What is the minimum under armor I should have

Eezybreezy08

Eezybreezy08

New member
Hey y'all, to make it short, I went riding at a new park this weekend and kinda got into some different type of trails than what I was used to. It was a lot more boulders than smooth hills. So i got a little worried about the undercarriage on my jeep and got me to thinking what is some of the, at least minimal things, I need to do to protect it. So please, I have no knowledge of this stuff, all suggestions welcomed.
 
I don't have a single aftermarket skid plate. No issues for the last 4 years. I have been thinking about getting an oil pan skid but not too concerned.
 
There's already skids for the transfer case and gas tank down the passenger side of the jeep. Only thing really exposed is the transmission and oil pan. Keep the stockers, they will take a beating (as Eddie will attest) and add something for the other two. I'd recommend EVO or Rockhard. The RH will cover both bits in one piece of steel, while the EVO does it in two pieces.
 
You don't really need any skids, as all the important parts that are likely to get hit are protected by factory skids.

You could put a skid over the engine oil pan, but I'm yet to put a single scratch on mine in years, while the rest of the skids underneath are beat to hell.

Maybe install a couple of beefy diff covers, just in case.

However, make sure you have rock sliders, as you are guaranteed to damage that area on the 1st day you go through tight boulders.
 
I appreciate it fellas. Last weekend was the first time I got into a lot of trails going over boulders one right after another, so I wasn't sure if it was something that I needed to be concerned about or not. I will at least look into the Evo oil pan skid. Appreciate it y'all
 
I have the EVO oil and and trans pan skids. They bolt on pretty easy, IMO.
I don't know if I actually need them, but I wanted to have something.
Also installed diff covers too. I know people who don't use anything, but
after doing Little Sluice and smelling all the gear oil, I prefer to have the
added protection just in case. YMMV!
 
Judging by your user name I assume you have an '08 JK?

If you have an '07-'11 JK you don't need any additional skid plates. If you have a '12 or newer JK with an automatic transmission then you will want a auto trans skid plate to protect the out in the open and completely unprotected transmission cooler line that runs right under the front of the transmission. If you bash this line you'll quickly drain the oil out pf your transmission. If you have ANY year JK with a 6 speed manual you don't need any additional skid plates.
 
As mentioned just the oil pan skid is all I would worry about. Maybe add the trans pan skid while your at it if you have an auto
 
highoctane said:
Judging by your user name I assume you have an '08 JK?

If you have an '07-'11 JK you don't need any additional skid plates. If you have a '12 or newer JK with an automatic transmission then you will want a auto trans skid plate to protect the out in the open and completely unprotected transmission cooler line that runs right under the front of the transmission. If you bash this line you'll quickly drain the oil out pf your transmission. If you have ANY year JK with a 6 speed manual you don't need any additional skid plates.
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Yes sir, I have an 08 2dr manual
 
I would recommend at least an oil pan skid. I put a nice dent in my pan (08 3.8) if you have an automatic I would do it as well. As stated above the rock hard skid will cover both and bolts to the frame instead of the engine its self.
 
I added a Rock hard 4x4 oil-transmission skid and transfer case skid to mine when I started to play in rocks. There is a world of difference in the strength of the factory transfer case skid and the Rock hard piece. My oil/trans skid has only a few light scratches, the transfer case has plenty of marks and the gas tank skid is rubbed pretty well, but there aren't any dents in it. My evap skid is the crappy factory unit and it doesn't have a mark on it. Though, I am planning on adding aftermarket gas tank and evap skids. It's cheap insurance. An evap skid is about $100, getting towed home and ruining a day on the trail with damage to that unit is going to be 5-10X times that amount.
 
LeeVanCleef said:
I added a Rock hard 4x4 oil-transmission skid and transfer case skid to mine when I started to play in rocks. There is a world of difference in the strength of the factory transfer case skid and the Rock hard piece. My oil/trans skid has only a few light scratches, the transfer case has plenty of marks and the gas tank skid is rubbed pretty well, but there aren't any dents in it. My evap skid is the crappy factory unit and it doesn't have a mark on it. Though, I am planning on adding aftermarket gas tank and evap skids. It's cheap insurance. An evap skid is about $100, getting towed home and ruining a day on the trail with damage to that unit is going to be 5-10X times that amount.
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Towed home? I think you will get a check engine light but that's about it. Correct me if I'm wrong though. I think it is much more than $100 to replace it though which makes it worthwhile to have the skid.
 
A.J. said:
Towed home? I think you will get a check engine light but that's about it. Correct me if I'm wrong though. I think it is much more than $100 to replace it though which makes it worthwhile to have the skid.
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It hasn't happened to me, so I can't say for sure.

What I was told is that you get the light and the computer puts the jeep into some sort of "crippled" mode. It makes it impossible to take the jeep over 10mph until the problem is corrected. This is from someone I wheel with who yanked a hose off the unit in the field. He was able to limp back to the parking area and do a good inspection. When he located the hose, he was able to reconnect it and the problem resolved itself. There was no way he was going to be able to drive 80 miles home in the reduced mode, hence the need for on site action or a tow truck.

I'm going to be installing the poison spider evap skid on mine as I like the sides better on their unit than the Rock Hard piece.
 
Eezybreezy08 said:
Yes sir, I have an 08 2dr manual
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As others have mentioned, you're good to go with just the factory skids especially being that you have a manual. As far as the EVAP goes, I have knocked mine off of Moby no less than 4 times and only had to replace it once. You will get a check engine light if you do get it knocked off but that's it. You won't need to get towed home. If anything, relocating it is what I would recommend being that an 08 won't have a factory skid. Of course, I never wheel my Jeeps so you can take what I recommend for what it's worth.
 
wayoflife said:
As others have mentioned, you're good to go with just the factory skids especially being that you have a manual. As far as the EVAP goes, I have knocked mine off of Moby no less than 4 times and only had to replace it once. You will get a check engine light if you do get it knocked off but that's it. You won't need to get towed home. If anything, relocating it is what I would recommend being that an 08 won't have a factory skid. Of course, I never wheel my Jeeps so you can take what I recommend for what it's worth.
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Hahahaha love the sarcasm!
 
I have a 2012 manual, so may be a bit different but I installed the Evo Protek system, while i have yet to scratch it up I likely will at some point, with the more aggressive trails I do. Having said that I don't know that it is necessary to have as the factory skids are good and it just adds more skids to other components. I have it for protection and piece of mind it nothing else. if you are concerned about getting things all dinged up and getting stranded then put some armor on there, if not im sure you'll be fine too. Anything can happen regardless of what you have under there protecting everything.
 
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