So are skid plates and underbody protection pretty much a necessity?

[JDS086]

Hey everyone I have a question as far as vehicle protection goes. Basically I want to start going for little "adventures" haha with my 2 kids on the weekends just to go out and explore some trails and stuff but the wife is worried about me getting stuck with them out there lol. I keep saying I am going to get out there and never do so finally I am like you know, this year we are gonna go out and do it especially now that this Florida weather will be cooling down for some camping action. But my problem is I cant find aftermarket gear for my 06 trailblazer and I wanted to invest in some skid plates to protect the essentials under the truck but man I cant find anything. Im not going serious offroading or anything just want to ride and explore trails but would really hate to damage something and be stuck. What are ya'lls thoughts on this? Just wanted to hear from others that have already been doing this as nobody I know is into overlanding or trail riding for that matter. Sorry for the rant though haha. Also the trailblazer is lifted 2.5 inches with Bilstein 5100's and has some 265/70/r16 Falken Wildpeaks and Bora 1.5 spacers on it so it isnt exactly stock but still dont know what its capable of...yet lol. Thanks ya'll!

 

[smritte]

Skids are nice. If your vehicle came with some lower oil pan/trans pan "cover" your fine until you start going to harder places. Beside driving over big rocks and log's, flipping something up underneath the vehicle is where they come in handy. On my cruiser, I only have the basic one that came stock. It covers part of the transfer case only. My older S-10 Blazer had the factory composite skid forever and my TJ had a 1/4 plate that covered most of the underneath. The difference between all of those vehicles was where I drove.
Adding in full coverage skids to my Cruiser will happen one day but its not a priority right now. I just use it for exploring and camping, not rock crawling.

 

[naysjp]

My first Jeep was skidded out. Anything that held fluid had a skid on it. I looked at it as cheap insurance. I changed the stock gastank stick with a Warn aftermarket one. I had a skid for the oilman, then moved to a skid by skid row that covered the tranny pan and oilman. I had a steering box skid. radiator skid. My first Jeep was a TJ. I am working on a skid system for my JKU. I did skids, then a lift, OBA then larger tires. That was my priority.

 

[M Rose]

Hey everyone I have a question as far as vehicle protection goes. Basically I want to start going for little "adventures" haha with my 2 kids on the weekends just to go out and explore some trails and stuff but the wife is worried about me getting stuck with them out there lol. I keep saying I am going to get out there and never do so finally I am like you know, this year we are gonna go out and do it especially now that this Florida weather will be cooling down for some camping action. But my problem is I cant find aftermarket gear for my 06 trailblazer and I wanted to invest in some skid plates to protect the essentials under the truck but man I cant find anything. Im not going serious offroading or anything just want to ride and explore trails but would really hate to damage something and be stuck. What are ya'lls thoughts on this? Just wanted to hear from others that have already been doing this as nobody I know is into overlanding or trail riding for that matter. Sorry for the rant though haha. Also the trailblazer is lifted 2.5 inches with Bilstein 5100's and has some 265/70/r16 Falken Wildpeaks and Bora 1.5 spacers on it so it isnt exactly stock but still dont know what its capable of...yet lol. Thanks ya'll!

I had ‘07 TB it had skids under the engine and transfer case. I think it also had a small skid on the transmission, although I don’t remember for sure... I just remembered the engine and t-case for sure because I temper how much of a pain it was to take them off when doing an oil change and servicing the drive lines.
So if you don’t have skids, check the junk yards for the factory skid plates for the 02-08 Chevy Trailblazers. They were a factory option.

 

[Dlnuckolls]

I agree with other here, skids are great but no entirely a requirement. If you are cautious and pay attention, you can avoid places where they are really needed.

As you upgrade you rig, they can be added; especially as your adventures grow!

 

[JDS086]

Thanks for the reply's guys I appreciate the feedback. I actually do have the factory plastic under the oil pan and stuff but that's pretty much it. Bottom of radiator is exposed which I would like to keep protected if possible. But yea your right as far as just paying attention im sure I will know if im driving into something that's sketchy or not. I don't want to invest too much into custom metal skids or anything as I will be getting into something newer in January most likely a 4runner but still want to protect what I can for now. Considering investing into a bull bar type of set up for the front in hopes that if the front takes a dip it will catch the bottom of that and not the bottom of the radiator lol but i will look into it more. Thanks again everyone.

 

[JDGreens]

I've been wheeling my rig without skid plates for 5 years, knock on wood. I've been fine. Going out Sunday, (I have started venturing solo now as well) I have some skidplates in the works but have some serious modifications I need to do before I install the t-case and Gas tank skid, and rock rails. Someday I'll get there, but I won't let it deter me from getting out. Just not going to go were the terrain is above my rigs pay grade.

Tire placement is key. When in doubt, get out, and servay your path. And it helps to go with someone else. Especially for your first couple trips. After that us your head and don't take unnecessary risks if you go alone.

 

[Billiebob]

Neccessary, No.

If you are pretty much on roads, trails, cart tracks, you can do it safely in a Tempo with tempered driving.
With 2 kids on the weekend...... I'd hope you are not going over the top on the places you want to explore.
Judgement is =more important than protection. If you just say No. you won't need a condom.

ps, we did this stuff in a 1990 Honda Accord wagon, never needed skid plates, often travelled remote mountain cart tracks along lakes and dtove to forestry look out towers. And I often straddled the rut, rather than keeping the tires in the rut. Driving smart is pretty easy.

Make it about the kids, not the toys.

 

[rgallant]

Yup I am with @Billiebob on this, if you have the cash buy them but necessary not at all. I never bothered and in 10 years have no damage to the under carriage. Trails and overlanding are not generally the same as rock crawling or technical trail driving, the last 2 pretty much require skids along with a lot of other stuff.

Take your time watch your speed and get out and look and most importantly use your brain.

 

[MMc]

For a couple of months you’ll be fine. I did punch a oil pan years ago. I was close to the beach in Baja. Found a piece of drift wood, carved it down to fit the hole, beat it in with a hammer. Washed it with gas and put silicone over the mess. Added the oil and camped for the weekend with a pan under it in cased it leaked. Drove home and around for a couple of weeks without a drop.

 

[Dusther210]

Skid plates were the first upgrade done to my truck. The day before they arrived a piece of metal road debris just missed my oil pan. After installing them my wife and I decided to go on a scenic drive on a mountain not too far away. Found a neat trail and went exploring, somewhere along that trail we missed the sign saying we got in over our head. We both believe the reason we made it out was divine intervention and those skid plates.

I will have to say if I was a bit more cautious, a bit smarter and not so adventurous we wouldn’t have needed those skid plates.

But we have slept so well every night since we put those on

 

[JDS086]

Appreciate it fellas. I wont be going anywhere crazy at all especially with my 2 boys alone lol I just want to get them out there and just do some exploring and maybe we can spot some good places to camp in the future while we are out. Sooner or later as I progress or if I get with a group I would like to do more challenging fun trail stuff but fow now I just want to be safe and get them out. Again, I really appreciate everyones feedback and opinions.

 

[reaver]

I wheeled an 04 colorado for a couple of years. There was a group day trip I went on, where I got really lucky. I ended up getting a rock wedged up between the transfer case, and rear cross member. I bought skid plates after that.

They saved my bacon on another trip where we spent the vast majority of a day in 4lo,crawling over rocks (that trip ultimately destroyed my steering rack as well, but that wasn't due to the skid plates).

The problem with the colorado (and I'm assuming the trailblazer is similar, as they're built on the same platform), is how many bits hang below the frame. This means they're exposed, and prone to more damage.

By contrast, my 03 xterra, once you get past the oil pan, everything is tucked up, and nothing hangs down, so unless I come down on a rock, the frame and crossmembers will push things out of the way more often than not.

But it's a judgement call. If you want them for peace of mind, and can't find them online, talk to a local fabricator. They're probably going to be pretty easy to make.

 

[Kent R]

On my current JKUR I only have the factory skids and they have done me well on some of the hardest trails in the Sierras. Are aftermarket skits necessary no! it all depends on where you go and you skill level. But they do take the worry out of having that one rock or branch that jumps up and bites you.
A couple of years ago we had a member with a brand new JKUR on our adopted trail during a cleanup, he was driving on an area that was very easy but had lots of downed branches. Sometime during the day a branch got wedged up next to the transmission and took out the cooling line, we did get him off the trail but it was a huge hassle to cleanup the mess.
Should I put skids on? Yes, but I probably won't.

 

[USStrongman]

It all depends on the terrain you frequent to determine their importance. When I go to my cabin, in New Mexico, Ouray/Silverton. Moab... skids become an important tool. All those areas I go off grid often have rocks 4-18" in diameter. My JKU has these skids as peace of mind when I travel.

Jeep Wrangler JK Front Bumper Skid Plate | AEV

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JK Slider - Rear Differential Skid Plate | AEV

Protect your lower CV joint with this 1/4″ steel JK slider from AEV. This rear differential skid plate is designed for smooth transition off of rocks and snags.

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2007-2018 Jeep Wrangler JK Differential Cover | AEV

Upgrade your Jeep Wrangler JK with our differential cover to get the protection and performance you need today! It is designed for optimal performance.

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Rancho Performance Front Differential Glide Plate Dana 44 Red

Differential Glide Plate

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[M Rose]

Thanks for the reply's guys I appreciate the feedback. I actually do have the factory plastic under the oil pan and stuff but that's pretty much it. Bottom of radiator is exposed which I would like to keep protected if possible.

The Off-road Skid Package I was talking about was 1/8” plate steel. Not plastic skid plates, but actual metal skids. I’ve hit them pretty hard on some knarly rocks and gouged them a couple of times pretty deep, but they didn’t bend, nor did the aluminum transmission or transfer case take any damage.
Check your junkyards. The skids should be less than $100 for all of them. I know that my junkyard has them, but shipping to you would be outrages and cheaper to have a custom welding shop fabricate them than the shipping costs would be for me.

As @reaver suggested, there were a few things that hung below the frame that I had to re-engineer for better clearance. But overall with correct tire placement nothing to concerning.

 

[the_rockies]

I've been offroading for a little over a year with no skid plates and never had any problems. I always ride with at least a passenger if not another vehicle for potential recoveries but never have had any problems with rocks puncturing anything on the undercarriage. Best advice, pick the best line you can and if you're not completely confident in something, DON'T DO IT. It's not worth trying to limp a vehicle home after a weekend of offroading because you thought it would be cool to reach somewhere on a trail that you definitely shouldn't be. Also, as you're going up a trail, if it's a one-way trail make sure that your vehicle can make it down without getting damaged, some trails are a lot more difficult going down as opposed to up.

 

[Dilldog]

I have taken my 05 Ford Escape quite a few places, it has fuel lines and such hanging out in the open. Just know your rig and don't be afraid to get out and look or turn around.

 

[Alanymarce]

I've been wheeling my rig without skid plates for 5 years, knock on wood. I've been fine. Going out Sunday, (I have started venturing solo now as well) I have some skidplates in the works but have some serious modifications I need to do before I install the t-case and Gas tank skid, and rock rails. Someday I'll get there, but I won't let it deter me from getting out. Just not going to go were the terrain is above my rigs pay grade.

Tire placement is key. When in doubt, get out, and servay your path. And it helps to go with someone else. Especially for your first couple trips. After that us your head and don't take unnecessary risks if you go alone.

I agree - I've travelled a lot of "difficult" tracks for many years - Malaysia, Botswana, Congo, Algeria, Perú, Bolivia, Argentina, Brazil, RSA, Namibia, Zambia, Tanzania, Kenya, Australia... - I've never had skid plates and have never had any damage (once put a small dent in the sump pan, but no problem). I wouldn't bother. An unnecessary expense, which also adds weight (the lighter good ones are even more expensive). TO paraphrase JDGreens - look where you're going and drive with care.

 

[diabetiktaco]

My thinking on anything like this is..It's only overkill, until it isn't.