Last oil change I had, they noticed that the skid plate under my car was split and hanging off a bit. These things are annoying, because they pin them on with those plastic push-on things. I used a couple of nylon tie-wraps to secure it, and forgot about it. I'm not surprised that it was damaged, because I now I've bottomed out on stuff. Seems to happen a lot, because the Prius is set really close to the ground. There are skid plates all over the bottom of that thing, which I suppose also reduces drag and boosts fuel efficiency.
In any case, my ghetto fix failed on the freeway today, in the 70 mph part. There was a pop, then massive turbulence noise from under the car. I knew what it was, but it scared the hell out of me.
When I got home, I looked under the car, and I could see the issue. The plate, in this case a two-by-one foot section, was still pinned at the back, so the air was being pushed up into the engine compartment. There's nothing in particular above the area here the broken plate is. What was really cool was how melted the plastic was. I mean, 70 mph on rough asphalt will do that. There was also shredded soft stuff on top of it, that I don't think is supposed to burn, so it was mostly just blackened. Sweet.
Anyway, I just pulled it off. It doesn't appear to protect anything vital. As I said though, the car is very low to the ground. I also noticed, while looking around, how relatively covered everything is underneath. The wheels are also just about as far out to the corners as possible. I'm surprised how much stuff under the hood isn't the cheapest possible. I figured it would be to save on cost, compensating for the electrical components. But, for example, some of the hose clamps are the good screw types, instead of the plier-pinch type.
The center console control ergonomics still suck, but overall I'm still pretty satisfied with the car. I suppose I should wash it. I've only done it once in 15 months. Oh, and for the "I need a giant SUV" crowd, I should note that I was able to bring home a 55" TV inside of it, with Simon strapped in his seat in the back, and Diana in the front. It was a tight squeeze, but it made it.
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