fender liner mystery=-

Body kits, spoilers, lights, and anything on the exterior of the vehicle
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jamesmetairie
Posts: 301
Joined: Sat Aug 18, 2007 6:12 am
Location: new orleans

fender liner mystery=-

Post by jamesmetairie »

We had 2 vibe,s and 2 Corolla,s in our immediate family over the years. Currently still have 2005 Vibe (color=Silver)with over 181,000 miles on it .. . 2005 Corolla was built in Japan with J in vin number.
That Japanese Corolla with 180,000 miles on it s is the only one that never had a busted fender liner. I mean not even a scratch. Is it possible the Japan built Corolla had a thicker liner or maybe totally different composition, ingredients when built??? Maybe it,s suspension sits different . With the current Vibe I notice occasionally driving up or down a driveway one of my wheels scrap the liner .
Weird science....
Jbenrod
Posts: 108
Joined: Mon Jun 17, 2013 7:58 am

Re: fender liner mystery=-

Post by Jbenrod »

I have wondered if the outboard grill insert(s) in the lower front bumper could be a contributing factor. These are often missing and that provides a direct air path to the backside of the fender liner which might move the liner closer to the tire at freeway speed? When the car is stopped the fender liner would appear back in it's normal position so you not notice if it had flexed to touch the tire at speed...

That's the only hypothesis I've developed. I replaced both of the inner fender liners years ago and the material is extremely thin plus the aftermarket liner didn't fit well in one or two spots so the job took longer than I expected. I remember there was debris (that had turned to look like mulch) that had collected at the bottom that could not be seen and was holding moisture against the metal. I was glad to have gotten it out. If I was doing the job again, I would add some sound absorbent material on the backside of the cheap liners that faces the passenger space to mitigate road noise.

I did replace the one grill insert that was missing on our 2005 Vibe (about $20 aftermarket). I drilled a very small hole in it and the adjacent bumper, and ran a very fine wire through the holes (e.g. security wire). You do not notice the wire if you are more than five feet from the car. The plan is that if the bumper flexes enough that the grill would have popped out, it will stay with the bumper until I notice it and it can be reinstalled.
2005 Base - 235k
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