Air dam fell off

[CL8]

My daughter, who got her license less than a month ago,
decided to drive our '99 Dodge Caravan into her friends driveway that was very high and steep at the front curb,
a driveway I NEVER drive into because I know how those steep curbed driveways scrape the bottom of my vehicle.

Anyway when she drove up that steep part, it pulled the air dam half off,
She pulled the rest of it off and it is now in the back of the van until I can get someone to help me reattach it.

Will there be any damage to the vehicle underneath driving without the air dam, will it or will it just cause the van to get less gas mileage?

Are they pretty easy to reattach?

Thanks,

CL8

[RahX]

They put the airdam on there partly for aesthetics but more so to push air up into the radiator instead of under the vehicle. Is it dangerous to run without it, almost 100% no. You wouldn't believe the people that have messed up bodywork on the front of their caravans without a problem. A quick and easy fix is to get a bunch of the bigger type of zip ties and zip tie it back on. You can try and get some sort of clip and bolt system goin but it will probably be a pain in the butt.

[MagicRat]

Often these things are held-in by little plastic clips. When the airdam is stressed, these clips let go first. You may be able to reattach it, good-as-new using new clips from the dealer.

[CL8]

Originally Posted by MagicRat

Often these things are held-in by little plastic clips. When the airdam is stressed, these clips let go first. You may be able to reattach it, good-as-new using new clips from the dealer.

Yes it did have plastic clips, my neighbor suggested going to a hardware store and getting regular nuts, bolts and washers to reattach it. (those plastic ones looked awfully cheap)

though I like the idea of zip ties.

I need a new fuel filter in my vehicle so I think I'll show my mechanic what happened and maybe he could reattach it when he replaces my fuel filter.

Thanks Rahx and MagicRat

[jdmccright]

If you can use the same type of clips, I'd suggest those over zip ties or bolts. Car designers know (or should know) that air dams will suffer damage and strikes from high-angle curbs. So, they design them to come off easily rather than damage the connecting bodywork or other supports. Replacing the clips with zip ties or bolts may circumvent that feature and end up causing more front-end damage from an air dam that should have torn away on its own rather than continue hanging and make the damage worse.

But what you could do is add some loose wire or zip tie loops around a hole on the back side so that if it did come loose or break off, you could still keep it with the car and not run over it...it would just hang loose. It might take some ingenuity but it might save the airdam from being dragged on the road or run over if it came loose. Good luck!

[CL8]

Thanks Jdm!

I went to my mechanic shop, which has a great reputation in my area.
He said it wasn't worth putting back on, that many people ask for their airdams to be taken off
because they drag so much. And it might save $5.00 in gas a year, but it doesn't really have much other value.

Why do the make the "dam" things (pun intended) if they really don't have that much value??!!!

And Jdm, do the companies really use cheap plastic clips so the airdam will come off easily under stress, or just because they want to save money?:/

[jdmccright]

Air dams for today's cars may be slightly more functional as described since the fronts of the cars are more closed off from the slipstream to lower drag. The air needed to cool has to come from somewhere so the lower dams can function this way. But 95% of the vehicles still have grilles, thus dams are mostly cosmetic. And on a mini-van...umm, well, they will definitely not help keep you on the road in a hard corner. It's all fluff, designed to make a minivan look fast or at least not look like a minivan, which is impossible.

So removing it won't hurt you, but I'd keep it & hang it in the garage. If gas mileage does happen to dip (highly doubt it) or you go and sell it, just put it back on.

"Do the companies really use cheap plastic clips so the airdam will come off easily under stress, or just because they want to save money?"

The answer is...yes.

Hope this helps!

[CL8]

Yes, they want to save money? :|

[jdmccright]

Yes, as in both reasons. Cost is the primary concern for automakers, but they will design enough into it or the fascia and supports so that the clip works as intended...releasing/breaking when necessary but not failing when you just hit a bump (ideally).