The collision pushed his sump-guard into the transmission and broke the gearbox mounting, leaving the engine and gearbox exposed and hanging loose.
Paddon’s Hyundai team-mate Dani Sordo suffered from a similar incident earlier in the season in Mexico and while he and Thierry Neuville were handed upgraded Hyundai machines Paddon battled on with the older specification car.
“In common with M-Sport we found that if the car is hit really hard at the front there can be some damage to transmission parts,” Hyundai team principal Michel Nandan told wrc.com. “The gearbox is held in place by two bolts and brackets welded to the chassis legs. Most of the cars are like this, but it seems it is a problem we have more than the others.
“On our car the mechanical parts are close to the sump-guard and although we try to get as much clearance as possible, this is a risk.
“The other two cars had it in Italy – but not Hayden’s. It’s something new which should avoid this sort of problem. He will have it from Poland.