[cali_axela]

If you're ever tempted to drive your car around to test something you're working on, with the lower plastic underbody covers off... DON'T DO IT! I just tore the shit outta my wheel wells, all the plastic is all mangled up into pieces, scratched my bumper (not anywhere really visible, but still) and may have damaged my air filter element.

What happened was: I hit a small bump while in a turn, and I guess there was enough play in the wheel well plastic piece since it wasn't secured in place by being connected to that lower cover like it usually is. There's normally less than an inch of space between the rx-8 wheel and that plastic anyways, and just getting stuck there for a second was enough to be catastrophic. Worst noise ever... locked up the wheel, had to pull over on a relatively busy street and spend 20 minutes turning the wheel back and forth and ripping pieces of plastic out from between the tire and the wheel well so that I could drive the rest of the way home.

All this happened in about a 10 block radius of my house after installing a new turbo return line and just wanting to test for leaks. Wasn't even driving crazy. So be warned... that plastic down there holds the wheel well plastic in place, so don't drive with it flapping loose, even for a few blocks, if you're lowered and have aggressive wheels.

 

[danielj]

Yikes, that sucks Cali.

Good advice for everyone.

 

[Zoomba]

Lol this has already happened to me. I was driving around without the large plastic underbody cover and one day while going up my driveway and the right wheel well tore out. Driving at speed without being supported by the larger piece caused it to bend down and then when I went up my driveway It got snagged on the 1 and 1/2" raise off the road. Luckily for me no damage actually occurred, but it does look ugly with no wheel well there.

 

[cali_axela]

Yeah, 3 of the little plastic-clip-hole screw things ripped out, and one edge (top) was actually STAPLED to the other half of the wheel well, and those just ripped right out too. Not to mention the actual plastic piece is allll torn up. It happened worse on my driver's side one, and that side protects the air filter from the wheel kicking up debris, so i think it's important to fix it. Bring on the duct tape...

 

[halo0]

Shit. I just had my oil changed last night (yeah I know I would rather do it myself but it is 3 degrees here, literally, and I have no garage...). So anyway the dumb bastard down in the hole was slamming my cover because he couldn't get the bolts to go in right or something. I wouldn't be surprised if it wasn't put back on right. Asshole.

 

[Mummyman]

Where did you take your car for the oil change?

 

[cali_axela]

[quote author=halo0 link=topic=135270.msg2911953#msg2911953 date=1233772576]
Shit. I just had my oil changed last night (yeah I know I would rather do it myself but it is 3 degrees here, literally, and I have no garage...). So anyway the dumb bastard down in the hole was slamming my cover because he couldn't get the bolts to go in right or something. I wouldn't be surprised if it wasn't put back on right. Asshole.
[/quote]

It's pretty annoying to get it back on totally right... that's why i left mine off for a test drive. Big mistake...

 

[halo0]

[quote author=Mummyman link=topic=135270.msg2911978#msg2911978 date=1233772915]
Where did you take your car for the oil change?
[/quote]

Valvoline.