A while back, I went to one of those corporate places for an oil change. They fucked up putting the metal thing back on the undercarriage, but a family member told me it would be okay without that. So I’ve been driving without the metal protective layer thing.
This fell off sometime on my drive home from work. We are currently experiencing tornadoes, so I can’t examine it too closely at the moment. It appears that it was just zip tied back on…
I am dead broke - my money this month has to go to car insurance, I can’t even afford registration at this point.
Can I just rip it off? I need an oil change soon, but I’m going to try to stretch it out a month or so.
Generally it’s fine to remove those but I would consider having it put back on if you live anywhere that gets snow. Reason being is that this plate protects undercarriage parts from excessive corrosion as a result of salt on the roads. So your car isn’t going to break down if you remove it, but if you plan to keep the car long-term, it can extend the life of those parts. As someone who works on my own car and has also had several 15+ year old vehicles, I can attest that this plate does indeed reduce corrosion in those areas.
I’ve had a couple cars that have a skid plate like this leaving it off isn’t generally going to be a problem but it does protect you know the undercarriage of your car just get it fixed when you’re can afford to and you should be fine
They’re also there for wind resistance management. Removing it will basically do nothing bad though.
That part is responsible for 3 things:
- Noise. It reduces the amount of turbulence under the car
- fuel efficiency, same as Noise
- protection from the environment. It reduces the amount of dirt and water that hits parts like the engine and other stuff there
It is not critical and as others said, you could leave it of. I would recommend to have a look of there was any other damage done while they ripped off, as the weather allows to
Probably not critical but beware on some vehicles they are structural and support the transmission or other components, such as on some Jeeps
This is a Honda Civic, which is a fucking lemon which didn’t have working AC when I bought it new.
Throw it in the back trunk.
definitely not the side trunk
I went to one of those corporate places for an oil change … This fell off sometime on my drive home from work.
Exact same thing happened to me. Ever since then, I do my own oil changes.
Although, there’s definitely a startup cost. If you’re tight on cash, then I wouldn’t recommend it.
I guess the splash shield isn’t essential for driving… although, you should probably get it back on at some point. It’ll keep the elements out of the engine a bit. Getting water down there will probably lead to corrosion in the future. Not to mention rocks that could dent things down there.
It shouldn’t actually be too hard to put it back on. It’s usually just held on by plastic screws. You just need to buy replacement screws (a few bucks) and find a screw driver. The hard part would be lifting the car high enough so you can crawl under it. Then just line up the holes and put the screws on.
As others have said, works without it; but you probably want it there.
Order one from eBay that fits your year, make, model. You may need to get fasteners separately.
I had this same thing break on my truck. It cost $35 for an off brand replacement that fit perfectly.
Supposedly they’re meant to help prevent corrosion, but it’s really more up to where the car is being driven
I’ve seen cars without them and zero corrosion and cars with them with serious rust issues
It just depends on how much salt the car is exposed to over its life
It’s not critical, but it keeps things clean, keeps salt/snow off in winter, and contributes to fuel economy and ride quality.
Stretching an oil change is a bigger concern, especially if the oil change interval is a long one. Learn to do it yourself, it’s really simple and depending on the car you may be able to do it without ramps or a jack if you’re creative in parking eg over a dip or one wheel (securely) on a curb. Ensure you don’t spill oil into a drain.
If that’s metal and a side pic of the vehicle I would make sure it’s not the tank protector, if it is you might have to replace at you want something protecting a plastic tank. If it is from the tank, I would recommend putting a few zip ties up to hold it, if not you’ll be fine. Only other thing is water can do damage depending on where it hits (to wiring and modules) so don’t aim for puddles and you’ll be fine.
Edit: more I look it’s plastic, you’ll be fine.
I had that thing fall off my leaf. Just left it off and have had no issues.
Yeah, it’s fine. If that is the part I think it is, it’s a cover for the bottom of your engine - not strictly needed (my previous car didn’t even have one when new).
It somewhat protects your cars nether regions from minor damage from rocks and similar, but for the average driver it doesn’t do much - Most debris that would damage your engine would also easily pierce through the cover.
There is an aerodynamic component at play here, but it’s not critical. It might also shield your cars innards and prevent turbulent airflow to reduce noise, but again; not critical
Your car will not fall apart. It will, however, rust like hell over the next few years if you live somewhere that regularly salts in the winter to keep ice off the road.
How much does oil cost where you’re from? If you can’t afford oil for a month, something has to change.
