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Old 03-31-2013, 09:53 AM   #32 (permalink)
brucepick
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Join Date: Dec 2007
Location: Eastern CT, USA
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Outasight - '00 Honda Insight
Team Honda
Gen-1 Insights
90 day: 54.18 mpg (US)
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Yes, I had a few false starts on that project myself.

Here's a post I wrote a couple years ago, in a thread originally started by NachtRitter.

http://ecomodder.com/forum/showthrea...tml#post249587

Today's notes -

You need to spread/wipe the anti-seize all the way to the tips of the long screws, including the flat ends. Of course you know that now!

Then - after you get the long screw out:
Be ready to drill out some epoxy where it may have covered over the little nut, down inside the lug nut. Just a drill bit between two fingers. Oh yeah - you used JB Weld so you might need a power drill, not just fingers. Drilling from the outside of the nut thru the little one guarantees you drill in the right place BUT don't press too hard or you can push everything out of the lug nut.

If drilling from inside out, I think you need a center punch. My bit kept wandering off center.

My covers were perforated aluminum for brake cooling. Discussion with aerohead later indicated they might or might not actually be giving the aero benefit I wanted. Two of them failed later, so I now have two perforated and two that are solid flat.

Oh yes.

Re. spacers behind your flat panels, and mounting screw length. A flat panel, if resting against the wheel rim recess, tends to land maybe 1/8" or so away from the domed lug nut tops. If the discs are curved of course the gap will be larger. I found the easiest solution is to NOT use a removable spacer behind the panel. Always a pain to keep it in position when attaching the covers. Instead, I found the correct length screw so the panel rests (or floats) against the rim recess when the small screw bottoms out hitting the wheel stud. For mine, I think I ended up using 3/4" long screws. YMMV. Just don't tighten the little screw super hard against the lug nut. The dome is soft metal and you'll distort it easily.

Stainless round head Phillips screws are nice, will stay clean. But I used hex head galvanized. Attaching them requires pressing in on a Phillips screw, I don't want to pop out a little nut one day. For hex heads, you don't need to press in on it to have traction to turn it. I never found stainless hex ones in my size in a hardware store. Need to get them from FastenAll or some on line source. One day, maybe.

Good luck with it!
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Driving '00 Honda Insight, acquired Feb 2016.



Last edited by brucepick; 03-31-2013 at 11:19 AM..
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