Wheel cover mounting assembly

A wheel cover assembly for a vehicle wheel, the wheel cover assembly comprising:

• a mounting apparatus adapted for mounting on lug nuts of a vehicle wheel, the mounting apparatus including a connector body and being adjustable in both axial and radial directions;
• a wheel cover releasably connected to the mounting apparatus;
• and
• dual quick release connections that releasably connect the wheel cover to the mounting apparatus, the dual quick release connections including a first quick release connection and a second quick release connection;
• wherein the first quick release connection includes:
• at least one alignment tab extending from the connector body, each alignment tab including an axially extending body that terminates in a bent end that extends at an angle to the axially extending body of the alignment tab;
• and
• at least one arcuate-shaped twist-lock slot in the wheel cover, each twist-lock slot including an unlocking portion and an adjacent locking portion, the alignment tab fitting through the unlocking portion but not being passable through the locking portion, and the locking portion including a nest that receives and holds the alignment tab, the nest being defined by a surface that is sized to receive the bent end of the alignment tab;
• wherein each alignment tab is receivable in one of the twist-lock slots, the bent end of each alignment tab contacts the surface of the nest when positioned in the locking portion of the twist-lock slot, and twisting of the wheel cover locks and unlocks the alignment tab in the twist-lock slot;
• wherein the second quick release connection includes:
• a bayonet connector that releasably connects the mounting apparatus to the wheel cover, wherein:
• the bayonet connector includes at least one radially extending pin disposed on a back side surface of the wheel cover, at least one female receptor disposed on the connector body of the mounting apparatus, each female receptor receiving one of the radially extending pins, and a spring-loaded plunger urging the wheel cover away from the connector body when the wheel cover is connected to the mounting apparatus, the plunger thereby releasably securing the at least one pin in the at least one female receptor, and
• each female receptor has a spiral-like shape including an inlet running in the axial direction, an intermediate channel connected to and generally perpendicular to the inlet, and a docking portion connected to and generally parallel to the inlet, the pin being held in the docking portion in a locked orientation;
• wherein the wheel cover includes a plurality of inlet and exhaust openings, the exhaust openings being circumferentially spaced along an outer edge of the wheel cover, and the inlet openings being concentric with the exhaust openings and disposed closer to a center of the wheel cover than the exhaust openings;
• wherein the exhaust openings define a first ring of openings, the inlet openings define a second ring of openings circumferentially disposed around a center of the wheel cover, and the first and second rings are concentric rings that are spaced from each other and spaced from the center of the cover;
• wherein the plurality of exhaust openings and the plurality of inlet openings are formed in an outer face surface of the wheel cover;
• and
• a plurality of fan blades are formed on a rear surface of the wheel cover and extend radially between the inlet and exhaust openings.