Preventive is almost always a good thing - have antoher one ;)

[JohnTF]

A couple yrs. ago I bought a rust free California car [ big deal being in Minnesota ] and do not drive in winter .

Made a point of going all around the car & looking at some of the typical rust potential issues , in this case removing the plastic inter wheelwells & hosing out the dirt / leaf buildup on the rear-would spots --- that come down from the vents infront of windshield --- this is where I think a quick & easy mod should be done , put some screen matieral where the vents are , you can use your own ideas / many ways , over under , glue , rivits , fiberglass or metal screen .

And do not forget to remove your inner wheelwells at least the first time --- and then gauge how often to do in the future .

 

[Nuje]

Put a screen there, but then water builds up in the plenum chamber and will end up collecting and sitting there, where the electrical connection box, glow plug relay, washer motor, ECU, cabin filter, etc. are....none of those react particularly well to water.

 

[P2B]

Screen seems like a bad idea, how would you clean it? Better to let the sand, dirt, and leaves fall to the bottom where they are easy to clean out by removing the lowest 3 liner screws.

I clean mine out twice a year at tire changeover time.

 

[dieseldonato]

Thanks for reminding me, I need to clean them out before winter sets in.

 

[csstevej]

I’ve just cut inverted “V” notch at the bottom of the liner so nothing stay behind it.
I occasionally use a garden hose on the windshield cowl and flush out the cavity from the top.

 

[pkhoury]

Thanks for the reminder; DSOL is missing the fender liner, so definitely no leaves there. Just ordered another. And I know of the value of a rust-free California car. DSEL came from an Audi stealership in CA (it was a trade in and in great shape physically); the one before it was also a California car. Flew out one way to buy each one.