[caskConditionedAle]

I was poking around under the car and noticed those flimsy looking body panels all over the bottom of the car. They look and feel like they are made of cardboard. But that can't be right. They must be made from some sort of plastic fibers?

Another thing I noticed is that they seem to absorb water. Most likely due to spaces between the fibers. I wonder how much water they hold? Should the Volt have a dry weight and a wet weight?

I also noticed when I tapped on one, I could hear sand trapped between the panel and the car. Should we vacuum those spaces every once in a while?

 

[Steverino]

The underbody air baffles on early Volts smooth the airflow for better (if marginal) aerodynamics. They are a molded, lightweight composite fiber. They should not hold water. I suppose some grit could get in over the years. I leave mine alone.

 

[Mister Dave]

I was poking around under the car and noticed those flimsy looking body panels all over the bottom of the car. They look and feel like they are made of cardboard. But that can't be right. They must be made from some sort of plastic fibers?

Best guess is resin impregnated jute composite.

 

[KenC]

I had to hose mine out, to get rid of all the sand and salt when I removed my snow tires earlier in the Spring, and when I installed my tow hitch. I bet my car was 10lbs lighter without all that sand and salt.

 

[Raymondjram]

I had to hose mine out, to get rid of all the sand and salt when I removed my snow tires earlier in the Spring, and when I installed my tow hitch. I bet my car was 10lbs lighter without all that sand and salt.

Remember to rinse out the wheel wells. After a rainy day (we get over 200 rainy days a year) and traveling on muddy highways and roads, the wells accumulate a few pounds. I have seen some car with caked mud in the wells.

 

[KenC]

LOL, I installed my hitch when it was still alternating between mud season and winter, and the caked mud in the wheel wells was like concrete! I had no idea where the screws were and had to chip all the frozen mud off to remove them. Should have done the install in a car wash bay.

 

[caskConditionedAle]

They should not hold water.

If you squeeze the panel in the back corner near the exhaust pipe two or three days after driving in the rain, it feels spongy and wet.

 

[Mister Dave]

Sounds like jute to me.

I read a story about a different vehicle where the owner overfilled the gas and got it into his underpanels. He said it soaked up the gas like a sponge. He was freaking that it might catch fire while he was driving.