Having addressed most of the problems small rocks pose to running the Rally in the dirt, the car would run long enough to expose yet another issue. When running in decomposed granite with its tiny granules , I noticed my steering block would eventually lock up.

This is likely due to the wheels throwing rocks directly at the steering works when they're turned. So I thought perhaps a shield of some kind will deflect at least some of the most direct shots.

These "barge boards" are fabricated from some flat plastic - think it was a tray from a fancy package of sliced cheese - and attached to the chassis with some double-sided carpet tape.

Also, I had sticks and such get stuck in the spokes of the wheels, not to mention my outer wheel bearings getting all nasty with dirt, and soaked when running in the rain. Took some inspiration from the aerodynamic backing panels on F1 and prototype sports cars and made some hub-shields to snap onto RPM hubs. Also from nearly indestructible "cheese tray" plastic.

The outer wheel bearings don't get wet (from splashing) even in the most aggro wet-road driving. The bearings stay pretty clean in the dirt, and of course no sticks are jamming between the wheel spokes and the hub. I also noticed these sharpened steering response with my aero rig installed, so they're having an effect on airflow at high speeds as well.