I noticed when I am in a parking situation and have to cut the wheel hard to one side or the other, that the outer edge of my (255/60-18) standard tire just rubs on what appears to be a short body support that protrudes inside the wheel liner. Only mystery is it isn't supporting anything. It's held onto the chassis long sill with three bolts and doesn't seem to do anything but get into the way of the tire. Is it possible that it was intended to be some sort of temporary support for stacking the frames before assembly and just wasn't removed? Any clues?
Chassis Photo - Anyone know what this is?
- Thread starter daven5735
- Start date
oh, separate thread, yours seem to protrude further than mine but maybe it's a distortion in the image angle. my shop guy said they are likely not structural but could be some resonance/noise related thing in the body/frame design. please cut it off and let us know how it goes - then i'll get mine cut off too 
we're thinking about cutting it off and rewelding the plate portion back on to cover/reinforce the gap left while creating an inch + more clearance.
we're thinking about cutting it off and rewelding the plate portion back on to cover/reinforce the gap left while creating an inch + more clearance.
I'm going to try to get into my dealer and have them look at it. The picture isn't distorted....it really is sicking-out about 2 1/2-3 inches. I have looked under and all around and I believe your shop guy is correct. There's nothing structural about it. I'll let you know what happens. By the way, worst case is that I cut-off at an angle and re-cap. Then a little POR and we're good to go.
I've noticed that some LR3's have this wing bolted on, some are welded on. The welded ones are possibly from an earlier build date, and do not protrude as far into the wheel well.
My theory on them is that they are for side or offset frontal impact resistance.
My theory on them is that they are for side or offset frontal impact resistance.
That's the most sense that anyone has made of this yet. Thank you. I called one of the service writers at my local dealership (30 miles away) today, described my situation and then e-mailed him the photos. That was 8:30am this morning and still no response. It wouldn't be a big deal if I had oversized tires, but I don't. They are the factory size. I also checked the TSB listing and there was nothing. If your theory is correct, they aren't going to want to do anything because it's there for a purpose. I'll follow-up with him tomorrow and take it from there. My guess is that I'm going to have to "modify" them myself. I wont remove them (except to do the work) but I sure will give them a trim.
Actually if I think about it, what they should really do is unbolt them and set them back two inches to be more inline with the wheel liner.
OK, I couldn't stand it any longer. My dealership service guy never got back to me so I tried a little experiment today. Jacked-up the front end, pulled the tires to give me a clear shot and with a few whacks of a small sledge hammer, BAMM. Those wings are back in place. The only thing I can figure out is that whoever serviced the vehicle for the previous owner possibly used them as jack points which pushed them out. NOT SMART! They are not structural members but some sort blocking device that may be there to protect that area of the body (just under your feet) from rocks or whatever. Anyway, another issue resolved with my ole friend Mr. Hammer. I think a little POR or some such coating to prevent any rust from the hammer dings and off we go.