FOUND: Hottest Prius Under-Hood Mod This Year!

[GeronimoPFudgemuffin]

This post may be of interest to only most hardened OCD GearHeadz (of which I'm one)...

Okay, so maybe it's not that big a deal but,

...you know those liitle snap-in fasteners that hold large sheets of plastic onto the Prius? I've just finished installing my block heater (works a treat) and I absolutely HATED the little plastic "phillips-head" widgets that hold the splash guard under the hood. (open hood and look, it's the big black molded plastic thingy that surrounds the hood latch and covers some bracing... about 4-feet wide).

The phillps-head on these things might lead you to believe a screwdriver would remove them. Not so. Well, I managed to get the little puppies out but decided they were NOT going back in MY car. So, after finishing the block heater install, I went straight to my buddy's Yamaha-Kawasaki-Suzuki shop, showed him the fasteners and how they worked (or did not work), and he said, "I've got just what you're looking for."

We retired to his well-lit parts room and he handed me Suzuki motorcycle part#:

09409-06314-5pk

This is a 5-pack (of course, you'll need 6) of little re-usuable pop-in plastic "rivits" (for lack of a better term). They have a central post that, when installed, you just push it in (with anything handy, like a pencil) and the rivit releases.

The "06" in the second part of the part# means "6mm diameter." I wanted to use the larger 7mm version of these rivits, but the holes in the Prius's upper radiator cross bracing (to which these attach in the above scenario) are 1/2-way between 6 & 7mm and, when I tried the 7mm rivits I found they were too big. I could've SLIGHTLY drilled the holes but who wants to sacrifice the pretty (in my case) white paint that protects the sheet metal inside the hole?

So, I went with the 6mm versions and used some 16mm washers under the rivit heads to give a large contact area (which the 7mm version had natively, what with its much larger rivit head). My splash guard is now held TIGHTLY against the frame brace (it was floppy before) and I can now remove it in SECONDS because the fasteners are user friendly. Except for the shiny washers, the whole thing looks stock... yet, it's better than it was.

I Googled the part# just now and they show up for sale all over the price spectrum. I paid about $1.25 apiece for them (I think). So, if you have a Suzuki shop nearby, give 'em a try. BTW: These rivits hold the plastic bodywork on sport bikes, so the quick disassembly and reliable re-use that are so important to motorcycle racers are found here.

GeronimoPFudgemuffin

[Charles Suitt]

A few months ago, I had a similar opinion of those fasteners - even broke a couple before understanding how they were SUPPOSED to work. I had removed the "Radiator Support Cover" to adjust my headlights to my personal preferences.

My Solution: A trip to an old-fashioned Hardware Store (where you can buy screws, etc. out of a bin instead of in packages) and found some stubby, plated flat-pointed screws of the appropriate size to do the job. They had a broad, flat head adequate to avoid the need for supplemental washers. I took one of the fasteners with me to gauge what size screw I needed. Sorry, I don't recall the "gauge" of the screws, they were ½" long.

[GeronimoPFudgemuffin]

...and found some stubby, plated flat-pointed screws of the appropriate size to do the job.
They had a broad, flat head adequate to avoid the need for supplemental washers.
[/b]

The Suzuki rivits work without the washers as the heads are the same size as the Prius rivits, but I wanted a nice snug fit... which you also obtained. The washers spread the load (not necesarrily needed) and tightened the rivit's hold on the parts. If I could've gotten to the underside of all the holes, I would've expoxied captive nuts there, and used aluminum screws from the old Suzuki RM moto-cross bikes. Coolest little flat-headed fasteners you've ever seen... and light as a feather too.

I have tons of metric fasteners (8-10,000 pieces, from back when I owned a German car garage) in my shop and had screws like the ones you mentioned. I just didn't want to chip the paint and let corrosion get a foothold under that big, ugly cover that I HOPE I never have to take off again.

Your method was expedient and noteworthy, and there's nothing wrong with that. And, we agree that the stock "phillips-looking" things are laughable. I didn't break one, but I almost did. In fact, after I got one out and saw how it worked, I wanted to smash ALL of them!

There, I feel better now. (chuckle)

GeronimoPFudgemuffin

[hdrygas]

I broke two untill I figured them out but they work quite well once you know how. The center philips part is the stem that locks the clip. Two non intuative things. You use a flat screwdriver to pop the center pin and have to hold this in the up position to remove or insert.

[GeronimoPFudgemuffin]

The center philips part is the stem that locks the clip
You use a flat screwdriver to pop the center pin [/b]

Seems to me there ought to be a prize for designing a phillips-head fastener that opens only with a straight-slot. (insert smiley thingy here) I suspect Toyota bought these rivits at a GM auction.

GeronimoPFudgemuffin (who didn't break any, but didn't like his car held together with Idiot Rivits)