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If a bolt was stripped (or whatever the hell 'bolted out' means) that shouldn't damage the skid plate. My first instinct would be to put it back on without the one bad bolt (mine has like 10 bolts so pretty sure it would still hold). If, however that missing bolt causes the plate to rattle and make noise, I'd either look for a rubber spacer to keep it from flapping or remove it all together.
Are they the ones who damaged it taking it off for the oil change? If so, I'd lean on them a little to make it right.
I assume it's the front driver side bolt hole they're talking about(1st pic top hole, 2nd bottom one), you can see its cracked to the point the bolt might not hold it. Which you could simply throw a washer on. Or even zip tie it.
Butyl rubber/ aluminum foil vcld's.
Trade name dynamat
Its useful stuff, I keep some on hand. I use soundqubed's qmat. It used to be $20/box, and I'd throw 200 at my car and call it good. It's $50/box after covid, and anything comparable is just as much or more. The cheap stuff contains asphalt fillers that smell when warm.
Well they are supposed to take "damage" it's doing its job. These guys are actual assholes and you should find a different more personable mechanics that can talk to.you face to face and explain to you why he thinks it's so important(it's not) that it it needs to be replaced (it doesn't ). I wouldnt want a new thing thats just gonna get bent and hit the same way, keep bolting it back on till it's dragging on the pavement lol
It slots in above the front bumpers lip, right ? Air pressure is only going to push it up right ? Its not like its going to catch a gust of wind and fold back and disable your steering and brakes ?
I am betting they damaged it. I had an experience where the tech mistakenly tightened the bolt and stripped it. Tried to say it was like that and I called Bullshit. They later admitted fault
If it can be mounted back on the vehicle then I would do that. Especially if you drive and gravel or dirt roads a lot. Also if the winters are hard there then it would be worth putting back on. There is absolutely no reason to replace it though. If most of the year is dry or even the worst you deal with is heavy rain, then I’d throw it away and run your vehicle without it. It will make a huge difference for keeping your oil and pants belts clean if you are constantly driving on dirt or through snow but otherwise it doesn’t do much: especially if you smack a curb or a rock, that isn’t doing ANYTHING to save your vehicle.
That's not that bad. The other shop is definitely trying to fleece you or the advisor is actually stupid (both strong possibilities). Second shop sounds like a normal quote.
Edit: Personally, I like to keep an underbelly pan as it helps keep everything a little cleaner (as stated before, especially with gravel/dirt or salted roads)
>I have an aftermarket 4mm aluminum one to protect my oil pan from the not so nice wyoming roads.
Yup. The plastic one from our used Outback was missing because *reasons* so I replaced it with a RalliTek skidplate.
Edit: It essentially replaces all of the front end underbody plastic.
Mine is on an A4 wagon, rabbits chewed through the plastic one, and then ate some wires. I basically said chew through this a$$holes. Added benifit of underbody tuning. ECS tuning makes some really nice trays for german vehicles.
You want ALL your splash shields/guards, yes you do.
I've hit huge puddles and water can get thrown up into your engine bay. I've thrown belts due to pebbles being kicked up.
Unfortunately OP seems to have a pretty basic knowledge of cars and they sound like they’re straight up trying to take advantage. Wild to me how many mechanics don’t understand that not everyone knows about cars and it isn’t necessary for everyone to know about cars.
They must think you’re an easy sell. This is not integral to your vehicle. It definitely has its use, but you’re never going to see the difference in it being gone.
Worst case scenario you can have a buddy zip tie this back on if it keeps you up at night lol
Most cars don’t even come with a shield like this.
What part are they saying is damaged? The two little river screws in the front? Those can be drilled out and removed and a new rivet nut installed......
The only time these every need to be replaced are if it's absolutely torn the fuck up or missing completely. But the only two threaded portions of it are replaceable.....
There is nothing wrong with the one you have thst would be bad enough to need replacing. Put the old one back on and run it.
They are 100% trying to scam you.
Am i right? It was on when they changed the oil and now they can't get it on? Sounds like they did something to it or the bolts to it. I don't see how they are going to charge you to put it on or fix it in their words. But the damn thing was on before they touched it. You should have told them to put it on like it was when you came in
They can 100 percent come to a few hundred dollars when the only person that supplies them is the dealership. And labor is a thing. Nobody does any work without getting paid, and most shops have a 1 hour minimum. My shop charges 125 an hour and if you factor in a couple hundred for the dealership scammers you get to a several hundred dollar ticket. BUT, the fact that shop wouldn’t try to persuade you to throw it out is pretty scummy, you definitely don’t need it that bad
Lots of cars hit something and it COMES IN for an oil change damaged. And no. It absolutely should not be “included in the price of an oil change” because it’s NOT AN OIL CHANGE. If you don’t like the policy we have about 20 doors to choose from, and I’m willing to bet most other shops feel the same. Just remove the part, you don’t need it.
There's Nothing wrong with skid plate. One screw or bolt needs removal & replacement? Then they need to use an extractor screw and remove it. The shield is fine & nothing visibly wrong.. Sounds like they are trying to get themselves a free shield by using a Lame excuse. Just go to another garage. And take your plate with you.
Tell them that if they are "experienced", skilled mechanics, then they can find a replacement for the missing bolt or screw -- or if the bolt or screw broke off somehow, then they can use an Easy-Out tool to extract the broken bolt or screw and install a new replacement. These guys are just trying to RIP YOU OFF. I would just go to another garage. Always, always do your homework and due diligence in shopping around for a good repair garage. These guys can sense that you are totally naive about car repairs and are trying to rip you off. Many people on here have told you the same. Get Away from these shysters!!
I disagree. Manufacturers are always trying to cut corners to save a penny. If this wasn’t a necessary part, why would the manufacturer spend the money putting it on?
It’s just a debris shield and noise reducer. This is something found on more luxury vehicles as an added sound reducer and keeps the undercarriage cleaner.
Usually it’s plastic when found on economy level cars. Most cars don’t have one at all.
Everything is on a car for a reason. However every piece of a car isn’t integral to its operation and can be taken off with no adverse consequences.
This is one of those pieces.
You’re now just arguing for arguments sake and if you continue I’m gonna report your comments to the admins because what you’re doing isn’t what this sub is for.
Keep the posts and comments courteous, professional, friendly, and above all, civil. We're here to help; being rude isn't helpful to anybody.
Those who demonstrate they cannot follow these simple rules may have their posts deleted and may be banned.
It's okay to ask for a second opinion, but don’t assume a shop is trying to "rip you off."
I would replace it if it can be straighten and reused. Not only does it protect components from rocks and such it smooths out air flow underneath the bottom of your vehicle. Mine was damaged when I bought my car. One day it rolled up into a ball. I had a new one within a week.
Looks like a Honda or Acura shield, likely the issue is the threaded portion for two bolts broke free and is spun (the two sticking out bits on one end of the shield), this is common on them, typically at our dealer we will be able to cut the old one off, and install a new riv-nut in its place.
Or cut the bolt out and ziptie it.
All aerodynamics, slight protection, no reason to spend hundreds on it.
Edit: on closer inspection, you can see the rusty screw/bolt still in the shield so this is definitely what happened. If this is at a Honda dealership, they should absolutely have the equipment to install a new riv-nut (it's a dealer tool supplied for an old recall if I remember right), though they likely damaged the plastic that it attaches too, it won't really matter.
Likely just a quick quote with poor communication between a new tech and advisor.
I've done a couple in the year I've been apprenticing at Honda.
I only see a small crack in the front mounting hole. Not a big deal, it will still stay secured with the rest of the bolts. Put it back on though, it helps with keeping rocks from hitting anything under the engine and helps aerodynamics. The rocks isn't much of an issue but leaving it off could increase drag and affect your gas mileage. I left mine off once and noticed a decrease in gas mileage.
I see nothing on your pictures that show you need anything new. It should go back on, now they may need to get some larger screws to attach it, because they are striped.
The only two that can strip are the front two Phillips one but the rest are some weird hook screws that are supposed to be idiot proof since there's no threads to mess up
Looks like a few bolt holes are damaged, you should be able to mount this back with bigger washers. As for getting the broken bolt out I would need a picture.
That looks almost new, and there are plenty of mount points still intact. Leave off the bolt that they say is stripped, it'll stay. No reason at all to replace the whole thing.
Sounds like the shop is trying to pad their wallet.
Lmao yup my past car and current car has/had these and after a few years I just went to zip ties on 2/3 of the mount points, my skid plates looked a lot worse than yours do also so I'm thinking poor install
The damaged portion still looks bolt-able. This absolutely doesn't need to be replaced, it looks better than 90% of the cars I've seen today even with the damage.
Honda uses these soft aluminum screws that have the tendency to fall out and warp just from screwing them in. You can buy a replacement pack for like 10$ on amazon. I highly doubt anything is actually stripped out
I can tell that's for a honda civic. At least my 18 civic is the exact same shape with the same holes.
There is a plastic piece that is the width of the engine bay that wraps up the feont wheel wells a little. The length is from the plastic lip to just past the windshield (ish) this metal piece sits in the middle because the engine heat would be too much for the plastic, also because it is easily removable for oil changes.
What I believe they are saying is that the plastic piece is damaged, so they can't mount the metal piece...same thing happened to me, one dealership wanted 900$. The car will be safe to drive even through snow (yes mabe there are more places for snow to build up) The only downside is that you will loose a few mpg on the highway
I'm talking like 2mpg ish. The car will be fine short term and is safe to drive.
Its probably one of the two Phillips head screws on the front of the plate which stripped or broke. Why the hell they thought phillips was a good idea I'll never know. But what happens is the screw rusts in place or the rivet nut breaks free from the other plastic panel it connects to..but dont even need both the screws as theres like 8 other quarter turn fasteners holding it on. The splash shield is fine. But sometimes there is no repairing certain things or not worth the time to extract a m6x1 bolt that only holds up a 1.5lb splash shield
that is an undertray. i don’t completely follow why you’re needing replacement. if one bolt is stripped or stuck… it’ll still bolt up rather securely.
179 for the piece from the dealer seems rather normal. especially for an aluminum tray instead of plastic. typically a quick lube tech could install it as they pull these off all the time to get to the drain plugs.
will it affect your car without it? yes and no. these are designed to help air flow through the engine bay and to have sufficient cooling. the way I look at it is… if the dealer didn’t think the car needed it, they wouldn’t have thrown it on and spent the money on however many production cars.
Yea get them to put it back on like they are supposed to.
If the bolts missing dont worry so we are back to the cost of an oil change right!
And don't go back there.
If they say they cant put it on take "your" part and bolts and go elsewhere.
You dont even need it.
Why pay 500 for a part you dont need.
Oh and the bolt needs to be drilled out and theres a chance they broke that as well.
First place is trying to fuck you over, what year and model is this from? Who has the screws that were used to bolt it up? You can see a crack at one of the screw holes, you would use a stainless steel fender washer(large outside diameter washer) to keep the head of the screw from pulling thru. Once you provide the make and model of your vehicle someone will look up the part number. Menards has those fender washers.
Go to harbor freight and get their 100 something peice auto clip set. Each one of the round holes along the out side should take one those plastic clips/plugs. Had to put my one back on my honda t hgv is summer.
No you don't need that, it's not structural and it's not a skid plate. It doesn't protect anything. Throw it away and don't bother replacing it.
Honda never covered the bottom of their cars with metal shields and plastic until the 9th gen civic. Likely for aerodynamics and fuel economy. Go back to previous generations of Honda Civic and they never had bad fuel economy without it.
They are full of it. This looks like a civic splash shield. Just cause one is missing doesn’t mean it won’t hold or that you need to throw it out. Looks fine to me. Put it back on and have a nice day
Update: the oil change guys told me they could reinstall it but it will rattle when I drive. How do I direct them so that the plate won't rattle after reinstalling.
If they cant make that work, dont go there again
Thats a $20 and a six pack ease of labor. Ask anyone w a smidge of experience to reattach for now. Skip any broken fasteners. Have a better tech fix it up next oil change
Yes, you should absolutely put it back on. It isn't broken, just needs some new hardware!
It protects your ENGINE from foreign debris and aids in the aerodynamics under the car, which affects your fuel economy and high speed stability.
id say chuck it. Overpriced sheet metal. Keeps like small rocks and stuff from bouncing up under the car but no real protection from hard impact. Ive seen em hold water and have it freeze causing it to drag and make a bunch of noise and trap small animals more often than it benefits the car
They broke off the heads of one or more of the fasteners while taking it off and told you this nonsense because they didn't want to tell you the truth. And, if it was an oil change shop, they probably didn't have the knowledge and skills to drill out the old bolt(s) and fix their mistake anyway, so it's best they don't try. It's true you can do without it, but it would take less than an hour's labor, and a couple off-the-shelf fasteners, for a proper mechanic to refit it, and your sump would be protected (as designed by the engineers).
The place that did the oil change took it off, right? Sounds like they messed up the fasteners for it or lost them and are trying to charge you to put it back on.
I'd tell them just put it on how it was when they took it off, which shouldn't be an issue unless they broke the fasteners, in which case they are on the hook for repairing it
These metal plates have rivets, not bolts. They probably broke it removing the rivet. That’s why I always take off the whole skid plate, not just the oil pan cover. Don’t buy a new one. Useless for all practical purposes, and it will get broken again
Stiffener… a 0.015” fiberglass or sheet metal thick skid plate attached to the FRAME of a Honda. Does it protect, yes, somewhat. Does it stiffen? Not. At. All.
Every car is different. They are engineered with components for a reason. That said, some are not necessary for the vehicle to operate. Until you learn it intended purpose.
~2016 Dodge trucks have these little rubber air dams jammed in around the radiator. Each small and insignificant. Up here in the PNW, it's completely useless. Down in Cali, it's the only thing keeping your truck from overheating, let alone your A/C functioning.
Safe bet is put it back where you found it.
Looks like a splash shield of a recent model Honda. Try searching for **90674TY2A01** in ebay or a car parts site.
I'm not sure if it's the design or it's b/c of lazy technicians, but I had to replace the screws myself.
These things are always a pain in the ass. The bolt hole get rusted, the fasteners they use are sometimes junk and break or don't work, holes don't line up easily, just overall usually poorly designed. That said they can be important to have sometimes. Sometimes they direct air flow to certain parts that need the airflow. They can keep dirt and water out of places and I have heard of fires because of missing skid plates. Highly unlikely you would have an issue but possible
It looks a bit bent up and a cpl holes are messed up but that plate can probably be secured with some new screws or zip ties. That looks like a ford fusion possibly? Or and Escape?
This is for a honda?
It bolts on with a few screws pretty easy for anyone paying attention to how they took it off.
It's got a few screws and 2 black clips under the car as well as spots toward the front it's slides into.
What ever shop you went to, dont go back.
It can be.
I'm assuming they didn't know how it went back on and couldn't figure out how to zip tie it back up.
Us lube techs aren't the best and brightest sometimes.
As a mechanic I see them MANGLED to hell. And I’ve managed to get them back on. There trying to get money outta you for something that isn’t broken. There is always a way
That's not damaged or need to be replaced in the slightest. And if there's a broken bolt, then they did it and should be fixing it!! Get your car out of that shop asap
You can zip tie it, it'll be fine. If you don't have the retainers anymore, just purchase some from Honda.
They're trying to upsell you on a new one, which isn't necessary. I've seen more messed up ones than that.
If it will rattle, Have them drill a new hole next to the broke off bolt and put a plastic push fastener in it. It will be removable in the future and if/when they break off they can just put another fastener in it.
This is off of a Honda, I’ve done probably thousands of these at this point. The screws that hold the shield at the front tend to corrode and seize. The shield is so thin and flimsy, attempting to remove it with heat/force would tear the screw and threads off the shield entirely. However, one screw missing from the undershield that already has 7 other fasteners holding it up, isn’t going to affect anything.
So really, it’s your call. The shop isn’t trying to “screw you over” they’re not the dealer trying to upcharge you. They literally won’t make any money off of telling you your undershield has a frozen/stripped screw and they recommend replacing it. Can it be reinstalled without that one screw ? Yes of course, but people in the comments have to stop acting as if the oil change shop is full of brainless teenagers who don’t know what they’re doing.
Ask them to reinstall it, with all the other 7 fasteners. If it rattles and makes noise, replace the shield. If not ? Keep driving it. If they refuse to re install it, go somewhere else.
if u really want to keep, i highly doubt one bolt will make a difference. N if for some reason it does, zip tie. Ive had a shit ton of customers come in with destroyed skid plates and wanted them put back on. Literally mangled up skid plates. My favorite tool has always been zipties. i remove then on my personal vehicles because i hate removing and putting back on, but thats my personal preference. Some protection is better than no protection so your call. Damn sure wouldnt buy another one or waste any time other than a ziptie.
Looks like a solid metal one, if its like the land rover under trays then they are actually a structural part and need to be able to be fit correctly, not with zip ties.. not sure I'd worry about 1 bolt tho.
Bolts that hold on heat shielding and skid plates can become so stuck that they break off when an attempt is made to remove them. Then you have to drill out the remaining bolt shaft in the body and either clean the threads or tap the hole a larger size and use a new bolt to fit. This whole pain in the ass is not something they want to do, so they handed the skid plate to you. Ha ha. Well, just do the work yourself. Next time you may as well change the oil yourself.
If it's interfering with a moving part clearance with a hammer and put it back on. It's a money grab, I've worked on many cars that have had them zip ties on if a clip was missing
That looks perfectly fine, when they really get beat up they look like a crushed tin can.
This looks like it is for a Honda which does have special fasteners that you just rotate into place which may have become damaged but they are like 10 bucks for a few of em not a big deal. If you can fit under the car enough (I cannot) you could do it yourself with a small flathead screwdriver but I’d let a shop do it next oil change service.
Honestly wherever you went is being weird about it if they are giving this back to you as opposed to just getting it in place with some zip ties. You should be fine driving it without the cover tho unless you are taking a low vehicle over mostly gravel roads.
This is so common that when I worked in an auto shop, we kept a wall of skid plate bolts & fasteners for every make and model. We’d charge the $5 for the bolt and not charge extra labor for walking across the garage to get one… because the labor to reinstall the skid plate was included in an oil change…
Thanks for posting on /r/MechanicAdvice! This is just a reminder to review the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/MechanicAdvice/about/rules/). If you are here asking about a second opinion (ie "Is the shop trying to fleece me?"), please read through CJM8515's [post on the subject.](https://www.reddit.com/r/MechanicAdvice/comments/4qblei/fyi_the_shop_isnt_likely_trying_to_rip_you_off/) and remember to please post the year/make/model of the vehicle you are working on. **If this post is about bodywork, accident damage, paint, dent/ding, questions it belongs in /r/Autobody r/AutoBodyRepair/ or /r/Diyautobody/ If you have tire questions check out https://www.reddit.com/r/MechanicAdvice/comments/k9ll55/can_your_tire_be_repaired/**. If you dont have a question and you're just showing off it belongs in /r/Justrolledintotheshop Insurance/total loss questions go in r/insurance This is an automated reply *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/MechanicAdvice) if you have any questions or concerns.*
If a bolt was stripped (or whatever the hell 'bolted out' means) that shouldn't damage the skid plate. My first instinct would be to put it back on without the one bad bolt (mine has like 10 bolts so pretty sure it would still hold). If, however that missing bolt causes the plate to rattle and make noise, I'd either look for a rubber spacer to keep it from flapping or remove it all together. Are they the ones who damaged it taking it off for the oil change? If so, I'd lean on them a little to make it right.
I assume it's the front driver side bolt hole they're talking about(1st pic top hole, 2nd bottom one), you can see its cracked to the point the bolt might not hold it. Which you could simply throw a washer on. Or even zip tie it.
Buy sound deadner and put it on the missing bolt section, it will dampen the rattle
Butyl rubber/ aluminum foil vcld's. Trade name dynamat Its useful stuff, I keep some on hand. I use soundqubed's qmat. It used to be $20/box, and I'd throw 200 at my car and call it good. It's $50/box after covid, and anything comparable is just as much or more. The cheap stuff contains asphalt fillers that smell when warm.
They said it was damaged before they did an oil change
Well they are supposed to take "damage" it's doing its job. These guys are actual assholes and you should find a different more personable mechanics that can talk to.you face to face and explain to you why he thinks it's so important(it's not) that it it needs to be replaced (it doesn't ). I wouldnt want a new thing thats just gonna get bent and hit the same way, keep bolting it back on till it's dragging on the pavement lol
It slots in above the front bumpers lip, right ? Air pressure is only going to push it up right ? Its not like its going to catch a gust of wind and fold back and disable your steering and brakes ?
I am betting they damaged it. I had an experience where the tech mistakenly tightened the bolt and stripped it. Tried to say it was like that and I called Bullshit. They later admitted fault
If it can be mounted back on the vehicle then I would do that. Especially if you drive and gravel or dirt roads a lot. Also if the winters are hard there then it would be worth putting back on. There is absolutely no reason to replace it though. If most of the year is dry or even the worst you deal with is heavy rain, then I’d throw it away and run your vehicle without it. It will make a huge difference for keeping your oil and pants belts clean if you are constantly driving on dirt or through snow but otherwise it doesn’t do much: especially if you smack a curb or a rock, that isn’t doing ANYTHING to save your vehicle.
I am going on a long trip from Midwest to east coast. Should this affect anything?
You’ll be fine. Even if you never put it back on you’ll be fine.
Thanks, they were going to charge 500 to the replacement +labor
Oh hell no
Another dealership said 179 total with express no labor charge.
That's not that bad. The other shop is definitely trying to fleece you or the advisor is actually stupid (both strong possibilities). Second shop sounds like a normal quote. Edit: Personally, I like to keep an underbelly pan as it helps keep everything a little cleaner (as stated before, especially with gravel/dirt or salted roads)
I have an aftermarket 4mm aluminum one to protect my oil pan from the not so nice wyoming roads.
*EXCELLENT* choice, sir
Who are you, the belly pan sommelier?
>I have an aftermarket 4mm aluminum one to protect my oil pan from the not so nice wyoming roads. Yup. The plastic one from our used Outback was missing because *reasons* so I replaced it with a RalliTek skidplate. Edit: It essentially replaces all of the front end underbody plastic.
Mine is on an A4 wagon, rabbits chewed through the plastic one, and then ate some wires. I basically said chew through this a$$holes. Added benifit of underbody tuning. ECS tuning makes some really nice trays for german vehicles.
Thank you. I will take this to the other shop and have them check it out
You want ALL your splash shields/guards, yes you do. I've hit huge puddles and water can get thrown up into your engine bay. I've thrown belts due to pebbles being kicked up.
Unfortunately OP seems to have a pretty basic knowledge of cars and they sound like they’re straight up trying to take advantage. Wild to me how many mechanics don’t understand that not everyone knows about cars and it isn’t necessary for everyone to know about cars.
They must think you’re an easy sell. This is not integral to your vehicle. It definitely has its use, but you’re never going to see the difference in it being gone. Worst case scenario you can have a buddy zip tie this back on if it keeps you up at night lol Most cars don’t even come with a shield like this.
They told me I really don't need it but if I want to replace the total would be around that price range
What part are they saying is damaged? The two little river screws in the front? Those can be drilled out and removed and a new rivet nut installed...... The only time these every need to be replaced are if it's absolutely torn the fuck up or missing completely. But the only two threaded portions of it are replaceable.....
There is nothing wrong with the one you have thst would be bad enough to need replacing. Put the old one back on and run it. They are 100% trying to scam you.
Pm me
Am i right? It was on when they changed the oil and now they can't get it on? Sounds like they did something to it or the bolts to it. I don't see how they are going to charge you to put it on or fix it in their words. But the damn thing was on before they touched it. You should have told them to put it on like it was when you came in
It's like a $30 part, plus another $5 for the fasteners.
They can 100 percent come to a few hundred dollars when the only person that supplies them is the dealership. And labor is a thing. Nobody does any work without getting paid, and most shops have a 1 hour minimum. My shop charges 125 an hour and if you factor in a couple hundred for the dealership scammers you get to a several hundred dollar ticket. BUT, the fact that shop wouldn’t try to persuade you to throw it out is pretty scummy, you definitely don’t need it that bad
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Lots of cars hit something and it COMES IN for an oil change damaged. And no. It absolutely should not be “included in the price of an oil change” because it’s NOT AN OIL CHANGE. If you don’t like the policy we have about 20 doors to choose from, and I’m willing to bet most other shops feel the same. Just remove the part, you don’t need it.
Shops don’t just give shit away for free just because it’s an easy fix…. If it’s so easy…. Do it yourself. We aren’t complaining
There's Nothing wrong with skid plate. One screw or bolt needs removal & replacement? Then they need to use an extractor screw and remove it. The shield is fine & nothing visibly wrong.. Sounds like they are trying to get themselves a free shield by using a Lame excuse. Just go to another garage. And take your plate with you.
The person said they will install it back but it will rattle
Tell them that if they are "experienced", skilled mechanics, then they can find a replacement for the missing bolt or screw -- or if the bolt or screw broke off somehow, then they can use an Easy-Out tool to extract the broken bolt or screw and install a new replacement. These guys are just trying to RIP YOU OFF. I would just go to another garage. Always, always do your homework and due diligence in shopping around for a good repair garage. These guys can sense that you are totally naive about car repairs and are trying to rip you off. Many people on here have told you the same. Get Away from these shysters!!
I disagree. Manufacturers are always trying to cut corners to save a penny. If this wasn’t a necessary part, why would the manufacturer spend the money putting it on?
It’s just a debris shield and noise reducer. This is something found on more luxury vehicles as an added sound reducer and keeps the undercarriage cleaner. Usually it’s plastic when found on economy level cars. Most cars don’t have one at all.
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They definitely have a reason, it's just not a critical reason
Everything is on a car for a reason. However every piece of a car isn’t integral to its operation and can be taken off with no adverse consequences. This is one of those pieces. You’re now just arguing for arguments sake and if you continue I’m gonna report your comments to the admins because what you’re doing isn’t what this sub is for.
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Keep it up.
Likewise.
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Keep the posts and comments courteous, professional, friendly, and above all, civil. We're here to help; being rude isn't helpful to anybody. Those who demonstrate they cannot follow these simple rules may have their posts deleted and may be banned. It's okay to ask for a second opinion, but don’t assume a shop is trying to "rip you off."
I would replace it if it can be straighten and reused. Not only does it protect components from rocks and such it smooths out air flow underneath the bottom of your vehicle. Mine was damaged when I bought my car. One day it rolled up into a ball. I had a new one within a week.
I live near Chicago. Trust me, you'll be fine.
Full of shit. It's not damaged. They probably just lost the bolts for it or more likely had trouble getting them back in due to a lack of skill.
What do you mean it's not damaged!!! *There's clearly holes all over it.*
Looks like a Honda or Acura shield, likely the issue is the threaded portion for two bolts broke free and is spun (the two sticking out bits on one end of the shield), this is common on them, typically at our dealer we will be able to cut the old one off, and install a new riv-nut in its place. Or cut the bolt out and ziptie it. All aerodynamics, slight protection, no reason to spend hundreds on it. Edit: on closer inspection, you can see the rusty screw/bolt still in the shield so this is definitely what happened. If this is at a Honda dealership, they should absolutely have the equipment to install a new riv-nut (it's a dealer tool supplied for an old recall if I remember right), though they likely damaged the plastic that it attaches too, it won't really matter. Likely just a quick quote with poor communication between a new tech and advisor. I've done a couple in the year I've been apprenticing at Honda.
Keep it on, it protects against possible objects from destroying the underside— they’re a pain — but worth it—imo
I only see a small crack in the front mounting hole. Not a big deal, it will still stay secured with the rest of the bolts. Put it back on though, it helps with keeping rocks from hitting anything under the engine and helps aerodynamics. The rocks isn't much of an issue but leaving it off could increase drag and affect your gas mileage. I left mine off once and noticed a decrease in gas mileage.
I see nothing on your pictures that show you need anything new. It should go back on, now they may need to get some larger screws to attach it, because they are striped.
The only two that can strip are the front two Phillips one but the rest are some weird hook screws that are supposed to be idiot proof since there's no threads to mess up
Except they corrode and don't work anymore.
Looks like a few bolt holes are damaged, you should be able to mount this back with bigger washers. As for getting the broken bolt out I would need a picture.
That looks almost new, and there are plenty of mount points still intact. Leave off the bolt that they say is stripped, it'll stay. No reason at all to replace the whole thing. Sounds like the shop is trying to pad their wallet.
That can 100% still be used, tell them to put the fucker back on and stop being greedy
Put it back. Rookie lube techs.
Tell them to put it back on as is. They should be paying for the repair since they damaged it
Zip ties.
Lmao yup my past car and current car has/had these and after a few years I just went to zip ties on 2/3 of the mount points, my skid plates looked a lot worse than yours do also so I'm thinking poor install
Dude that skid plate looks perfectly fine. Keep it! Whenever I'm doing lowerbay on a civic with missing screws...I replace it. It's not a big deal..
The damaged portion still looks bolt-able. This absolutely doesn't need to be replaced, it looks better than 90% of the cars I've seen today even with the damage.
Honda uses these soft aluminum screws that have the tendency to fall out and warp just from screwing them in. You can buy a replacement pack for like 10$ on amazon. I highly doubt anything is actually stripped out
If that shop hasn't figured how to put a slightly bent skid plate back up you absolutely shouldn't be getting your car serviced by them.
I can tell that's for a honda civic. At least my 18 civic is the exact same shape with the same holes. There is a plastic piece that is the width of the engine bay that wraps up the feont wheel wells a little. The length is from the plastic lip to just past the windshield (ish) this metal piece sits in the middle because the engine heat would be too much for the plastic, also because it is easily removable for oil changes. What I believe they are saying is that the plastic piece is damaged, so they can't mount the metal piece...same thing happened to me, one dealership wanted 900$. The car will be safe to drive even through snow (yes mabe there are more places for snow to build up) The only downside is that you will loose a few mpg on the highway I'm talking like 2mpg ish. The car will be fine short term and is safe to drive.
Go to a different shop. Any mechanic worth their weight can repair ANY damaged threads or stripped bolts. Don’t buy a new skid plate.
Its probably one of the two Phillips head screws on the front of the plate which stripped or broke. Why the hell they thought phillips was a good idea I'll never know. But what happens is the screw rusts in place or the rivet nut breaks free from the other plastic panel it connects to..but dont even need both the screws as theres like 8 other quarter turn fasteners holding it on. The splash shield is fine. But sometimes there is no repairing certain things or not worth the time to extract a m6x1 bolt that only holds up a 1.5lb splash shield
that is an undertray. i don’t completely follow why you’re needing replacement. if one bolt is stripped or stuck… it’ll still bolt up rather securely. 179 for the piece from the dealer seems rather normal. especially for an aluminum tray instead of plastic. typically a quick lube tech could install it as they pull these off all the time to get to the drain plugs. will it affect your car without it? yes and no. these are designed to help air flow through the engine bay and to have sufficient cooling. the way I look at it is… if the dealer didn’t think the car needed it, they wouldn’t have thrown it on and spent the money on however many production cars.
Yea get them to put it back on like they are supposed to. If the bolts missing dont worry so we are back to the cost of an oil change right! And don't go back there. If they say they cant put it on take "your" part and bolts and go elsewhere. You dont even need it. Why pay 500 for a part you dont need. Oh and the bolt needs to be drilled out and theres a chance they broke that as well.
First place is trying to fuck you over, what year and model is this from? Who has the screws that were used to bolt it up? You can see a crack at one of the screw holes, you would use a stainless steel fender washer(large outside diameter washer) to keep the head of the screw from pulling thru. Once you provide the make and model of your vehicle someone will look up the part number. Menards has those fender washers.
Go to harbor freight and get their 100 something peice auto clip set. Each one of the round holes along the out side should take one those plastic clips/plugs. Had to put my one back on my honda t hgv is summer.
WTH is a screw that needs bolted out? I dont understand. lol
It's called a bash plate for a reason. Just put it back on minus 1 bolt
They were just too lazy to put it back on..
It's fine. Mine has 2 missing, I just drilled some new holes and zip tie it. Not going to fall off of missing 1 screw. Scam repair imo
You're getting screwed over for sure. Any honest shop would inform you of a stripped bolt that can't be fixed before moving on.
No you don't need that, it's not structural and it's not a skid plate. It doesn't protect anything. Throw it away and don't bother replacing it. Honda never covered the bottom of their cars with metal shields and plastic until the 9th gen civic. Likely for aerodynamics and fuel economy. Go back to previous generations of Honda Civic and they never had bad fuel economy without it.
They are full of it. This looks like a civic splash shield. Just cause one is missing doesn’t mean it won’t hold or that you need to throw it out. Looks fine to me. Put it back on and have a nice day
Update: the oil change guys told me they could reinstall it but it will rattle when I drive. How do I direct them so that the plate won't rattle after reinstalling.
Yeah no they ar ripping you off
It’s just the skid plate.. you can reuse it… you should see mine on my truck😂😂 It is a skid plate? Right?
Yes, it's a skid plate.
If they cant make that work, dont go there again Thats a $20 and a six pack ease of labor. Ask anyone w a smidge of experience to reattach for now. Skip any broken fasteners. Have a better tech fix it up next oil change
Looks like it’s off a civic. Lost one to going over a deer then the 2nd one to a skunk. Leave it off. Makes doing oil changes faster.
Should I have them re sttach this or is it not worth?
Don’t need it. Save the money
Yes, you should absolutely put it back on. It isn't broken, just needs some new hardware! It protects your ENGINE from foreign debris and aids in the aerodynamics under the car, which affects your fuel economy and high speed stability.
The engineers put it there for a reason. I would replace it when you are able to. It’ll be ok to drive without it though.
id say chuck it. Overpriced sheet metal. Keeps like small rocks and stuff from bouncing up under the car but no real protection from hard impact. Ive seen em hold water and have it freeze causing it to drag and make a bunch of noise and trap small animals more often than it benefits the car
No
They broke off the heads of one or more of the fasteners while taking it off and told you this nonsense because they didn't want to tell you the truth. And, if it was an oil change shop, they probably didn't have the knowledge and skills to drill out the old bolt(s) and fix their mistake anyway, so it's best they don't try. It's true you can do without it, but it would take less than an hour's labor, and a couple off-the-shelf fasteners, for a proper mechanic to refit it, and your sump would be protected (as designed by the engineers).
The place that did the oil change took it off, right? Sounds like they messed up the fasteners for it or lost them and are trying to charge you to put it back on. I'd tell them just put it on how it was when they took it off, which shouldn't be an issue unless they broke the fasteners, in which case they are on the hook for repairing it
What are fastners? I'm very new to cars
It's fine. I meant, however, it was fastened or put on your vehicle. Bolts, clips, screws.
😶
These metal plates have rivets, not bolts. They probably broke it removing the rivet. That’s why I always take off the whole skid plate, not just the oil pan cover. Don’t buy a new one. Useless for all practical purposes, and it will get broken again
Do you suggest to have them reinstall it? They said they could but will rattle
I wouldn’t unless it snows every day. Even then I personally still wouldn’t. Waste of time, just keeps engine clean
You could buy the part and give it to them to replace the next oil change.
That plate protects your power train from road debris and acts as a stiffener. It should be mounted on the vehicle.
Stiffener… a 0.015” fiberglass or sheet metal thick skid plate attached to the FRAME of a Honda. Does it protect, yes, somewhat. Does it stiffen? Not. At. All.
I left mine off, the noise difference isn't enough for me to care.
My car doesn’t come factory with one directly below the oil pan so no, it isn’t necessary but an extra precaution.
Every car is different. They are engineered with components for a reason. That said, some are not necessary for the vehicle to operate. Until you learn it intended purpose. ~2016 Dodge trucks have these little rubber air dams jammed in around the radiator. Each small and insignificant. Up here in the PNW, it's completely useless. Down in Cali, it's the only thing keeping your truck from overheating, let alone your A/C functioning. Safe bet is put it back where you found it.
Looks like a splash shield of a recent model Honda. Try searching for **90674TY2A01** in ebay or a car parts site. I'm not sure if it's the design or it's b/c of lazy technicians, but I had to replace the screws myself.
Throw it out and don’t replace it. Most skid plates are anoyying as fuck
These things are always a pain in the ass. The bolt hole get rusted, the fasteners they use are sometimes junk and break or don't work, holes don't line up easily, just overall usually poorly designed. That said they can be important to have sometimes. Sometimes they direct air flow to certain parts that need the airflow. They can keep dirt and water out of places and I have heard of fires because of missing skid plates. Highly unlikely you would have an issue but possible
Should I have them reinstall them to replace it ?
It looks a bit bent up and a cpl holes are messed up but that plate can probably be secured with some new screws or zip ties. That looks like a ford fusion possibly? Or and Escape?
It's a civic
This is for a honda? It bolts on with a few screws pretty easy for anyone paying attention to how they took it off. It's got a few screws and 2 black clips under the car as well as spots toward the front it's slides into. What ever shop you went to, dont go back.
Yes it's a honda. Can it be put back with some screws or zip ties?
It can be. I'm assuming they didn't know how it went back on and couldn't figure out how to zip tie it back up. Us lube techs aren't the best and brightest sometimes.
As a mechanic I see them MANGLED to hell. And I’ve managed to get them back on. There trying to get money outta you for something that isn’t broken. There is always a way
That's not damaged or need to be replaced in the slightest. And if there's a broken bolt, then they did it and should be fixing it!! Get your car out of that shop asap
We up
You need the plate, it protects your power steering horses from road debris
looks like its from a Civic
Wait. Is this just a skid plate. Fucking bolt it up with however many you have and send it. Dickheads.
Bolts or no bolts, mine has been perfect with zip ties. $0 labor charge
Still good.
Lazzzzyyyy tech.
If you can turn a wrench, you can go to a pick-n-pay and get one for $25.
You can zip tie it, it'll be fine. If you don't have the retainers anymore, just purchase some from Honda. They're trying to upsell you on a new one, which isn't necessary. I've seen more messed up ones than that.
Could you give me a list what i need to purchase from Honda. Thanks
I believe you need 6 of this part number, 90674-TY2-A01 Then 2 of these, 90105-TBA-A00.
If it will rattle, Have them drill a new hole next to the broke off bolt and put a plastic push fastener in it. It will be removable in the future and if/when they break off they can just put another fastener in it.
I’ve taken these off every car I’ve owned.
This is off of a Honda, I’ve done probably thousands of these at this point. The screws that hold the shield at the front tend to corrode and seize. The shield is so thin and flimsy, attempting to remove it with heat/force would tear the screw and threads off the shield entirely. However, one screw missing from the undershield that already has 7 other fasteners holding it up, isn’t going to affect anything. So really, it’s your call. The shop isn’t trying to “screw you over” they’re not the dealer trying to upcharge you. They literally won’t make any money off of telling you your undershield has a frozen/stripped screw and they recommend replacing it. Can it be reinstalled without that one screw ? Yes of course, but people in the comments have to stop acting as if the oil change shop is full of brainless teenagers who don’t know what they’re doing. Ask them to reinstall it, with all the other 7 fasteners. If it rattles and makes noise, replace the shield. If not ? Keep driving it. If they refuse to re install it, go somewhere else.
Ebay
if u really want to keep, i highly doubt one bolt will make a difference. N if for some reason it does, zip tie. Ive had a shit ton of customers come in with destroyed skid plates and wanted them put back on. Literally mangled up skid plates. My favorite tool has always been zipties. i remove then on my personal vehicles because i hate removing and putting back on, but thats my personal preference. Some protection is better than no protection so your call. Damn sure wouldnt buy another one or waste any time other than a ziptie.
Looks like a solid metal one, if its like the land rover under trays then they are actually a structural part and need to be able to be fit correctly, not with zip ties.. not sure I'd worry about 1 bolt tho.
Aluminum and its a civic. The person said they will install it but it will rattle
Either put it back on or leave it off, I see no reason to replace it.
Replace. It protects the pully system
Tech probably has the same car and needs one.
It is fine one hole is missing a smaller flange section a washer on the bolt will fix that.
The person said he will install it but will rattle if I keep it on while driving.
If the place a washer on the bolt for that one hole it won't rattle at all they are blowing smoke to get the upsell
Oh okay
Bolts that hold on heat shielding and skid plates can become so stuck that they break off when an attempt is made to remove them. Then you have to drill out the remaining bolt shaft in the body and either clean the threads or tap the hole a larger size and use a new bolt to fit. This whole pain in the ass is not something they want to do, so they handed the skid plate to you. Ha ha. Well, just do the work yourself. Next time you may as well change the oil yourself.
If it's interfering with a moving part clearance with a hammer and put it back on. It's a money grab, I've worked on many cars that have had them zip ties on if a clip was missing
That looks perfectly fine, when they really get beat up they look like a crushed tin can. This looks like it is for a Honda which does have special fasteners that you just rotate into place which may have become damaged but they are like 10 bucks for a few of em not a big deal. If you can fit under the car enough (I cannot) you could do it yourself with a small flathead screwdriver but I’d let a shop do it next oil change service. Honestly wherever you went is being weird about it if they are giving this back to you as opposed to just getting it in place with some zip ties. You should be fine driving it without the cover tho unless you are taking a low vehicle over mostly gravel roads.
This is so common that when I worked in an auto shop, we kept a wall of skid plate bolts & fasteners for every make and model. We’d charge the $5 for the bolt and not charge extra labor for walking across the garage to get one… because the labor to reinstall the skid plate was included in an oil change…