Rear wheel well question
#1
Rear wheel well question
Okay, so the other day I had a momentary lapse in automotive prowess and accidentally backed into one of those cement/concrete parking bars. This resulted in my rear mudflap (I have Rally Armor ones that hang a tad low) getting pinched under the tire as it rolled back and subsequently pulling the plastic liner almost all the way out.
I was able to pull forward, unscrew the destroyed mudflap and sort of scootch the liner back around and "snap" it into place (although I'm almost certain it was ripped from the plastic tree clips).
My question is this: can I simply remove the rear plastic liners, or are there connections and whatnot in there that might become damaged from the weather and environment? Should I just replace it with an OE part? I don't have the time right now to do the work myself, but I don't have the money to take it to a dealer/mechanic either. If I could just jack it up, remove the liners, and reattach my flaps, that would be ideal, assuming the lovely fall/winter/spring weather here in the Pacific Northwest won't wreak havoc on whatever the liner covers up...
Halp please and thank you!
I was able to pull forward, unscrew the destroyed mudflap and sort of scootch the liner back around and "snap" it into place (although I'm almost certain it was ripped from the plastic tree clips).
My question is this: can I simply remove the rear plastic liners, or are there connections and whatnot in there that might become damaged from the weather and environment? Should I just replace it with an OE part? I don't have the time right now to do the work myself, but I don't have the money to take it to a dealer/mechanic either. If I could just jack it up, remove the liners, and reattach my flaps, that would be ideal, assuming the lovely fall/winter/spring weather here in the Pacific Northwest won't wreak havoc on whatever the liner covers up...
Halp please and thank you!
Last edited by hellothom; 11-21-2014 at 04:58 PM.
#2
The wheel well liners are easy to replace - and don't cost that much ($40-$50 from online dealers from what I recall). If you didn't shred yours, you may get lucky and simply need to find/replace the 3-5 plastic rivets and 2-3 screws and put it back together. Realoem shows the part numbers.
It does protect parts of the body that aren't expecting to get soaked with water/mud/salt continuously. If you live in somewhere like Arizona, I could see never missing them. Someplace that salts the roads would probably cause all sorts of mischief and long term damage.
P.S. If you are comfortable jacking up the car and removing the rear wheels, it would probably be faster to DIY than a roundtrip visit to the dealer.
It does protect parts of the body that aren't expecting to get soaked with water/mud/salt continuously. If you live in somewhere like Arizona, I could see never missing them. Someplace that salts the roads would probably cause all sorts of mischief and long term damage.
P.S. If you are comfortable jacking up the car and removing the rear wheels, it would probably be faster to DIY than a roundtrip visit to the dealer.
#4
I'd replace it. If you try to claim on your rust warranty in the future around that area they might use the absence of the liner to wriggle out of paying. Also it does protect a lot of areas that weren't designed to get as wet as they will get without the liner in place. I haven't pulled the rear one, but the front one protects the back of the parking / fog lights at least. Why risk damage?
#5
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#8
I would just get a new one , you don't want junk flinging up in there and rusting something apart. Here waht the new ones look like.
Rear Fender Liner - Right ( passenger side ) 51711486199
http://www.ecstuning.com/Search/SiteSearch/51711486199/
and
Rear Fender Liner - Left 51711486200
http://www.ecstuning.com/Search/SiteSearch/51711486200/
Just jack it up and replace them,. There are a couple screw and those expanding rivets , those thing are the clips that break from removal or from impact. I would count up the damaged ones and replace them.
Plastic Rivet - Priced Each 07130702966
http://www.ecstuning.com/Search/SiteSearch/07130702966/
One trick on the removal of those is to use a large stubby Philips and hold the base of the expanding rivet with a wedge flat head screw driver, so they just don't keep spinning.
Rear Fender Liner - Right ( passenger side ) 51711486199
http://www.ecstuning.com/Search/SiteSearch/51711486199/
and
Rear Fender Liner - Left 51711486200
http://www.ecstuning.com/Search/SiteSearch/51711486200/
Just jack it up and replace them,. There are a couple screw and those expanding rivets , those thing are the clips that break from removal or from impact. I would count up the damaged ones and replace them.
Plastic Rivet - Priced Each 07130702966
http://www.ecstuning.com/Search/SiteSearch/07130702966/
One trick on the removal of those is to use a large stubby Philips and hold the base of the expanding rivet with a wedge flat head screw driver, so they just don't keep spinning.
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MINI Guru/ MINI Owner Since 2004 | NEW Lifetime Part Replacement | Local Pickup
Milltek | Genuine MINI | Forge Motorsport | NM Engineering | ECS Performance | M7 Speed
Customer Service Hours: 8am-8pm EST|Sales Team Hours: 8am-11pm | SAT 10am-7pm 800.924.5172
#9
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