DIY Skidplate

Here it is. I made a skidplate for our cars to replace the flimsy OEM plate. Mine cracked in half last winter so this was a priority to get done before the snow fell again.

You'll need a 48"x48"x0.1875" piece of plastic or metal, your choice of whatever material you choose. I used UHMW Polyethylene and bought it from Midland Plastics in New Berlin, WI for $69.79 after tax. You'll also need a tape measure, a permanent marker, a 9/16" drill bit or spaded bit, and 3- M8x1.25x30mm bolts (stainless steel so they don't rust in winter).

All in all this took me 4 hours to complete, but I was messing around at the hardware store and had to do the test-fitting and such. For you guys it shouldn't take more than 1-1/2 hrs.

One more thing: if you're using plastic like I did, you may want to drill another hole toward the rear and zip-tie the plate to the control arms so it doesn't sag too much. For me, this was a temporary fix as I didn't feel like running back to the hardware store and buying some channels to stiffen the plate. I have to do an oil change in a few weeks so I'll be removing the plate then, and I will let you all know how it goes. I decided not to drill holes for the drain plug and oil filter to get the most aerodynamic benefit- I took the car out later that night and noticed that I can coast farther with this on than I could without any plate on.

Enjoy!

Thank you, sir!

Now what the hell do all the crazy numbers on the template mean, lol.

I made the template on a CAD modeling program at work, so the first number is millimeters (sorry, forgot to remove those. Maybe ehsnils will use them ) and the second number in the brackets are dimensions in inches.

When you read the measurement in inches, where is that measuring "from"?

EDIT: is the bottom left corner the starting point for the measurements?

Yes, bottom left is the 0,0 point

What did you use to cut the material?

This will come in handy since I blew mine up after hitting something. Thanks!

Also, any recommendation on how to find a place that might carry that type of material? I actually started looking when you first mentioned this, but the only thing I've found so far that might work for a reasonable amount is a piece of lexan. I think the clear might look a bit funny, but would certainly be nice for being able to see any issues right away, i.e. leaking fluids.

To cut the material I used a circular saw and a cordless drill with some spaded bits. Be sure to use two hands with the drill, because if you slow down and the bit catches in the plastic, the torque will twist the drill out of your hand.

No matter what type of polymer material you use, make sure to get something that is impact resistant, abrasion resistant, chemically resistant, and ultimately strong. I would recommend Polycarbonate (lexan), ABS, or UHMW Polyethylene, and many other types of acrylates. If you get a polymer material you'll surely want something thicker than the metallic counterpart. 3/16" is the thinnest I would go with any polymer material

awesome ill be making one soon!

Awesome, mine is trashed and this looks like a great replacement

Yup, same here. Mine has a huge hole on it. Might do metal this time.

Found this material at Grainger. Does it seem similar to what you used for yours?

Yes, it looks like the 3HMP2 is what you're looking for. And it seems to be a decent price too

looks good! someone should make a group buy for these for sure have a couple buyers