Quote:
Originally Posted by chanomatik
Good point. I still think it looks better without it, though. I'll take my chances when I get mine! Of course, I don't see why I couldn't cut out my own of rubber to fit underneath and glue it? Like maybe something just a few mm thick. I just don't like how much longer the lip protector is, making your car lower and even MORE prone to scraping. I almost feel like its unnecessarily long and more of a ploy to make people spend more money.
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I did temporarily try the Home Depot lip mod and was almost going to suggest it. But the color was too off for me to recommend.
The challenge is finding rubber that's a better match for the stain black paint of the STI lip. Also finding rubber with an "L" shaped cross-section so one leg of the "L" aheres to your lip and the other leg extends down towards the ground for a few centimeters of protective "cushioning."
I scraped yesterday through an everyday intersection which dips (sometimes I don't scrape depending on my speed and entry angle) and today on a 123 mile cruise into an unfamiliar town in another state. And recently for an oil change and alignment, I've had all 4 wheels of my car rolled up onto jack ramps that suspended my car so techs could work on it. I watched the "L" rubber skirt get completely pressed/folded so it became a "V" with both legs closed into each other as it rolled up the incline, protecting my lip. Then they let it roll too far to the end of the jack ramp where there were wheel stops that protrude up. The rubber skirt ate it and nudged my lip upward (the lip mounts/bumper have some flex play). After painfully watching all that, I checked/felt all along my lip and found there was no damage thanks to the rubber. Then again, I'm lowered on Sportlines. But when I was lowered on 0.6" STI springs, I did scrape the rubber several times on unfamiliar roads and the lip saw no damage. So I have firsthand experience of seeing the rubber being effective at protecting the lip from damage. And in cases where I saw the ground fold the rubber into itself and flex the whole lip up, if the rubber weren't there, the lip would have touched ground instead.
But that's not the purpose for which STI markets the rubber skirt. It is intended to be an aerodynamic piece which blocks air from flowing to the underside (similar to how JDM underpanels and TRD rear diffuser keep air pushed downward) to reduce airflow/air pressure to the underside. Similar to why stock cars/race cars have near zero ground clearance; so air is diverted away from the underbody to prevent lift. So the STI lip is for downforce and the rubber skirt is to reduce air entering the underside. I don't remember seeing STI market it as a protective piece; that's just an extra benefit that nudged me to get it.