How to prevent water getting into your Fiat Ducato Injectors

We hear stories of failed injectors in Fiat Ducato Engines. Attempts at removing /extracting them fail usually, because they’ve rusted themselves in very firmly over time.
In many case very expensive remedies are resorted to ( no choice) including replacing the complete head, plus new injectors. That’s a very expensive process.
Why did it happen? Well the problem started a long time before. The Fiat has a scuttle or drain from side to side at the base of the windscreen.
It can get get blocked with leaves and the water can’t run awAy down through the provided drain. The problem is made worse because in the earlier Fiat engines, up to about 2018/2019, the was only the one main drain and from manufacture that was on the left side looking at the cost from the front. Ok in the left hand drive design models.
But in right hand exports the drain stayed on the sand side ( left) and in Australia for example (right hand drive) the road camber falls away to the drivers left as seen driving forward (opposite to European countries).
Since water doesn’t run uphill, the water naturally migrates to the passenger side where (surprise surprise) it can’t get into the provided drain. And it can bank up and run over into the engine compartment.
The other issue is the scuttle against the bottom of the windscreen doesn’t appear to be sealed and with dirt and dust buildup, water runs down the windscreen and into the engine compartment.
Various problems have been documented such as injector bases sitting in dams of water which can’t escape, the heat and cool off starts rust and it gets into the base and rusts. other problems documented in various facebook groups, is that the throttle body gets wet and water seeps in, rusting and finally immobilizing the throttle.
The purpose of this video is to show some ways of preventing the water from getting in in the first place, plus some good helpful tips along the way.
Worth watching!

[@angler181]

I've heard of the problems, but your video not only clarifies the problems, but shows people how to fix them. What a brilliant video. Your efforts to help others are much appreciated. Cheers

[@barryBJM]

Glad it helped. thank you for your comments

[@richarddunstone6093]

Another thing to look out for - the scuttle panel is held in place by a few screws and ten plastic clips which shatter when you remove the panel. If you ever have a windscreen replaced they'll replace the screws but won't replace the clips (they're a special Fiat part that no-one is going to have to hand, they're expensive, and windscreen fitters don't realise they're important). Without the clips, the panel won't sit against the glass and it will be hard to seal.

[@barryBJM]

thankyou Richard. Good points. Even with those clips, it’s hard to see how plastic against glass could possibly keep water out. It needs a rubber or neoprene gasket between the two. That’s why I favour something like sikaflex.

[@richarddunstone6093]

Agreed. With advice from my local hardware store, I ended up using Sikaflex EBT+. It's a polyurathane goo, sticks well and stays very flexible. It looks good so far. Without the clips, I could put my fingers between the scuttle and glass, I don't think the EBT+ could have held it in place on its own.

[@robertoduranos5196]

I was planning on removing my scuttle but now youve mentioned the breaking clips i might just leave it in place. I originally wanted to seal behind it against the glass. We shouldnt be having this years old problem, my van is 18 months old and still has this problem.. Thanks for the info

[@richarddunstone6093]

@@robertoduranos5196I've heard of people just sealing along the joint between the plastic and glass and being happy with the results. You might be able to lift the rubbery edge and squeeze sealant into the gap. I was happier to remove the scuttle, clean it and reassemble with sealant, since my clips were already wrecked. I've also read comments that the scuttle is originally sealed to the glass with an adhesive foam strip, but I've never seen any evidence of that. If your van is so new and doesn't have the foam seal I'm starting to think it's a myth.