2010 Prius Mud Flaps???

Harvesting shark fins is illegal.

 

It really depends on the species - but thanks for clearing up this point.

BTW - the antenna we tested can be seen on EBay BMW SHARK FIN CARBON FIBER ANTENNA COVER E90 E92 328 M:eBay Motors (item 220484599206 end time Oct-03-09 02:57:12 PDT)
It's carbon fiber - which may be why it has such great properties in a 90MPH wind.

 

I'm guessing you aren't a scientist.

If this is what you do for a living, please tell me where you work / what you make, so I can avoid using whatever you make. If you're designing planes or cars or anything that can fall on me or crush me I want to be as far away from them as I can.

You're still out of your mind if you think the mud flaps add all that MPG, etc. Sigh.

 

I sure love having both the eye-bolt, and access to JPL and a few engineer friends! BTW - the eye-bolt is hardly noticeable as it is silver (and my Prius is silver). It's real cool, and makes it super easy to lift the car into the air

We went to Toyota, and picked up a BSM (Body Side Molding) set a bit ago, and carefully put them on (they were silver to match the car). We were guessing that they would hurt mileage, but found some very interesting data.

First the interesting part. At 70MPH, we measured a 2.467% increase in downward force. This, in combination with the shark fin's stabilizing force, theoretically alters the car's handling. A friend who works the NASCAR circuit put this data into his computer, and found this equates to an increase in lateral handling (making sharp turns) of close to 8% (7.896 actual).

On the mileage side, the BSM application does create some drag as measured (.0496% mileage loss), however, the handling benefits clearly are worth the purchase.

 

They must be laughing at you behind your back when you leave. You put an eye-bolt in the roof of your car? Do you think the Prius was designed to be suspended by the roof? Oh my god man.

 

OMG I love it when a fisherman chums the water and the guppys bite. :fish2::bounce:

 

Who's gonna be laughing when I get the pulley installed in my garage. All-in cost of around $18 for the eye-bolt assembly (special order through Home Depot), and close to $130 for the pulley system.

I can also tow people/things with ease - just attach a rope to the eye-bolt, and off you go! Don't even need a hitch!

One of the senior scientists here (JPL) has a set of Piper cub wing tips that he's letting me borrow - with the lateral stability gained by the small shark fin, these should increase handling enough to give the Prius a real sports car feel - extrapolated theory shows this may bring the car close to the handling of a 1996 corvette (not a new gen vette - but respectable non the less!!).

More to follow...

 

Have you seen his normal posts? I considered strongly that he was trolling, but reviewing his post history I couldn't discern a difference in intelligence between these posts and the other.

 

I try to use the same intelligence regardless of the post. I'm sorry if this did not come through. I think my posts generally are articulate, and well thought out. I'm not sure if that was a dig or not - I prefer to think not.

To go with the Piper wing tips, we are also trying to source a Cessna roof fairing - I think with a little work, we can make this the first hybrid to fly.

 

The last thing I want is to be on a 747 that is hypermiling!

 

Yes - but I think an extreme example of Hypermiling can be found here [ame="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Air_Transat_Flight_236"]Air Transat Flight 236 - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia[/ame]. If they had a hybrid engine, possibly this maneuver would have been more manageable,

I stand on my thought that with Piper wing tips, mud flaps and a few aircraft parts, we can get better mileage. Simple and straight forward.

 

So has anyone heard when these might be available from a US dealer, preferably here at the PC store? It seems silly that we should have to pay essentially double to order from across the water what should be a commonly available accessory.

 

Apparently never, unless corporate Toyota changes its mind, according to a previous post:

I've been looking for them, too! I was on the phone today with Toyota "Customer Experience" complaining :drama: about the lack of OEM mud flaps and OEM body side moldings. The rep, assuming he knew what he was talking about, told me that someone in senior management decided that these accessories wouldn't be made available in the USA. All I got from the rep was an apology and a case number. (I think that did me about as much good as an investment in a lottery ticket!) Anyway, I sent a letter 2nd day snail-mail to Yuki Funo, CEO, Toyota Motor Sales USA this afternoon to express my displeasure. Who knows? Maybe Mr. Funo will put an end to this nonsense. Letters I've sent to CEO's have met with positive results on a few other occasions.
:violin:

I wouldn't hold my breath.

 

I for one want to thank you for your scientific attitude and efforts.
I have been losing a lot of sleep worrying about the mudflaps cutting my mileage a 1/10th of a percent or so. I am now sleeping soundly again. Thank you.

 

For the life of me, I can't understand why Toyota won't sell this in the U.S.

Bryan

 

Re: 2010 Prius Mud Flaps??? (good news)

Me neither. However I have some very good news. I contacted the folks at the PruisChat store and just received this response.

"Danny is officially on the lookout for a reliable mudguard source in the hopes of being able to offer the product this month. We will keep you posted!"

I had been about to give up and pop for the overseas eBay solution, but given this possibility I'll wait and get them there.

 

Re: 2010 Prius Mud Flaps??? (good news)

FYI - as an alternative to the flaps you can install 3M paint protection "rocker panel kits". Great protection, nothing hanging down, cleaner look and saves MPG!
www.clearshieldprotection.com

 

Re: 2010 Prius Mud Flaps??? (good news)

Even if they are able to find a source, I suspect they will likely be similarly priced. I order from Petagon and they are on now. They really help and look great.
You could go for non-OEM now but I never seen a pair that looked/fit any good.

 

For those ordering from the Sheffield England dealer on ebay and you dont live in the UK, a note.

IF you pay by credit card instead of Paypal, they send you an email with a VERY confusing and incomplete phone number to call to give your card number.

The REAL phone number is this:
011-44-114-285-5558
then on answering machine press the number for the PARTS dept.

Nice people once you actually get hold of them

 

Re: 2010 Prius Mud Flaps??? (good news)

How much are the rocker panel kits and what do you get?