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"Real" reason to remove wheel trim rings

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Main Forum' started by David Beale, Aug 15, 2007.

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  1. prius2go

    prius2go Member

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    I now need back toyota wheel caps to see how that looks with the wheel trims off
    Anyone seen them on another toyota?

    :)
     
    #21 prius2go, Aug 17, 2007
  2. Tideland Prius

    Tideland Prius Moderator of the North
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    <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Sarge @ Aug 17 2007, 06:29 AM) [snapback]497763[/snapback]</div>
    D Rock pretty much summed it up (although that's from the detailing your vehicle file lol). The entire file is in the C/M/T forum.. I've posted it up and I believe it's a Sticky.
     
    #22 Tideland Prius, Aug 17, 2007
  3. Sarge

    Sarge Senior Member

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    <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Tideland Prius @ Aug 17 2007, 11:15 AM) [snapback]497817[/snapback]</div>
    Indeed he did! I was just expecting a yes or no answer to my question. :p Thanks also to Darwood for his suggestions, I'm gonna look for this Citrus Magic stuff...
     
    #23 Sarge, Aug 17, 2007
  4. SW03ES

    SW03ES Senior Member

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    And the "crud" under the trim rings won't hurt your wheels.
     
    #24 SW03ES, Aug 17, 2007
  5. Rae Vynn

    Rae Vynn Artist In Residence

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    While washing the Prius yesterday, we removed the rings to get the crud from under them.
    So, I asked Dear Hubby if we should leave them off.
    His response? "I'm cleaning them. They d*** well are going back on!"
    [​IMG]
     
    #25 Rae Vynn, Aug 20, 2007
  6. Pinto Girl

    Pinto Girl New Member

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    I took them off the evening I brought the car home from the dealership, so I can't speak from personal experience...can't imagine they'd make a difference that's actually measurable under real-world conditions.

    I remember, from school, that the wheel wells actually tend to be high pressure areas (on normal production cars without a bellypan). You can see this when driving in the rain, how the mist spews outward from around the tires.

    Wondering if taking the trim rings might, if anything, actually help aerodynamics...?

    Just a thought.
     
    #26 Pinto Girl, Aug 20, 2007
  7. dogfriend

    dogfriend Human - Animal Hybrid

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    I had this thought a few weeks ago:

    Has anyone ever measured the road noise with / without the trim rings? I wonder if the trim rings might dampen out some of the tire noise.

    I'm not volunteering to do this measurement - I would still leave the rings off even if they cut the noise by 50% - I think the wheels look much better without them.
     
    #27 dogfriend, Sep 8, 2007
  8. David Beale

    David Beale Senior Member

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    The 15" and 16" wheels are painted aluminum. Any dirt accumulating under the trim rings will hold salty water in the winter (where it's used and along coastal areas where it is blown). This will promote corrosion of the aluminum as any paint has micro holes through it. There are also scratches that can be deep enough to penetrate the wheel paint - scratches from the trim rings themselves even. Usually wheel paint is very tough stuff - wish they could use it on the bumper cover and hood. But it can be compromised. I've owned three vehicles with aluminum wheels now, and after 5 or more years they have all had corrosion on the aluminum wheels. And we don't use a lot of salt here or get temperatures that allow corrosion over long periods of time (it doesn't happen when it's below zero, for example).

    I'll be leaving the trim rings off. I too think the wheels look better without them.
     
    #28 David Beale, Sep 9, 2007
  9. HTMLSpinnr

    HTMLSpinnr Super Moderator
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    Mine came off today because after nearly 3 years in the AZ desert, the ABS plastic became brittle enough where the clips simply broke w/ light effort to remove them. One was broken when I got to it, the second broke as I removed it when rotating my tires. The other two are still in tact, but once one has to come off, they all come off.

    I wouldn't mind replacing them, but sadly if they'll only last a few years again, there's probably not much point, as they didn't offer the protection from curb rash/road debris that I thought they would (still have a scrape on one rim). The car is a bit naked now though as I've had them on for almost 4 years now.
     
    #29 HTMLSpinnr, Sep 10, 2007
  10. DLC82SV

    DLC82SV Member

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    How do the steel wheels and winter tires affect fuel economy and drivability? Also what winter tires are you using at what pressures and are they low rolling resistance tires?

    Posted via the PriusChat mobile app.
     
    #30 DLC82SV, Aug 22, 2018
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