Hi All,
Ever since my 4th gen had its front end smacked in, the oem hood was replaced with a cheaper aftermarket hood that doesn't fit as well and the existing upper rad support was bent back. I have noticed recently (and made easier with a once clean engine bay), that there has been a lot of precipitation entering the engine bay...i can see spalsh marks against the top of the rad, battery, near the intake manifold, etc etc. Is this something serious to worry about? Has anyone here ever attempted to add extra weather seal between the hood and the engine bay to keep a tight seal?
Thanks

 

Every engine gets soaked when it rains. Don't worry about it unless you start having problems starting the car, or if it starts idling rough.

......but, why did you replace it with a hood that doesn't fit? Was money a big issue? Are you sure the cheaper hood is safe?

 

Are all the splash shields in-tact on the bottom of the car? Is the rubber seal on the front portion of the hood still there? If yes to both of these, you shouldn't worry about it too much. Also check your gaps on the hood/bumper and see if everything lines up.
-Cyrus

 

Well the hood fits pretty good, its just that if you look very very closely you can see the gap between the hood and the fender is a tiny bit bigger than before and the grooves on the aftermarket hood seem more deep than oem. OEM ususally fits the best. The price difference between oem and aftermarket was nearly double.

Yeah all of the splash shields are int-act and the rubber seal on teh front portion of the hood is still there.

I think I am more paranoid than anything else here and there is really nothing to worry about.