Front dust shields

[Rut]

Do the front dust shields do anything besides add weight to the front end? I'm thinking about leaving them off my front end rebuild.
Rut

 

[Gerard]

They will keep sand, mud, dirt, and grease off the back side. they might even help a little with cooling, but that's a guess. I figure they will have some minimal effect on channeling air as well as help dissipate some ambient heat.

 

[BlueMax]

I'm not running any on the front or the rear.

View attachment 31494View attachment 31495

 

[aeronca65t]

I generally leave them off.

 

[Rut]

Thanks guys, looks like they don't really add anything beneficial to the car. I'll keep them in my extra parts bin.
Rut

 

[Bob Claffie]

Those dust shields cost the factory $$$$. Don't you think if they weren't needed some bean counter would have insisted they be eliminated ?

My brand new 1959 Healey BN6, was the first Healey with disc brakes. They did NOT have dust shields when first built. During my first winter ( yes, it was a daily driver), I went through brake pads every 900-1500 miles. Salt and sand are not your friends.

At a couple thousand miles a year, in good weather, you are probably OK without them otherwise put 'em back where they belong. Bob

 

[Rut]

Bob,
I can always install them later if necessary, but no salt and sand down here. What I can't figure out is that if they were so important why didn't they put one on both sides of the disc? Salt, sand, water, road debris, etc. would get in the outboard side and cause problems just like a nekkid inboard side.
Rut