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Just got new sump guard for 2014 Fiat Panda 4x4 and wondering if it's best to give a couple coats of rustproofing paint before fitting?
General sumpguard
- Thread starter doric
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sumpguard
If it is steel then the paint will protect it. If it is alloy then unless you are planning on turning the car over no one will see it looking pretty.
I haven't even seen any snow this Winter where I live in Sunny Devon.
ClassicZoo
Member
Definitely paint it. They rot for fun with the original sneeze of a coating, especially where the square plates in the front corners attach to the rest of the guard presumably creating a moisture trap between the two layers of metal.
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Well I gave mine a coat of what ever was laying around in the garage but being pragmatic the OEM one it replaced lasted 12 years; what chance something more terminal happening in the next 12???
So didn't spend too long on it
I took the original steel sump guard off my 2007 Skoda Scout to do some work, it weighed a tonne, it's still outside my house with no sign of rotting away and I sold the car some time ago.
ClassicZoo
Member
I took the original steel sump guard off my 2007 Skoda Scout to do some work, it weighed a tonne, it's still outside my house with no sign of rotting away and I sold the car some time ago.
I wish the 319 sumpguards were made as well! I also have a 169 Panda 4x4 and the sumpguard on that is far thicker with fewer areas that would be prone to rot. I did protect as a precaution but at 20 years old it's still going strong with no rust, the sumpguard on my 319 was rusting when I bought it at just 5 years old with 15k miles. It's all sorted now but was definitely caught just in time.
Mind you they might have needed to uprate the Hp, the Skoda sump guard is pretty heavy.
As others say, yes.
But also, two things to prolong its life: hose it out regularly as mud, salty water and so on tend to sit in several 'low points' of the pressing (marked yellow in the photo). If the car won't see frequent use (where just moving along shifts the water from the tray), this will rot it. And, if not going to be used frequently (near daily), consider drilling a couple of strategically-placed drain holes in these low spots. On mine I could see the 'tide lines' from where muddy water had sat (where Ive marked in yellow). I thought about making holes but never did
. The paint was just Hammerite - some will say it's not as good as it used to be (Hammerite, not the tray). They might be right but it was during a lockdown and that was what I had in the shed. That photo is 2021 and it still pretty well rust free now.The two flimsy bits at each side (with the X moulded into them) seem to be deliberately flimsy as they bolt to the first part of the crumple zone of of the front subframe, and so I presume are designed to crumple (or snap away) too?
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The Panda Nut
Nutty about Pandas Infected by Panda virus and OPD
No. Give it at least 6 coats and then spray the top / engine side with rust proof wax!
Also, the guard really should removed at each oil change (it can be done with it in situ, but it’s a lot easier to take it off). That’s a good time to check it, and paint or rustproof as needed which helps prolong its life.
Powdercoating, and forget about it.
