This fell off the bottom of my car, right?

October 18, 2011 6:57 PM

As I was pulling away from the parking spot along the street this morning, my car ran over this gray light metal thing. I'm guessing that this cantaloupe-sized object fell off from the bottom of my car, but what is it and is this vital??

The car is a 2002 Honda Civic. Not sure if this could be tangentially related, but it so happens that a couple of days ago, it went to the car dealership for a checkup because its SRS light was on. The mechanic there commented on the rust at the bottom of my car.

posted by of strange foe to Travel & Transportation (10 answers total)

That does not look like a car part to me. I'm not an expert on Civics, but if you had a rusted undercarriage, I'd expect rust on anything that fell of it.
posted by ellF at 7:01 PM on October 18, 2011

Best answer: Nope, that's not a car part. It's a vent for a house or building. You ran over it, and didn't see it until after it had already gone under your car.
posted by IAmBroom at 7:02 PM on October 18, 2011 [4 favorites]

Best answer: That looks a lot more like the top of a vent than anything that could have come off your car. Maybe it fell off a nearby house and then got kicked under/behind your car?
posted by vorfeed at 7:03 PM on October 18, 2011

Best answer: Try googling "roof vent". The images should get you a general idea what the posters above are talking about.
posted by endless_forms at 7:07 PM on October 18, 2011

Best answer: That, my friend, is a chimney cowl, designed to keep birds and squirrels out of furnaces and basements. It has nothing to do with your car.
posted by AzraelBrown at 7:09 PM on October 18, 2011 [1 favorite]

Best answer: That is a vent cap. It covers a outlet duct, like from someone's kitchen or bathroom fan. You'll see them on roofs, chimneys, and sometimes sticking out of walls. It didn't come off your car.
posted by BitterOldPunk at 7:10 PM on October 18, 2011

Nthing what everyone else is saying, especially AzraelBrown.
posted by any portmanteau in a storm at 7:11 PM on October 18, 2011

I also think it's a roof vent. How big is it?
posted by advicepig at 7:11 PM on October 18, 2011

Response by poster: Wow, that was quick! Thank you for everybody who answered! My car is most happy to be proved innocent!
posted by of strange foe at 7:15 PM on October 18, 2011

Response by poster: It was very windy last night, and that probably explains all...
posted by of strange foe at 7:20 PM on October 18, 2011