Stiffen Chassis plate for my 07' Prius

i am sorru to say i dont agree
if i look @ a american car then details and quality the us cars are the wurs in the world
brands like kia and like them are even better.

i have driving a voyager and some more us cars and i think i speak from experians
low qualiti dashboards
Doors that on left and right side that dont even match..etc etc

japanes cars are the best only the older models have some low quality dachboard buth thy still fit perfectly onlike us brands

 

Remember, the car companies are here to make money. Even a couple bucks less spent on a piece, could equate to millions of dollars, based on how many cars are sold. Some companies (GM) choose to cut costs so drastically that the product suffers. Other companies (Toyota) make cuts elsewhere, but they are more strategic about it. The flimsy stock plate works for the vast majority of Prius owners. Why is Toyota going to spend unnecessary money to better it for those few people, who are probably going just modify the whole car anyways?

Toyota announced that it sold 1 million hybrids as of June 7, '07. 3/4 of them are Prius. Even though Toyota saved more, let's just say that Toyota saved just $5 by going with the current stock plate vs. something stronger. That's $3.75 million for one small piece, which in the whole scheme of things, isn't critical to success.

 

In case you did not realize it, Bebopp is one and the same poster as JimboJones.

 

Yep. That's why I said established

 

your right

 

I have been reading and reading on this forum and for the life of me STILL cannot fathom how a stiffening plate would do anything other than cost you more money based on the shear ergonomics of the design on both toyotas and this plate.

For one thing, there is ONLY two screws on each end, you are not going to prevent a flex with two screws. If you want to successfully do this the plate would need to extend at least another four inches and have two more screws put in somewhere on the ends.

Then, a good analogy would be to say to take two 2x4x8 pieces of wood and then about two foot from each end screw 1x2x2 with ONLY two screws on each board and see if it flexes when you move the 2x4's.

Then, you are doing NO good what so ever if the brace is tougher than the frame metal. A good analogy there would be to screw a paint stirring stick to the sides of two aluminum cans with wood screws and see if the can will give or the wood paint stick.

The factory plate was designed to prevent side to side flexing, and hence the design with the bends in the plate it is more than plenty. People say I can flex it with my bare hands. Ok, your twisting with your hands and I assure you, if your prius is twisting that much, we ALL have serious problems. So if your into bending metal, remove your stock plate and put in between your legs and one end at each knee and try to bend it in half with your legs. All I can say is good luck, and I am sick of these threads where someone does or does not think the stiffening plate does any good. If you have any common sense, and some physics knowledge you would KNOW the factory plate is doing everything it NEEDS to do.

 

The chassis/frame of the Prius has been described as a U shape. With the top of the U pointing towards the rear of the Prius. There isn't just side to side flexing, it is up and down, as well. With the brace, it helps to reduce that flexing. There'll still flexing going on in that area, just not as much as stock. For more stiffening in that area, there's Tom's Rear brace which extends further back, and can be likened to the BT plate on 'roids. See my explanation above, as to why Toyota used the plate that they did.

 

I think this is a good point. I don't think we will ever get to the bottom of this simply because there is no data. It will all be speculation.

What I don't understand at all however, are the claims that somehow this brace changes the car's behavior in crosswinds. I think this statement would only be made by someone that doesn't understand how bracing in a car works and why it is there. It is there to keep the chassis from twisting under hard cornering loads where the rest of the car and suspension are so strong that the weak link becomes the car's chassis strength. I can assure you, no Prius comes even close to this, not even the Touring.

I can't see anyone with a stock car getting anything out of better bracing, and from all my past knowledge the Tom's looks much better designed and I think would be more effective if you have a serious suspension and wheels/tires.

 

If you are using your NSX as a comparison to the effectiveness of braces, then that is a comparison of apples and oranges. The NSX is an exotic, where performance reigns in it's design. From the factory, it's designed to be a monster performer. I would imagine an NSX chassis is extremely stiff already, and adding additional braces probably won't make a noticeable difference. Bracing a passenger vehicle is a different story. Consumers of these vehicles care not for handling performance. They just want a comfortable ride. If the NSX is a 10 for rigidity, then the stock Prius is somewhere down around 3 or so.

 

Yes you are probably right but I was just saying that as long as that stock suspension is there and those stock Integrities are there, I think additional bracing is a waste of money. The bracing I have on my car are from the factory NSX-R, so these are factory tested and proven parts. They are in some very strange spots by the way, one would never think such an area would need additional bracing. I think the bracing makes some sense on your car with a TRD suspension, I have a reasl hard time knowing how someone can feel a difference on a stock prius and a BT-Tech plate. I am not saying it is impossible, it just seems unlikely to me. The bright spot is that there really is no drawback to extra bracing other than a slightly lighter wallet.

 

The bracing will make a difference with the stock suspension/tire setup. I believe apriusfan has all the Tom's braces with no Sportivo, and he is happy with the performance. Bracing helps to make the suspension more effective, so instead of the chassis absorbing shock with it's flex, the shocks/springs are able to do their duty. I went with the BT plate first, and then got the Sportivo, and then the rest of the stuff... the need for handling could be likened to an addiction

 

I have enough common sense and science education to know that experiment trumps theory. Read all you like, but you won't know until you've tried it. If it doesn't work for you, send it back.

The NSX and the Prius are built for two very different markets. It should be easier to improve the handling of a Prius, given the starting point, than it would be to improve an NSX.

 

True, if I shot over $1xx on a pointless plate I would be in denial that it didn't do anything to. The car is a beer can, literally, and other than the engine, the stiffening plate here is the toughest part on the car. So therefore no matter what I do, a beer can will still and always be a beer can.

 

So, without ever having even tried it, you're labelling it pointless? And without knowing anything about me, you're telling me I'm a fool for the 'obviously irrational' belief that it works? Nice to meet you, too.

 

What is this beer can theory you are trying to convey? I like beer and all, but I can't drink this one down. How does it compare to other cars? Are they another type of beverage container? Help me out here.

 

Scientists perform placebo and double-blind experiments for a reason... the mere suggestion that something is supposed to change is enough to cause people to "feel" it.

 

i think the best comfort upgrade you will find is to place a brace over the front and back suspension piont..
that realy works

about this plase i just dont now

 

I don't know... I am still skeptical of chassis work being really effective on such a softly sprung car with such non-performance tires. Handling is always as good as its weak link, and the other links here are very weak.

But tell me something... doesn't the good handling make you want to goose the throttle? When I was test driving my Touring I would build all this speed and dive hard into a corner, and I must say the little Prius was almost... dare I say it... FUN, and then I wanted to accelerate out hard and realized oh wait.... I'm in a Prius.

Now if only something could be done with the steering. Why is the steering in this car so numb? There is no reason for it. I wish they would have tightened up the ratio some in the Touring model and improved on-center feel. Not to complain... I am glad they made the Touring at all.

 

Funny thing, I quite like the steering. I know what you mean because when I test drove the car I thought the steering was "funny" but after a while it becomes normal and good. The Prius has the least on centre vaugness of any car I have ever driven, there is no slack in the rack and pinion at all, I think that is the main difference.

I think if you go into a corner quicker and accelerate quickly but not at full throttle back up to speed you will use less fuel than slowing down 10km/h more then accelerating slowly up to speed. Accelerating slow means you use extra fuel for longer, going 10km/h slower around a corner means you have to accelerate an extra 10km/h