Smooth wheel covers - what size pizza pan? - Fuel Economy, Hypermiling, EcoModding News and Forum

Daox · 03-08-2011, 07:47 PM

For those of you who have done the pizza pan smooth wheel cover mod, what size pizza pan did you use compared to your wheel size? I am looking to put them on the Prius, so I measured the wheel and it is a 15" wheel, but the steel lip is 16" diameter. Also, there is a question of the pizza pan size too. Is a 15" pan actually 15" in diameter, or is it made to fit a 15" pizza and have a lip that makes it larger?

fjasper · 03-08-2011, 08:43 PM

FWIW, the pizza pans I ordered were almost exactly the nominal size. 18" pan is about 17 15/16" in diameter, edge to edge. This is about 3/4" smaller than the diameter of the visible metal part of the 17" wheel.

Daox · 03-09-2011, 08:53 AM

That is quite helpful! I'll get 16" pans then.

BamZipPow · 03-09-2011, 10:22 AM

Why not just make them out of coroplast?

Lighter, cheaper, less prone to damage other vehicles if it comes off...

Joenavy85 · 03-09-2011, 10:30 AM

Bam, how did you attach the disc? is that the screw head i'm seeing there?

BamZipPow · 03-09-2011, 10:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Joenavy85

Bam, how did you attach the disc? is that the screw head i'm seeing there?

I tried hot glue at first...didn't hold to my alloy rims.

Then I tried...Gorilla Glue. Worked just fine...until it comes time to pull them off. It takes a little to break the bond but you can work it off a little at a time.

The hole you see is the tire valve...

I'm gonna run by the local Discount Tire and git some of their scrap tire weights and see if I can use the steel clip part after I melt the lead off and use those to keep the covers on with.

Joenavy85 · 03-09-2011, 10:34 AM

what did you use to cut the disc's?

BamZipPow · 03-09-2011, 10:58 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Joenavy85

what did you use to cut the disc's?

Being coroplast...a sharp Xacto knife. Carefully measured the rim and where the cover was gonna sit into. The diameter was slightly less than the Walmart pizza pan. I just held the pan down and cut into the first skin layer of the Coroplast. Pulled the pan off and then finished the cut. Used one of those Stanley shaver/planers to trim it down to size. To git the valve hole, I just pressed hard where the cap was and then drilled it out with a ½" drill bit. Primed it with plastic primer and then painted them with flat black paint.

My material of choice was those small political signs...I think they were 18" x 24". I have a ton of those from the last election. I could probably make 5 more sets.