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Help ID this part from my undercarriage

Discussion in 'Prius v Care, Maintenance and Troubleshooting' started by Kereneni, Jun 28, 2022.

  1. Kereneni

    Kereneni Junior Member

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    2012 Prius v wagon
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    Three
    Will you please identify the part I circled in yellow in the photo? And what are the ramifications for not having it in place?

    This morning, I suddenly heard a slight rattling sound from my undercarriage.
    1. Pulled into a parking lot. Looked underneath car.
    2. Saw the part that I circled in the attached photo hanging from the undercarriage, touching the pavement.
    3. I was able to detach the part from the car's undercarriage.
    4. When I drove the car to my destination (less than 10 miles), I did not notice any effect caused by the loss of the cover.
    5. I saw no evidence of any dropped bolts on the pavement in the parking lot - or in the parking space I used last night at my apartment complex.

    I've looked at various drawings and photos of the undercarriage, and this part shows, but I've not yet found a source to ID it.

    Of course, my first thought was that someone had begun the process of kidnapping my catalytic converter ....

    Prius v part undercarriage.jpg
     
  2. xliderider

    xliderider Senior Member

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    FYI, that part comes off if you install one of the commercially available catalytic converter anti theft shields.

    I've got our original heat shields on the shelf in my garage from our 2011 Prius hatchback.

    So if you plan to install one of them, you don't need to reattach it.

    Posted via the PriusChat mobile app.
     
  3. Kereneni

    Kereneni Junior Member

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    Three
    Thanks to both of you for your replies. ... I'm a little puzzled that this cover - highlighted with the yellow circle around it in the photo I attached in my original post - is a heat shield because it is not a part that is between the fore end of the catalytic converter and the car body. It is between the catalytic converter and ... nothingness. But maybe I'm not looking at it correctly?

    Also, the shape of the cover is not like the images in the link.
     
  4. xliderider

    xliderider Senior Member

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    The catalytic converter gets very hot, the shield is there to prevent setting fire to combustible material like tall, dry vegetation, if you park your car off road, etc. It may also prevent anyone under the car or servicing the vehicle from burn injury as well.

    Posted via the PriusChat mobile app.
     
  5. Georgina Rudkus

    Georgina Rudkus Senior Member

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    I replaced mine with an aluminum catalytic converter anti-theft shield.

    212306_IMG_1244.jpg
     
    icyrius likes this.
  6. Kereneni

    Kereneni Junior Member

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    Got it! Thank you, both, for the clarifications!