What the heck came off from under my car - and do I need it?

Re: What the heck came off from under my car - and do I need

Looks like something to smooth the airflow underneath the Prius for lower air drag, to keep the elements off the bolting, and all that.

It would be designed to be thin and light (cheapie). You probably don't need it at all, but may want to make sure the newly exposed areas won't rust from exposure.

 

Re: What the heck came off from under my car - and do I need

DanMan32 probably knows what it is, but I haven't spent any time under my 05 yet. What it appears to be is a trim piece that will have 3 functions; one, to finish off the bottom of the body panel so it looks good; two, probably affect the airflow somehow, so its removal might create vortices or not create them and in turn increase drag and resistance (minimally of course); three, it is holding the body panel in place.

While it may seem odd that something so flimsy is actually holding part of the car together, this is how it works (from experience with a 1989 Rx7 I used to own) the trim piece needed to be held in place, in other words they couldn't make it look right with one piece, plus the body panel needs to be held in place (or some other panel or shield) so what they do is figure out how many screws they need to hold 'both' pieces together, then figure out how many fasteners are needed to hold on the smaller piece(a number generally less than fastening both pieces separately)the fasteners for the smaller piece are then passed through the large piece and used to hold the system together. Also the area of the smaller piece helps hold the whole thing together.

Think of it as a system and not a piece. If part of the system goes down , the whole is weaker. Now will the car fall apart because this piece is missing? highly unlikely,but you may over time cause fatigue damage that you won't be aware of until it is too late. Plus if you travel somewhere with salt on the roads it can probably get in somewhere that is not treated properly.

 

Re: What the heck came off from under my car - and do I need

:Wth: PS. How if the Freekin 'ell did you manage to rip that piece off without totally gauging the whole rocker panel or battery tray???????

PS PS Don't :cussing: do that any more!

 

one of the many parts for aerodynamics.

 

Re: What the heck came off from under my car - and do I need

Well, it would depend whether the curb was in Killearn Acres or Killearn Estates.

 

make sure you seal up those holes to keep the water out. avoid rust that way.

and make sure there's no wiring in there. it will corrode and cause electrical problems.

that's my hubby's advice, he's a tech for a toyota dealer.

 

Re: What the heck came off from under my car - and do I need

Ah shucks, Rocco can afford to take it to the dealer and have it replaced. She wracked it in the best part of town. Heck, why not just buy a new car? :lol:

Notice Rocco manages to blame a dentist and an SUV in one sentence!

 

Hey! I grew up in Tally and I'm not sure I can say that Killearn Estates is the best part of town. But, I have been away for almost 20 years now.... I hear that traffic on Thomasville rd is insane now...

Oh...and sorry to hear about the part falling off your prius!

Rick
Great Oak Drive 1968 to 1980

 

It's a side mudguard, and it looks like you broke it into 2 pieces. There's wedge like retainers that go in them square holes. There's also one screw holding it in the front.

I don't think what looks like a battery tray is the battery tray, but the beginning of the floor of the cabin.