Dirt in engine bay.. wheel well liner gaps?

[Linkster1666]

Look for the hidden squeak, when you find it let us know.

Sponsored

 

[416z]

Some people's expectations.....I just don't understand.

Engine bays ARE NOT sealed to the weather. Never have been, never will be. Engine bays get dirty, sandy, wet, hot, cold, muggy, dry.......gaps in wheel-liners are not faults, or crappy build quality. They have a simple reason for existing, just to stop rocks from hitting the body in the wheel wells. They don't stop water, sand, air, farts, dirt, dust, queefs, fairy dust or other stuff from getting into the engine bay.

And OP, the issue is where you're driving. Mustangs ain't really meant for sand dune running. Go buy a Jeep instead.



No. There's 1000 other places for sand to get into the engine bay. It's normal. Have you, like, ever owned a car before?

Then don't drive it. Especially in the winter. Especially in Canada. Especially when there's salt on the roads. There is no "weather proofing strips" for the engine bay.

You do realize that the entire bottom of the car is open to the elements....right? And the engine bay is open at the front, at the bottom, on the sides, from above, at the back.......

And what about the rest of the car? The suspension. Exhaust system. O2 sensors and wiring. Transmission. Brake calipers. Brake rotors. Brake pads. Brake lines. Emergency brake cable. Electrical lines. What about all of that stuff? You're worried about a little sand under the hood, but not the rest of the car?

I may be an uninformed kid, but I tried to be respectful. Others called me out, fair game, but this attempt to belittle me with paragraphs of excessive sarcasm and accompanying Tom Cruise GIF makes u look like a hormonal teenage girl.

The point of this thread is not bashing these cars we both love, but to hear from others who also drive it in harsh conditions.

Based on the feedback I'm getting, I will reconsider rustproofing.

Understandably these liners were not designed with winter in mind. Thats why I'm asking about replacing them, if that could help the longevity of the car. That being said, I dont expect to pass it down to my grandchildren.

It is unrealistic to expect the engine bay to be super clean/airtight. It just seemed like a lot for 2000km, I found it interesting that it was all accumulating that one spot.

I don't drive on dirt roads, typical hwy/city, but you make a good point. I've heard the pilot 4s pick up dirt when I don't slow down in time. Maybe some is going past the liner/wells and causing my little dune..

 

[NoVaGT]

I may be an uninformed kid, but I tried to be respectful. Others called me out, fair game, but this attempt to belittle me with paragraphs of excessive sarcasm and accompanying Tom Cruise GIF makes u look like a hormonal teenage girl.

The point of this thread is not bashing these cars we both love, but to hear from others who also drive it in harsh conditions.

Based on the feedback I'm getting, I will reconsider rustproofing.

Understandably these liners were not designed with winter in mind. Thats why I'm asking about replacing them, if that could help the longevity of the car. That being said, I dont expect to pass it down to my grandchildren.

It is unrealistic to expect the engine bay to be super clean/airtight. It just seemed like a lot for 2000km, I found it interesting that it was all accumulating that one spot.

I don't drive on dirt roads, typical hwy/city, but you make a good point. I've heard the pilot 4s pick up dirt when I don't slow down in time. Maybe some is going past the liner/wells and causing my little dune..

NoVaGT is my name, and sarcasm and Tom Cruise GIFs are my game.

If you're upset by what I posted, just understand it's the internet, and people are free to say & post what they like. You gotta have some thick skin at times. If you're really a "kid", I'd suggest understanding that the adult world isn't all PC and sensitive, it can be rough at times.

And FYI, in a lot of ways "respect" has to be earned. It's not something given away for free. If it was, it would have no real meaning or value.

Oh...and one more thing. If my reply seemed a bit harsh, understand we get a lot of threads started by people who clearly know very little about cars. And as you might imagine, that gets real old, real fast. We all try to help, but it gets trying at times.

 

[ORRadtech]

Every car does it to a certain extent some a lot more than others.
Your wheel well liners are working exactly as they should, it's your expectations that are unrealistic.
If you think the few grains of sand you've collected are bad look into how much some Teslas collect in their rear bumper.
If you're seriously concerned about rust have it under coated. And stop worrying about any horror stories, you can find a horror story about anything in life. If you worry about every story out there you may as well just hide under the bed- of course there are horror stories about that too so...

 

[HeelToeHero]

OP I live in Ontario as well. Rust proofing is a must. Best is to not drive it in the winter at all. I assume if you have the means for a GT you can swing a $1500 beater (cheaper than a second set of wheels and winter tires). Buy a cheap beater for the winter months. The car will be a handful in the winter anywayaanyway the stuff they spray on the 400 series highways is very harsh (when shopping for my wife's vehicle I saw many 3 year old vehicles with significant rust already).

That said if you Krown the car in the first year they will warranty against rust so long as you re-apply annually. The warranty is limited though so read the fine print. It does work. My wife's almost 10 year old jeep is virtually rust free.

 

[Cobra Jet]

The dirt, dust or debris is not getting into your engine bay from those small gaps or openings in the wheel well liner. If you were to remove the liners, you would see what is behind them - the steel inner fender aprons, which blocks passage into the engine bay.

What you are seeing is dust/dirt/road debris getting into the engine bay mainly through your front grille. Such fine particles like sand will go right through the condenser core, the radiator core and be worked around by momentum of the vehicle and air movement under the hood. The same particulate matter gets through into the bay via numerous other DIRECT front end gaps - bumper cover, headlights, leading edge of hood, gaps along top side of hood, gaps or breaches in belly pan, all open area at rear of engine where it meets the transmission and movement of air at the base of the windshield in the cowl, which gets sucked under the hood.

There’s 2 ways of cleaning it:
1) Gas or electric leaf blower
2) Rinse engine bay

There’s no way to stop it, unless you stop driving.

You think that accumulation is bad, go to the rear of your car and shake the lower rear valance or bumper cover and see what falls out....

 

[416z]

NoVaGT is my name, and sarcasm and Tom Cruise GIFs are my game.

If you're upset by what I posted, just understand it's the internet, and people are free to say & post what they like. You gotta have some thick skin at times. If you're really a "kid", I'd suggest understanding that the adult world isn't all PC and sensitive, it can be rough at times.

And FYI, in a lot of ways "respect" has to be earned. It's not something given away for free. If it was, it would have no real meaning or value.

Oh...and one more thing. If my reply seemed a bit harsh, understand we get a lot of threads started by people who clearly know very little about cars. And as you might imagine, that gets real old, real fast. We all try to help, but it gets trying at times.

Patience is a virtue, how do people learn if not by asking dumb questions? This car is not viable/profitable without casual buyers.

Also, It gets trying? I'm sorry I forced you to log in, click on this post and unload your repressed rage. I guess I should have taken your sensitive feelings into account.

You're free to say what you want but if it's
more personal stuff, I'm gonna stop engaging.

Thanks to all who gave their input!

 

[NoVaGT]

.

 

[WildHorse]

You think that accumulation is bad, go to the rear of your car and shake the lower rear valance or bumper cover and see what falls out....

Did just that. Over a pound of shit with ZERO winter driving. Some may think summer concrete roads are clean, but not by a long shot. All cars from 100 buck beaters to million dollar exotics get the same dirt.

 

[hws52]

Some no doubt from the hood vents

 

[Daryl333]

I may be an uninformed kid, but I tried to be respectful. Others called me out, fair game, but this attempt to belittle me with paragraphs of excessive sarcasm and accompanying Tom Cruise GIF makes u look like a hormonal teenage girl.

The point of this thread is not bashing these cars we both love, but to hear from others who also drive it in harsh conditions.

Based on the feedback I'm getting, I will reconsider rustproofing.

Understandably these liners were not designed with winter in mind. Thats why I'm asking about replacing them, if that could help the longevity of the car. That being said, I dont expect to pass it down to my grandchildren.

It is unrealistic to expect the engine bay to be super clean/airtight. It just seemed like a lot for 2000km, I found it interesting that it was all accumulating that one spot.

I don't drive on dirt roads, typical hwy/city, but you make a good point. I've heard the pilot 4s pick up dirt when I don't slow down in time. Maybe some is going past the liner/wells and causing my little dune..

Don't worry about it. Some guys didn't get told by mommy that she loves him enough.
They get off thinking because they know a bit more than someone else that gives them the right to belittle others. All the while hiding their lack of self esteem in sarcasm.

 

[GTP]

OP, it is not hard to jack up your car, and remove the fender liners. Spray that Krown stuff around the lower edges of the fenders, with the can held inboard and facing outboard. Wipe off the excess that gets on the outside. This is because the water drips off the lower edges from gravity. In the winter, it may be ice/slush and have salt, too. These are the areas that are noticeable first, even if other unseen areas are also rusting out.

On the wife's car, when we noticed the first telltale bubbling under the paint at the seam between bumper cover and quarter panel, we knew it was time to sell it. So we did. The buyer was experienced and also noticed it, but he wasn't too worried. He already knew how long he planned to own the car.

We had Ziebart do their full-on underbody rustproofing, which included both the black tar stuff, and the grease-type stuff. They put it in places that they shouldn't have, and skipped places that needed it (like the fender edges). Not sure if I regret it or not. Will let you know in 12-15 years.

Sponsored