Cutting out the mud guards in fenders?

[inh]

I know it's a common thing to do for getting larger tires under the x, but i was wondering if there is any real downside to cutting out ALL of the mud/splash guard stuff in the fenders. I like the look (seen a few around here that went crazy with the sawzall) but i'm worried about mud getting into the engine.

 

[ExplorerDMB]

Water will be your worse enemy when you do that. You will more than likely get an exhaust leak sooner than you should. Your manifolds get extremely hot and when you throw water on them, they will want to do all types of warping and possibly cracking. I would leave atleast most of it in there. You can pull the gap guards, but I wouldn't go any further.

-Drew