the decreasing of the defects presented in the multilayered coatings. (C) 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.