Having had two 4x4's and used them down rough tracks, eventually the sump guard gets very dented and has to be removed to be knocked out to stop annoying knocking, not a big job but..
Also the sump guard is not great at proctecting the gearbox drain plug, which got knocked loose( luckily saved in time) once .
I notice OMP make a decent sump guard for the Original Panda 4x4 and I have seen a few abroad with decent sump protection,,as anyone found any websites offering accessories of this nature? A link would be great

I've owned both a 1.2 Climbing and a Cross.
The sump guard on the Climbing was very heavy and thick. If it was any more substantial it would slow the car down and increase the weight of the front end. The guard on the Cross is less substantial which surprised me as I felt the Cross had more off-road pretensions.
I think that with a 4x4 with limited ground clearance, a sump guard is best used as a guide. If you think you might ground on a particular route, drive slowly. If the sump guard grounds heavily, stop, back off and re-route. If it grounds lightly, proceed very slowly as you know that components further back will be vulnerable. Although the Panda 4x4 is well-designed underneath to protect from grounding, it's not a Land Rover and does have vulnerable spots all the way back to the rear wheels.
I don't think anybody makes a different sump guard for the Panda but I'm sure a Google search would find someone who would make one up for you. Whether it's ultimately a good idea is another matter.
Finally, an off-roader without a few dents in the sump guard is not a real off-roader!

So Have you dented it yet? Unfortunately not always possible to re route, last time I enquired a new guard was £160, I sort of hoped there would be a stronger version for Greece etc, but no chance. I notice very little thats vulnerable after gearbox, as chassis box section protects exhaust.

I would also be interested in a 4x4 accessories site, sure there must be loads out there somewhere but I have failed in my surfing so far.

I put a few dents in the sump guard on the Climbing but haven't really used the Cross off-road. I just don't get much of a kick out of driving in the dirt these days. I think I'm getting old and boring.
There are plenty of off-road accessory sites but they largely cater for Land Rover vehicles as there's just too small a market for modifications to other vehicles in the UK. I've never come across any sites offering products for the new Panda 4x4.

I would love some form of rear LSD or Locking diff, but as you say, there's very little available for the Fiats. Had an ARB Airlocker in a former Discovery, but would be happy with another simple viscous job in the back of my Panda 4x4.

Anyone know where I'd start? GKN perhaps....

Phil

find a scrapped 4x4 and rob it of its viscous coupling

panda4x4x4x4 said:

find a scrapped 4x4 and rob it of its viscous coupling

Click to expand...

.. and build it into one of the driveshafts somehow? Not too sure how a viscous locked rear diff looks, ie: the type in the rear of a UK Impreza for example.

Phil G