Need steering related help

[BavMPower]

Hi everyone, need some help here with my 98 M3. I was driving earlier tonight when the passenger's side front corner of my bumper came into contact with debris on the road. I have no idea what it was because my view was blocked, but I know it was solid. It left a nice little scratch on the plastic lip and small one on the side, but no real body damage.

I have two questions. When I crank the steering wheel far enough to the left (but doesn't have to be at lock), I can hear what appears to be a rubbing sound. To my ear, it isn't really loud, just noticeable, and it sounds like maybe the tire is rubbing against something plastic inside the wheel well. If a major suspension component were being affected, my guess is that it would sound more metallic and more audible. Is this a good hypothesis or should I begin to panic? My second question is more concerning, as I don't recall having this problem before the contact. I turned the steering wheel to lock when I was stationary I noticed that the car's idle dropped below 500 rpms. I have heard that this is common and there is the potential that I didn't notice this tendency before tonight, but is there the potential that I damaged something related to the power steering?

Any educated guesses would be good and daylight will allow me to have a better look than I can get at this hour. Thank you all for the help (in advance) and remember to drive safely!!!

EDIT: I should also mention that other than these things, the car drives normally, tracks straight, and does not exhibit any odd behavior whatsoever. That's probably important to mention...

[Jeron]

Factory rims? You should be able to see the rubbing easily if you pull a wheel.

The full lock p/s RPM drop is normal. You may even get an odd noise.

[BavMPower]

Update: I pulled the (stock) wheel yesterday to find that my aftermarket undertray which is connected to both the plastic splitter (it took the brunt of the impact) and to a plastic piece in the wheel well put extra strain pulled this wheel well piece, causing it to tear and become partially dislodged, thus causing the tire to rub in certain circumstances. Everything appears normal. Jeron, thank you very much for the response.

[Jeron]

There are aftermarket replacements for the undertray/splash guard. I know someone selling a used one.

[BavMPower]

Jeron, just so I know that we're talking about the same thing, I've got a couple pictures. Excuse the superior camera phone quality.



This is the inside of the wheel well, and you can see the aftermarket bracket located on the top of the aftermarket tray (which is still intact) below the brake duct. Above and to the left of the brake duct, there is a plastic piece missing.

Said piece that became dislodged:


Is this the splashguard piece that you were talking about in your previous post?

[Jeron]

Yes, that appears to be a JTD underbody panel. It looks like the owner tried to fab some brackets to hold it in place. Probably because the wheel well liners are damaged on the bottom edge where it attaches.