Mudflaps removed 2 weeks later, what will I find?

[@MikeDWinter]

Quick update on this.. I've just removed the front mudflaps from my MiC LR M3 and noticed that the drain hole has been significantly enlarged. It is now a rectangular hole, around 1.2x1.5cm in size. I think this will probably help reduce the accumulation of mud and dirt behind the mudflaps on these MiC cars.

[@zaferroni]

A lot of people say the mud flaps are disappointing, just wondered did you get the shared £100 after We used your referral code ?

[@TeslaTorque]

Yep, for the electricity bill? It took a while, but they credited it this month I think, got a bill through today

[@MegaGyalis]

Might as well just wrap the lower side of the car

[@TeslaTorque]

That’s actually what I’ve done now and taken off the large part of the flap. Got too annoying grinding on the road, so totally agree with the advice 👍🏻

[@slippyg]

Use a Dremel and make a bigger drainage slot

[@5UBV3T]

Oh now I feel like a poop. I just literally commented on your video installing these asking about the range. I honestly feel like these mud flaps are HUGE... You could probably trim 2 - 3 cm off of the bottom and still reap the paint protection benefits.

[@TeslaTorque]

They are huge, I keep switching between leaving them off....putting them on.....I dunno 🤷‍♂️

[@Richard_Barnes]

They don’t seem to be the best design do they? Too much mud being kept inside there. However, I’m like you in that any stone deflected away from a car is a good thing 👍🏻🙂

[@TeslaTorque]

Yep, I think this week driving around has made me want to put them back on, mud is all caked up the side of my car again

[@AgistoOico]

I bought third party ones for front and back which extend further up the body, but haven't exchanged the Tesla originals just yet. After seeing that buildup of mud I going to change them ASAP. Use the 3M PPF behind to protect the body, it's cheap and easy to apply. Thanks for the excellent content.

[@TeslaTorque]

Thanks, I managed to order a small sample size for £1.99 of PPF, so will be using that, good advice

[@juiceman977]

On delivery I found the set of mud flaps in the boot. Ugly things, so they made there way in to the recycling bin. I bought a set of the Farasla mud flaps. They look good, are a doddle to fit and they don't retain any road crud so easy to wash clean with the jet washer. www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B07Z7JVFN6/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o07_s01?ie=UTF8&psc=1

[@TeslaTorque]

Cool, I'll see how I get on with my modified versions

[@Paulmac2011]

I didn't put mine on in the end. I just bought a strip of ppf tape off ebay for £5 and put about a 12" strip on the sills just behind the front wheels and in front of the rear wheels, this is the area that was attracting the most chips

[@TeslaTorque]

I think that is probably the best shout to be fair

[@davidsworld5837]

oooh 1st comment - the range for such a short run may not show much since really the area of the mug gaurds is very small so the smaller the item you test the less effect it has the only way to make these small effect show is doing a number of items that effect range all together. I would say can you drill out the drain hole bigger and may be that would help drainage getting blocked by mud but is there no way to put some sealant on and remove were the mug get in, in the 1st place i would be interested in a test aircon vs opening window in hot weather and how that effects range I know you may not want to do this in winter and also what happens to range when had window wind defectors and the window open

[@TeslaTorque]

Yep, I was thinking of drilling a few holes and making the width bigger. Not sure why this wasn't done to be fair, as it doesn't matter from what I can see having more holes in there? almost doesn't need a well in there in the first place? I'm going to try and do one at some point seeing the effect the heater has once you have the cabin up to heat? So see what effect it has just maintaining the temperature, as opposed to getting it up to temperate. But will take a bit of planning, as need go somewhere to heat it up again between runs. But I hope overtime to build up a pretty decent list of the effect every element has. And actually I guess if you combine it all and try to hypermile, all of these little effects soon add up.

[@astroplutonium]

Great video again. Worse possible design. I removed mine and replaced them with some aftermarket ones. They are perfect. Remember to add some tape as they flex and over a few years they might scuff the paint a little.

[@TeslaTorque]

Yep, I've added the tape when I put them back on, thanks

[@Horizon301.]

Honestly, what’s the point? They look ugly and is paint that valuable? If anything the bonnet/front bumper is most at risk of damage

[@nigelpayres]

I think I'd disagree there. The sill has debris actively thrown at it from the front wheels, whereas the front of the car only has what is already in motion from much further away. The front is more vulnerable to large stones, probably, but not from a constant flow of gravel and small stones.

[@TeslaTorque]

After the mud build up this week without them, definitely stuff hits the side, and the paint is so soft, need to prevent this at all costs!

[@PhilT993]

I agree. My 2021 M3 came with shorter mud flaps on the front. I just took them off today and they were full of mud and ice after only 500kms. Bad design. Should be a lot more and bigger drainage holes.

[@TeslaTorque]

I'm getting the drill out and trying again :)

[@PhilT993]

@@TeslaTorque I installed a set of 4 Base or mud flaps and am happy with those. They fit well, are easy to install and protect all 4 fender lips.

[@nigelcharles511]

I don't yet own a Tesla (I am waiting for the new battery version) but having viewed the video I offer the following comments. 1. Ground clearance - For those who load the car sufficiently for this to be a problem they could trim about 10mm off the bottom of each mudflap. 2. Sealing against mud intrusion - A combination of tape and silicone should prevent all but the smallest particles of dirt entering the void. Enlarged drain holes should then enable any remaining small debris to drain out. 3. Air resistance - Having experimented with minimising drag on homebuilt aircraft where drag is much more significant due to the higher speeds I would suggest that the increased drag from such a small increased cross section in an area where the laminar flow is already disturbed shouldn't be significant enough to make a meaningful difference. 4. Other makes of mudflap might be better. I would still only buy those with the faired 3 point mounting. As well as being held more securely the faired rear side helps both to prevent dirt being sucked up into the area behind the mudflap and helps to smooth out the disturbed airflow.

[@TeslaTorque]

Good tips Nigel :)

[@markharris8929]

Spot on Nigel, same boat as you, waiting on a German built car with 4680 and megacastings as it will be a long term purchase for me.

[@RossMalin]

My new M3 LR didn’t come with them but got fitted by the service centre in MK. They only installed the short part and put the extensions in the boot. I wonder how effective the short mud flap is?

[@TeslaTorque]

Ross! I've taken these flaps on and off enough....please don't make me do it with the short ones 😂 I'm going to have a guess at less effective than the full ones, and better than nothing 😏

[@RossMalin]

@@TeslaTorque yeah I would of thought they were less effective! Although I think there might of been a reason for them not putting the extensions on?

[@PRG888]

My M3P bottomed out all the time, so took them off

[@TeslaTorque]

I've had them off for a bit and the mud build up on the sills is huge along the car, so going to put them back on with modifications, see how it goes

[@petersort2192]

What about putting silicon sealant onto the back of the flaps when you fit them so water and sand cant build up behind. Also 3M make a 100 mm wide clear paint protection film ideal for fitting along the length of the door sill from the front wheel to the back protecting that lower part of the car.

[@TeslaTorque]

I'm literally going to follow your advice. Ordered a sample of paint protection film, might not do the silicon, as if you saw my kitchen worktop you would know I'm banned from using it, but will drill big holes for drainage.

[@petersort2192]

@@TeslaTorque Hi the PPF i see was on amazon it and just under £20 Amason also do a lot of stuff for the model 3

[@nigelpayres]

@@TeslaTorque Be cautious with PPF. If you're insured with Direct Line, they say that they have to be notified if you fit it. Mad though that seems, I read it on a couple of forums and they confirmed it when I called. Obviously they can't explain why (we all know why), but they said that (in my case) it doesn't increase premiums, but they need to be notified it it's fitted.

[@ipb1966]

Thanks for making this. Although I was sent the Tesla ones, I think I’ll invest in some third party ones.

[@TeslaTorque]

Yeah, I can't decide about the mud build up whether to put them back on and then take them off to clean them or just leave them off :/

[@Paulmac2011]

@@TeslaTorque couldn't you try drilling a few more holes, or elongate the existing ones?

[@markharris8929]

I’d drill a couple of larger holes. Problem solved. Rubbing is a way of life if you’d had a Subaru!

[@nigelpayres]

I have spoken with the SC today after the problems I had with them scraping the ground. They told me that their advice is not to fit the flexible part in the UK for this reason and have suggested that I remove them and stick with only the top section. Apparently these still offer a significant improvement in protection over not having them in terms of stone chips to the sills. Mind you, they also said that they weren't aware of them filling with dirt either.

[@TeslaTorque]

Love it, are our roads closer to the Model 3 in the UK? 🧐 I hope you showed them the video of just two weeks being attached 👍

[@nigelpayres]

@@TeslaTorque I haven just sent the photos after the SC's request. I assume that the rationale for the difference in scandinavia is that their level of gritting means that the annoyance of the flaps scraping is secondary - but I am being perhaps a little generous there. I would have thought that simply having the flaps about 25mm shorter would have been a better solution.

[@nigelpayres]

@@TeslaTorque I've been told to book the car into the SC so that they can look at the mudflaps and see what's wrong. I'll keep you posted

[@nigelpayres]

@@TeslaTorque I went to the SC with this (and a few other niggles) yesterday and they replaced the flaps. Apparently there's a new design with a much larger, square, drain hole. I shall see how these behave, but they have to be better than the originals. Weirdly, they said that the pair they tried to fit had the new holes on one side and the original on the others, so they manually modified the errant one to match the new. They are still only fitting the top part of the flap, though, and I still can't see how the extended flaps can work in any useful way.

[@dangerousboarder]

Please can you do a video on battery drain?

[@TeslaTorque]

This is definitely on my list (I'm guessing you mean phantom drain?), annoyingly you'd think in a lockdown this would be easy, but I still need to use my car for work, so haven't been stationary long enough. It will be done at some point, hopefully on a holiday/airport visit in the near future

[@dangerousboarder]

@@TeslaTorque yes phantom drain, I understand the battery would drain just not as much as it does. No sentry mode or third party apps! I worried if I have to leave it at an airport!