OK, so we've done a bunch of work on the Prius. But so far, it's all been maintenance and repairs. What about eco-mods? I'm glad you asked. Now that the maintenance situation is under control, I can think about eco-mods. Here is a list of the mods I'm considering for the Prius. This list is tentative, so take it with a grain of salt.
-- Grille block
-- Aero wheel covers
-- Mirror delete
-- Belly pan
-- Drag spoiler
Also, there are a couple mods I may or may not do. Haven't decided yet.
-- Rear wiper delete
-- Rear wheel skirts
Also, there are some mods I do NOT plan to perform, for practical reasons.
-- Gutting the interior
-- Antenna delete
-- Boat tail
I decided to pick the low hanging fruit first. One of the easiest mods is a grille block. I bought a piece of pipe insulation from the hardware store, and stuffed it into the grille openings. I'll keep track of fuel economy, to see if it makes a difference. I'll report back after 2 or 3 fillups.
That said, I think the difference for just this one mod will be very minor. The variation from one fillup to the next is probably greater. But I do plan to eventually test the difference between stock and modified (for example, grille block + wheel covers + mirror delete). That should produce more visible results.
While I'm waiting for the fuel economy data, I purchased some pizza pans. Unfortunately, they were damaged in shipping. So I had to return them. But I should still have pizza pans ready to install on the wheels soon.
