I removed my front fenders a while ago to finish removing the woodgrain chunks that wrap around the trailing edge at the front doors. That meant removing all the small brackets, inside PVC wheel wells, etc. I was cleaning off the brackets and noticed that besides being factory galvanized, the area where the 'weld-nuts' are was treated with a thick galvanized paint as well. I bought some by mistake when I was buying gray primer, so I'll use it when I reinstall the fender. The other thing I noticed is that the PVC wheel well fastened to the fender's steel wheel-well rim/ridge rubs on the inside of the rim and 'helps' rust to develop where it cuts through the primer. In my car, even the factory undercoat gun couldn't point in that direction but it did get to areas that really get rusted out on Canadian cars, except the rim. So when I reassemble I'll re-prime, after I clean up the flaky paint and dirt caught in the rim. I'll use POR's Metal Ready to nuke any rust oxide that may be there, prime, rattlecan some gloss paint (water runs off faster) and then undercoat. When I re-install the PVC wheel-well, I'll spray some undercoat on the edges and tighten it down. Where am I going to get good replacements in 5 or 10 years? I figure its just good prevention/delay of the inevitable.
