Pool noodle mustache...
 

One more quick stick on before I gas up and go...

http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/v...s/IMG_8201.jpg

$1 Pool noodle attached on the front and rear with Gorilla tape. Shouldn't be a problem if it scrapes a little... :D

Clearance from the ground is 5½". ;)

Hmmm.... pool noodles. that might be exactly what I need to fill all the holes in my bumper. :thumbup:

http://i154.photobucket.com/albums/s...ve4444/001.jpg

SuzukiSteve -

Yes, I have seen the "inner grill block" of pool noodles as well, but I hadn't thought of this them as air dams. I usually use dark-colored pipe insulation for grill blocks.

What came first, the pool noodle or the pipe insulation?

CarloSW2

Mustache only made it through one tank before it got "lost"... :(

However on the other side of it...got my best ever from Houston to Ardmore...26.98mpg! This run is usually around 21-23mpg.

So now I have this crazy idea fer an adjustable air dam. Something that I can pivot down fer highway speeds but allow it to bump up when it comes to obstacles. I might use another noodle fer the test material but eventually move on to something longer and durable. :D

I might be interested in making a copy if it works :)

adjustable airdams have been thought of, but i think you're better of in the real world with something that can stand up to the abuse.
the gm volt seems to go that route too.

you might want to look at linoleum, vinyl or a similar flooring material, places that sell and place the stuff might have undesized leftovers you can have or they sell for very little don't look at the color, a shot of black spray paint will render it invisible... something that's undersized as a flooring marterial can still be several square meters, and it's pretty strong. some types are brittle but others will flex so hitting something won't be a problem and at worst it'll grind away where it hits.. i'd secure it with self tapping wood screws into the back or the bottom of the plastic bumper leaves a tiny hole that noone will ever see in case you end up.

considdering the potential savings you can spend a few dollars on decent material and have the mod pay for itself over a relative short time

Conveyor belting ain't cheap or easy to fabricate, but is impervious to road kill and parking curbs.

I was thinking like a visor setup similar to a helmet visor. Lift when you don't need it, drop it down when you do. Have the pivot points near the front wheel well with a cable to activate the air dam.

Thinking about testing it out with some strips of Coroplast to see how well it performs/works. No big loss if it gits eaten up or broken. :D

Sounds like a plan to.me. lots of pictures please

Rubber baseboard for use in kitchens comes in colors including black. It is cheap and flexible and already the right color for your vehicle.

a choke cable (usually around 6 feet long) could work for that

I have been using a noodle to fill the lower gap for at least 6 weeks now.

Fits tight and easily removed if necessary .

Just had to get over the color, neon green...:o


>

The classic lawn edging would probably work well here.
DIY home depot lip. - SRT Forums - SRT4, SRT6, SRT8, SRT10 & Dodge Forum

It won't move... but it's cheap and will flex if it bumps something.

Mike

Baseboard is too flexible and requires too much back support to use it fer my needs. :(

That's what I was thinking...but I'm not sure 6' will make it from the center of the truck to the cab...it might need to be longer. :(

Why the center? Cause I need it to pull evenly from the center as the pivot points will be on the sides. ;)

I just picked this 6" tall stuff from Ace Hardware. Gonna give it a shot and see how well it does on the trip home. ;)

BamZipPow -
I did something similar to that in my coroplast grill block :

http://ecomodder.com/forum/showthrea...lock-7603.html

However, I have since removed the grill block and have a two-piece spring mounted air dam.

Benefits :

- Robust failure. If the air-dam hits something, the zip-tie that connects the air-dam to the spring breaks and the air-dam just swings back. Replace the zip-tie and I'm off and running.

- No maintenance. Other than zip-tie replacement, it's set it and forget it.

Problems :

- A jack of one trade solution. For every spring there is an MPH where the spring will hold the air-dam at a vertical position in relation to the air stream. At lower MPH it will be angled into the air-stream. This might not be bad, but it would allow more air under the car. At a higher MPH it will be angled in the same directon as the air stream. Soooooo, you need to find the perfect spring for your needs.

- Stability of air-dam. Others have told me that my grill-block would be too unstable. When I did my video, you can see that it does wobble, but the "average" relationship to the air stream is stable. If you are in steady-state MPH, the grill-block maintains the same relationship to the air stream. With that said, I have seen the air-dam become more unstable when I am following a big truck because the air stream is turbulent.

CarloSW2

A quick mockup... ;)
http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u...0/IMG_8204.jpg

That's about a 5" clearance. :D

Thinking about cutting a slot on the inside of the bottom tube so I can insert the front edge of some 4mm Coroplast. This will provide a bottom to the adjustable air dam and also become an automatic return spring fer the air dam. Obviously the flutes will have to go front/back instead of side to side to provide the return force. It will be same shape as my extended air dam belly pan...just a little bit longer to provide an edge to the adjustable air dam. ;)

Since I didn't plan on doing this mod away from home...I need to source some Coroplast locally. Might have to buy some instead of finding it fer free...oh well. :(

Looks like NuLine Signs will be my source... :D

Here's what it looks like now...with only 2 screws holding it on (one per side).

6½" clearance (up position)
http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u...0/IMG_8207.jpg

4" clearance (down position)
http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u...0/IMG_8206.jpg

Side views...
http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u...0/IMG_8209.jpg
http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u...0/IMG_8208.jpg

The top lip of the edging rests on the lip of the original stock air dam. Not sure if it would hold on during driving...that's why I want to git some Coroplast behind it to provide some support and smooth out the airflow (if any) that goes behind the adjustable air dam. Right now...I'd have to manually drop the air dam and lock it in place with some tape or the pegs the edging came with. I'll see if I can find and fab up a choke/throttle cable to do it from inside the cab later on today. ;)

lol. I like the idea somebody had of useing water pipe insulation. Although I bet I can find some body color matching red noodles.

Do you have any pics of your lime green ones?

The garden edging did okay on the way home. It got pushed under 2 times during some parking but it was easy to pull back over. ;)

Got it pulled off fer now while I figure out how to attach another pool noodle. Thinking about slicing it in the middle and sticking it on the end of some Coroplast. We'll see how well the next version does... :D

hey someone local. Im up in baytown

Right up the 146... :D

Maybe it's time to do some aero mods to yer vehicle. ;)

yea its on the list. but just got that car and have not even went through my first tank yet. So I dont even have a good number to start with.

Just picked up a $4 replacement pool noodle today from Walmart. The original red one was 2.5" in diameter. The new one is 3" in diameter. Should be able to slice a slot in the back and hot glue it on some Coroplast by this weekend. Piccies to follow... ;)

Used some 3M Super77 spray adhesive to sandwich 4 small sheets of Coroplast together (offset like bricks)...then trimmed it to the same contour of my extended air dam. This allows me to use the smaller pieces and not use up my bigger sheets of Coroplast. :D

Cut a slot out in the pool noodle and inserted it in place. Just got done hot gluing the noodle to the Coroplast piece and painted the front black.

This is what it looks like before I glued and painted it...
http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/v...s/IMG_8271.jpg

Still not exactly sure how I will end up mounting this. Maybe some slots in the Coroplast and some bolts...that way if I bump into anything...it will slide back. ;)

The pool noodle did melt where it touched the hot tip of the glue gun but didn't dissolve on the glue or the paint. :D

I saw your idea for the pool noodle and I tried it myself. Only had it on their for a few days, but so far so good! Let us know how your modified/chloroplast noodle works. Thinking of making one very similiar to what you have here if it holds up for you.

So the mechanism I'm thinking about is slotting the Coroplast in 4 spots...2 in the rear and 2 up front and using bolts and washers to keep it in place. The noodle will rest up against the stock air dam.

I'm gonna try to use the airflow to push the noodle mustache under the air dam and small springs to return it to it's normal position when the air flow isn't sufficient to keep it under the air dam. The bolts will keep it from sliding too far back and too far down. Sort of an automatic mechanism.

Whatcha think? :D

might be worth a try

Decided to put the mustache straight on fer now until I see how much difference/damage it can take. I have it screwed on with 4 screws up front and 2 in the back. It will probably rip off it it takes a big hit since my full belly pan will keep it from moving back.

Clearance is 6½" (bed unloaded) from the ground to the bottom of the mustache. ;)

Piccies! :D

http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/v...s/IMG_8299.jpg

http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/v...s/IMG_8300.jpg

http://i677.photobucket.com/albums/v...s/IMG_8301.jpg

maybe i missed the results, but have you seen any consistent returns/losses in economy over the last couple weeks?

The only return on the pool noodle version was just the one tank when I left Houston. The garden edging on the return trip back to Houston was most likely being pushed back some while at speed. I took it off after I got home and haven't been running with anything lower than my dropped air dam.

The one I just put on this weekend lasted only about one trip today before it got ripped off from the airflow. :(

Guess I'll be looking at expanding foam next...and maybe one of those Tegris NASCAR splitters to attach it to! ;)

On my old Mirrage I made an air dam by cutting the top half curved part off of a nissan sentra bumper that I had in the garage. It was to wide so I cut the center section out to narrow it and filled the center gap with a piece of plastic roll up sled so I would have something soft to let take the impact from unexpected road debris. I flipped it over so the part that curved towards the headlights and grill when on the sentra was now curved under the car.

I mounted it using doubled up strips of plumbing strap. This made it very ridgid but it could also shift back with out breaking it if I did hit something.

This gave my car about 2 inches of clearance in the front and gave me a very solid air dam.

another OEM bumper cut up to add to the bottom may give you the rigidity you need.

Found my 2nd noodle sitting in the ditch yesterday. It's pretty beat up and split right where the Coroplast and hot glue used to be. :(

On the bright side...I found a 4'x4' construction sign...it's made from 10mm Coroplast! :D

There are some pool noodles that are made with a big enough inner diameter for a regular noodle to fit inside. They're bigger of course but also a lot softer so less likely to get pulled off

http://i77.photobucket.com/albums/j5...ached20500.jpg

this is what a lot of trucks i see around here use... two small banners in front of the tires... these are somewhat pushed back by the air resistance, but don't really fold under. i think the trick is to find something sturdy enough not to deform to much under wind resistance, but that will cleanly fold under when it hits something solid and than flex back to where it was

On my trip back home today...I ran over a deer carcass in the road and took some major damage to the air dam. Luckily I had screws to temporally fix the damage and didn't lose any parts in the exchange of energy. :(

The full belly pan held up well and didn't bend anything. My wood support piece did break like it was supposed to but didn't separate from the Coroplast. :D

I think I'm gonna need an alignment when I git back home though...

BamZipPow -

On one hand that's a bummer, but it also sounds like a "robust failure". The system bent but did not break (too much).

CarloSW2

Farm suppliers sell rubber belting for round balers that it very durable and might be about the right weight/ strength for air dams.