Wheel Skirts; Another Take -- "3/4 Length"

I have always favored wheel skirts somewhat higher than with the hem line
at the lower line of the body. Whether or not skirts help FE/MPG is arguable.
And whether I am sacrificing some minutely small benefit, is both unknown
and irrelevant -- this is what I like, and I accept that I might give up a few
percentage points of FE/MPG.

When I ordered my skirts from Hybrid Effects, I got them unpainted as I
knew I'd be changing the line of the lower edge. Attached are three pictures
that, with the assistance of good ol' duct tape, show in a very rough way
where I'm going -- the part of the skirt covered in silver tape will be cut off.
The skirt is just propped up with a stick that looks like a kick-stand-- cheap
and cheerful!

http://priuschat.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=12023&stc=1&d=1225799269
http://priuschat.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=12024&stc=1&d=1225799269
http://priuschat.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=12025&stc=1&d=1225799269


Essentially, the lower line of the skirt picks up the lower line of the doors
and runs to the lower line of the body at the rear. This is about 3-1/4 inch
high at the front and 3 inches at the back. At the center of the wheel, the
line is ~11-1/2 inches above the ground, and cuts just below the center of
the wheel.

I believe this is the first try at mounting the Hybrid Effets skirts on a Touring
model. The maker doesn't foresee a problem, and I don't see any clear
indications that there will be any. I suppose only a road test will tell.

It's funny; just in fiddling around with this rough mock-up, I really like the
look, and the car now looks incomplete, undressed as it were, without them.

So, now its off to the shop for some careful cutting and sanding. I'm still
waiting for the paint to arrive, and I've got other things on my plate, but I'll
be slowly pushing this project along. I'll take pix and keep you informed.

FWIW, here's TheForce's thread that I'll rely on heavily when it comes to the
final fitting:

http://priuschat.com/forums/prius-modifications/50902-review-hybrid-effects-wheel-skirts-3.html

More info on the skirts from Franklin at Hybrid Effects:

Toyota Prius - Wheel Skirts - Toyota Prius Wheel Skirts by Hybrid Effects 1 pair (Shipping Included)

 

Don't know what the problem is, they work when I double click on them.

 

I'm fairly confident that I fixed the pix in the OP. Just in case, here they are again:

http://priuschat.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=12023&stc=1&d=1225799269
http://priuschat.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=12024&stc=1&d=1225799269
http://priuschat.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=12025&stc=1&d=1225799269

I don't know why the thumbnails don't appear at the bottom of this post. At any rate...

Enjoy!

 

Sorry about the mess.

[Edit] I think the pix are finally fixed.

 

Yes, the skirts will have to come off before a tire can be changed.

I've been poking around the wwweb looking for hints and tips on wheel skirts.
And this has always been the case, even back in the heydays of wheel skirts,
"back in the day." Now those cars had lots of room in their wheel wells and
between the wheel and skirt. So, frequently the skirt was held on by a rod and
hinge mechanism secured to the inside of the skirt.

This pdf shows what the mechanism looks like:

http://www.hobbycar.com/InstructionsMay20077.pdf

There are also two different kinds of skirt "brackets", but I don't know how
they work -- they're half-way down the page here:

Wirth's Custom Automotive : Fender Skirt Hardware & Rubber

The Hybrid Effects skirts are held on by a pin at the top and two screws/bolts
at the lower corners. A practical benefit of raising the lower edge of the skirt
is easier access to those fasteners. I expect that I will be able to see the
fastener by bending in close when the skirt is mounted. It shouldn't take but a
minute, two at the most, to remove a skirt.

This simplicity/speed when removing the skirt does raise the question of
someone else being able to do the same. So, I expect I'll need to find the
correct corrosion proof fasteners in black with a "security" type head.

 

"One man's fish is another man's poison."

Well, I could agree only to the extent that things are looking pretty rough at
this stage of the project. Red and silver duct tape is the roughest
approximation of the final product.

Typically, modders post their final results here. There is little or no
acknowledgment of how things looked early in the project. In this thread I've
chosen a different approach -- to show the intermediate stages as they
happen.

My intention is to encourage others to consider tackling similar projects on
their own.

 

Tchou,

Thanks for the pix. The black Citroen looks somewhat like a stretched Prius!

IIRC, the Citroens share one characteristic with the Honda Insight: the rear
wheel track -- distance between the wheels -- is less than in the front. This
would allow the skirts to follow the curving body line from top to bottom.

In the case of the Prius, the rear wheels stick out past the body work in
their lower half. This means that the skirts cannot follow the curving surface
of the bodywork. The surface of the skirts forms an almost flat plane that
falls straight down, with wedge shaped pieces filling in between the flat
outer surface and the body. It's the only way it can be done. Check the final
pictures in the first post in TheForce's thread;

http://priuschat.com/forums/prius-modifications/50902-review-hybrid-effects-wheel-skirts-3.html

I note that the lower edge of the skirts on the blue Citroen follows the lower
edge of the bodywork. This is essentially how the unmodified Hybrid Effects
skirts look. Because the HE skirts stick out about 2-1/2 inches past the lower
line of the bodywork, the resulting line of bodywork and skirts is not as
"clean" as on the Citroen.

However, the lower edge of the skirts on the black Citroen are "lifted" above
the lower edge of the bodywork. This is the look that I'm going for.

 

A quick update on this project. Here are three pix of the skirts trimmed to
the raised "3/4" or tea length:

http://priuschat.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=12060&stc=1&d=1226274344
http://priuschat.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=12061&stc=1&d=1226274344
http://priuschat.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=12062&stc=1&d=1226274344

Quick reminders;
* I'm still using red duct ape for the color,
* the skirts are not fully fitted, t
* they are supported by the stick "kick stand."

This is the look I'm going for, the skirts don't look like they are dragging,
and they might could be OEM.

Still don't have paint, and final fitting remains.

Press on....

 

TheForce,

Thanks.

Now that you have you blazed the trail, it's a lot easier for others to follow. I
feel hard pressed to reach the level of professional installation that you
achieved.

Yeah, an unintended benefit of raising the lower edge will be much easier,
quicker access to the retaining bolts/screws. But, as I said earlier, I may have
to go to a "security" type fastener, if only for my peace of mind.

I wonder, why is it that of all the folks that expressed interest in the Hybrid
Effects skirts, only the two of us, both with Barcelona red cars appear to have
taken the plunge?