I recently had my entire chassis replaced from the old rusty mess I had to a nice shiny, galvanised one.
As with most Land Rover owners who have just paid out for significant work that they didn’t do themselves, I started poking around underneath to both admire the result and to look for snagging work I needed to pick up. In doing so, I discovered something that maybe a few Defender owners are not really aware of.
My previous car was a CSW edition out of the factory meaning it had side windows, carpets and seats in the back but was otherwise the same as a hard top. Or so I thought!
It turns out there were a few other little tweaks to aid with sound proofing. One of these is the mudshield behind the front wheel. Go look at the back of your front wheel arch and see if it looks like this….
Other than the CSW edition, all Defenders chuck mud up onto the outrigger and are slowly dissolving their footwells. This is what eventually led me to admit I needed a new chassis. I could really do with this not happening again.
There is a great company you need to know about called Gwyn Lewis 4×4. I have no relationship with the mother than loving this simple but effective product – the mud shield. It is a plastic panel you screw in-place and it reduces road noise (a little) but mainly prevents mud being flung up to where it causes havoc.
That looks better doesn’t it. Worth the £30? I think so.
They also do panels for the other arches, but for me this is the place where these parts are essential. Don’t wait until your chassis has eaten itself.
