Does anyone know what the little plastic pieces are (about 2" x 6") that hang down in front of all 4 wheels? Someone called them "stone deflectors" the other day, but I would think that deflectors of this sort should be BEHIND the wheels, not in front. Can anyone tell me why Mazda would have put them where they are? And what could potentially happen if I removed them? I hate the way they look.

Any input is appreciated. Thanks....

not sure what you are talking about
any pics

mike he talking about right in front of each wheel is a small rectangular plastic piece. it is slightly to the inside and angled.

we contemplated them awhile ago and decide they were sort of under body aero pieces. designed possibly to reduce lift or perhaps to direct air to the wheels to help with brake cooling.

oh I see

They might be to protect the body from stones when backing up.

Well, thanks for the input. Maybe I'll contact Mazda and see what they say about them... I'll post what I find out here if it's anything interesting.

http://www.rx8club.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=7962&highlight=washing

Thanks Tribal, but the thread you gave a link to is about the little pieces of "clear bra" material Mazda puts in front of the back wheels. I was talking about the piece of black plastic hanging below the car (perpendicular to the ground) in front of each wheel well...

I dont think they have a function

Allright, I emailed Mazda. We'll see what they have to say, and I'll post the results here.

Update:

Mazda responded to me, sorta. Here is what they said:


In regard to your inquiry, the plastic pieces you're talking about are
aerodynamic pieces to block air from hitting the tires.

I hope this information is helpful for you.


I wrote back:

"No, I'm sorry, but this does not answer my question. What purpose would there be to "block air from hitting the tires?" To improve performance at high speeds? To reduce noice? Please elaborate, as well as explain what would happen if I removed these pieces of plastic."

We'll see what they say to that.

Those little plastic tabs are like upside-down spoilers. They go across the entire front of the wheel wells. A spoiler creates a partial vacumn behind itself, hence a tiny bit less air pressure in the wheel well, plus the tabs are routing some of the onrushing air around the tires. Overall, a tiny bit less air drag for the car at highway speeds. 24 square inches of smooth plastic out in front of the tires creates less air drag than the face of 2 spinning 225mm tires.

It may only be a fraction of a percent less drag for the car, but at a fleet level (68,000 RX-8s sold per year or whatever), there will be slightly better fuel mileage for Mazda Corporate to report for CAFE purposes.

I had to get down on my hands and knees to even see these things. Go ahead and take them off if they bother you.

Originally posted by Ned M
Those little plastic tabs are like upside-down spoilers. They go across the entire front of the wheel wells. A spoiler creates a partial vacumn behind itself, hence a tiny bit less air pressure in the wheel well, plus the tabs are routing some of the onrushing air around the tires. Overall, a tiny bit less air drag for the car at highway speeds. 24 square inches of smooth plastic out in front of the tires creates less air drag than the face of 2 spinning 225mm tires.

It may only be a fraction of a percent less drag for the car, but at a fleet level (68,000 RX-8s sold per year or whatever), there will be slightly better fuel mileage for Mazda Corporate to report for CAFE purposes.

I had to get down on my hands and knees to even see these things. Go ahead and take them off if they bother you.

Thanks Ned, I appreciate the well thought out response. And Mazda agrees with you... here is what they had to say:

From Mazda Customer Service:
In regard to your inquiry, I received this information from one of our Product Engineers for the RX-8. They advised the plastic parts are aerodynamic pieces to prevent air from hitting tires in order to improve performance at high speeds. We do not recommend removing these pieces.

I think what I'll do is wait until 2000 miles or so (when most people are reporting the mileage significantly improves), then get a good idea of my fuel economy in a variety of driving conditions, and high speed handling, with the pieces on. Then I'll remove them, and recompute the economy and high-speed handling. If they make a difference in either area, I'll put 'em back on. Either way, I'll report back my results here for all the forum to see.

Thanks...

ok....why is this such a big deal anyway?

No real reason, they just kinda bug me. :D