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Skid Plate Options and Choices

Stormin’ Moorman

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I broke some stuff last week wheeling on a trail I had no business wheeling on, so I’m thinking about getting some skid plates.

I’ve looked at a few choices online including Metal Cloak and the Quadratec system but this is really out of my element and was wondering if some of the more knowledgeable members would give me some advice on what plates to go with.

I’m concerned with weight, ease of taking them on and off for maintenance and compatibility with existing rubicon skid plates. Should I get the gas tank skid or is the factory one good enough? Same with steering stabilizer, diffs, shock brackets and disconnect plates.

Thanks for any wisdom and sweet coupon codes. Lol.
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melendez69

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Hey, Mike. I'm far from knowledgeable, but I can tell you how I feel about the MC skid system. All in, it's about 160 lbs and I found the install fairly easy to do on my own. I had plenty of leverage underneath.

You'd have to remove & do away with the trans and gas tank skids along with the crossmember. Now, I'm quite sure the factory skid is capable of taking a punch, but it's paper-thin compared to the MC skid. Same for the trans. They cover up quite a bit, and getting to the oil pan drain plug / Fumoto is easy with the gaping hole in the trans skid. There's 1 hole you'd have to drill into the driver-side frame for the trans skid. They use a bunch of beveled, rounded Allen bolts and one rivet nut (for the drilled hole).

Knowing what I do now, I'd always say cover up everything you can. 'Yes' to a gas tank skid, and most definitely the diff covers (@mgroeger would attest to that). I ended up with a scuff on my front diff that easily could have been worse. I mangled a rear LCA bolt that I could have avoided with a skid plate. Covered them up afterwards.

If I ever had to remove all 3 pieces for whatever reason it wouldn't be problematic. A pain in the ass, maybe, but still simple enough. If ever dealer service would be required for them to work on the underbits, I'd remove the skids myself & let them work on it.
 
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Stormin’ Moorman

Stormin’ Moorman

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Hey, Mike. I'm far from knowledgeable, but I can tell you how I feel about the MC skid system. All in, it's about 160 lbs and I found the install fairly easy to do on my own. I had plenty of leverage underneath.

You'd have to remove & do away with the trans and gas tank skids along with the crossmember. Now, I'm quite sure the factory skid is capable of taking a punch, but it's paper-thin compared to the MC skid. Same for the trans. They cover up quite a bit, and getting to the oil pan drain plug / Fumoto is easy with the gaping hole in the trans skid. There's 1 hole you'd have to drill into the driver-side frame for the trans skid. They use a bunch of beveled, rounded Allen bolts and one rivet nut (for the drilled hole).

Knowing what I do now, I'd always say cover up everything you can. 'Yes' to a gas tank skid, and most definitely the diff covers (@mgroeger would attest to that). I ended up with a scuff on my front diff that easily could have been worse. I mangled a rear LCA bolt that I could have avoided with a skid plate. Covered them up afterwards.

If I ever had to remove all 3 pieces for whatever reason it wouldn't be problematic. A pain in the ass, maybe, but still simple enough. If ever dealer service would be required for them to work on the underbits, I'd remove the skids myself & let them work on it.
Thanks for the reply @melendez69. I went ahead and ordered from MC. I got the underbody skid system, both diff skids and the disconnect plate. It wasn't cheap but when i considered other options it left me with anxiety, so that's my gut telling me not to be cheap. It will take a few weeks to get here so maybe I'll have time to fix the manifold exhaust leak I'm pretty sure i caused on friday.
 

melendez69

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Thanks for the reply @melendez69. I went ahead and ordered from MC. I got the underbody skid system, both diff skids and the disconnect plate. It wasn't cheap but when i considered other options it left me with anxiety, so that's my gut telling me not to be cheap. It will take a few weeks to get here so maybe I'll have time to fix the manifold exhaust leak I'm pretty sure i caused on friday.
I forgot I also covered the muffler. More peace of mind.

Excellent choice.... definitely pricey, but you're gonna like the way you look.

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quietpeen

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Thanks for the reply @melendez69. I went ahead and ordered from MC. I got the underbody skid system, both diff skids and the disconnect plate. It wasn't cheap but when i considered other options it left me with anxiety, so that's my gut telling me not to be cheap. It will take a few weeks to get here so maybe I'll have time to fix the manifold exhaust leak I'm pretty sure i caused on friday.
so it sounds like you took a hit to the exhaust loop. The skids you purchased will not cover that loop unfortunately. The link below is the only one that i have seen posted on this site to cover that loop. It looks stout but because it only has two mounting points i wonder how many hits it can take.

https://www.skidrowoffroad.com/prod...aust-guard-for-jeep-wrangler-jk-2018-present/
 

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Stormin’ Moorman

Stormin’ Moorman

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so it sounds like you took a hit to the exhaust loop. The skids you purchased will not cover that loop unfortunately. The link below is the only one that i have seen posted on this site to cover that loop. It looks stout but because it only has two mounting points i wonder how many hits it can take.

https://www.skidrowoffroad.com/prod...aust-guard-for-jeep-wrangler-jk-2018-present/
So it hit the y-pipe right in front of the transmission and somehow caused a leak up top. I'm not really sure how that happened. We're taking the fender off next week and going to spray it with soapy water to find the leak. I'm/ hoping it's just the gasket or flange and not cracked or messed up threads. Thanks for the help.
 

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quietpeen

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Evo makes a system that works with the factory skids. That’s what I’ll do - I’m a believer in factory skid plates. Yes, there are tougher out there, but I’m not hard core and am happy to take bypasses.

http://evomfg.com/EVO-MFG-Products/Wrangler-JL-JLU/EVO-MFG-JL-JLU-ProTek-Armor
it says that the it Requires EVO Protek Trans/Engine Skid (EVO-3039B) Not sure if that also works with the factory skid but looks like you can't buy just the exhaust loop skid and bolt it on.
 

quietpeen

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I should have stated that I got the full artec aluminum system, hardest part is removing the stock gas tank skid since it’s what supports the gas tank.

I hear good and bad about aluminum and only time will tell if I should have gotten the steel. The weight savings on the aluminum is nice though.
 

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Stormin’ Moorman

Stormin’ Moorman

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I did the full Rock Hard steel system. I like it. I did not install it but the guys said it was fairly simple.
what scared me off on that one was the rear plate looked giant. I didn’t think I could remove it and put it back on.
 

word302

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I should have stated that I got the full artec aluminum system, hardest part is removing the stock gas tank skid since it’s what supports the gas tank.

I hear good and bad about aluminum and only time will tell if I should have gotten the steel. The weight savings on the aluminum is nice though.
I've bashed mine on some pretty good jagged boulders. Held up great. It's 1/4" aluminum, I don't think it's gonna be easy to hurt. I went with Artec for the weight savings and increased ground clearance.
 

quietpeen

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I've bashed mine on some pretty good jagged boulders. Held up great. It's 1/4" aluminum, I don't think it's gonna be easy to hurt. I went with Artec for the weight savings and increased ground clearance.
Good to hear. I don’t like wasting money and the aluminum was quite spendy lol
 

word302

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I've been looking at artec, since I have their inner fenders, is there any problem draining the oil?
I haven't done an oil change yet, but the hole is pretty big and oblong so seems like it'll be piece of cake.
 

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I haven't had a chance to take it off road yet, but the Quadratec Engine and transmission skid plate I installed last week seems stout and up to the task. Plus it's modular so I can add the transfer case skid later if I feel inclined to do so. It's also made of aluminum so I'm not adding much weight to the Jeep. :like:

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