Homemade oil pan skid
Thread Starter
JK Super Freak
Joined: May 2009
Posts: 1,446
Likes: 211
From: Laurel, MT
Homemade oil pan skid
I have quite a few scrapes on my factory skids... but one area that always looks like a place we can get in trouble is the oil pan. If a guy came down hard on a rock it might be a bad deal.
There are lots of aftermarket oil pan skids... from 150 to 300 bucks. Some of them create a large coverage zone... others -like rancho just cover the pan.
I wanted something smaller, I have enough "mud traps" under the jk already... so I was going to just cover the bottom and a short distance up each side.
So this is what I came up with. Using scrap lying around the garage... I fashioned a skid plate that covers the bottom of the pan, and about two inches on each side. On the front and rear it is just an inch or so of overhang. It is made out of 1/4 inch steel, with two braces that use the pan bolts to reinforce the plate from the bottom to the engine block. I used steel epoxy to glue the pan to the skid where ever it touches, put a drain hole in the bottom to prevent rust if water gets under it. Sanded it and put high temp paint on it. it cost me about 2 hours of time -and it made a lightweight skid for the oil pan! I could put on another front brace on the drivers side...there is room for a bolt through the side at the front ...but it has a center and rear brace already... made of spring steel. I can hang from it and shake the whole Jeep from it without movement... so I think it is safe!
here are some finished pics!
Used a bench vice/ a sawsall/ a grinder, and hammer!
There are lots of aftermarket oil pan skids... from 150 to 300 bucks. Some of them create a large coverage zone... others -like rancho just cover the pan.
I wanted something smaller, I have enough "mud traps" under the jk already... so I was going to just cover the bottom and a short distance up each side.
So this is what I came up with. Using scrap lying around the garage... I fashioned a skid plate that covers the bottom of the pan, and about two inches on each side. On the front and rear it is just an inch or so of overhang. It is made out of 1/4 inch steel, with two braces that use the pan bolts to reinforce the plate from the bottom to the engine block. I used steel epoxy to glue the pan to the skid where ever it touches, put a drain hole in the bottom to prevent rust if water gets under it. Sanded it and put high temp paint on it. it cost me about 2 hours of time -and it made a lightweight skid for the oil pan! I could put on another front brace on the drivers side...there is room for a bolt through the side at the front ...but it has a center and rear brace already... made of spring steel. I can hang from it and shake the whole Jeep from it without movement... so I think it is safe!
here are some finished pics!
Used a bench vice/ a sawsall/ a grinder, and hammer!
Last edited by Sunnysideup; May 7, 2011 at 11:57 AM.
JK Freak
Joined: Apr 2007
Posts: 764
Likes: 0
From: Parker, CO
I have quite a few scrapes on my factory skids... but one area that always looks like a place we can get in trouble is the oil pan. If a guy came down hard on a rock it might be a bad deal.
There are lots of aftermarket oil pan skids... from 150 to 300 bucks. Some of them create a large coverage zone... others -like rancho just cover the pan.
I wanted something smaller, I have enough "mud traps" under the jk already... so I was going to just cover the bottom and a short distance up each side.
So this is what I came up with. Using scrap lying around the garage... I fashioned a skid plate that covers the bottom of the pan, and about two inches on each side. On the front and rear it is just an inch or so of overhang. It is made out of 1/4 inch steel, with two braces that use the pan bolts to reinforce the plate from the bottom to the engine block. I used steel epoxy to glue the pan to the skid where ever it touches, put a drain hole in the bottom to prevent rust if water gets under it. Sanded it and put high temp paint on it. it cost me about 2 hours of time -and it made a lightweight skid for the oil pan! I could put on another front brace on the drivers side...there is room for a bolt through the side at the front ...but it has a center and rear brace already... made of spring steel. I can hang from it and shake the whole Jeep from it without movement... so I think it is safe!
here are some finished pics!
Used a bench vice/ a sawsall/ a grinder, and hammer!
There are lots of aftermarket oil pan skids... from 150 to 300 bucks. Some of them create a large coverage zone... others -like rancho just cover the pan.
I wanted something smaller, I have enough "mud traps" under the jk already... so I was going to just cover the bottom and a short distance up each side.
So this is what I came up with. Using scrap lying around the garage... I fashioned a skid plate that covers the bottom of the pan, and about two inches on each side. On the front and rear it is just an inch or so of overhang. It is made out of 1/4 inch steel, with two braces that use the pan bolts to reinforce the plate from the bottom to the engine block. I used steel epoxy to glue the pan to the skid where ever it touches, put a drain hole in the bottom to prevent rust if water gets under it. Sanded it and put high temp paint on it. it cost me about 2 hours of time -and it made a lightweight skid for the oil pan! I could put on another front brace on the drivers side...there is room for a bolt through the side at the front ...but it has a center and rear brace already... made of spring steel. I can hang from it and shake the whole Jeep from it without movement... so I think it is safe!
here are some finished pics!
Used a bench vice/ a sawsall/ a grinder, and hammer!
JK Junkie
Joined: Jan 2011
Posts: 3,449
Likes: 2
From: Newport news, va
Originally Posted by sgmrock
Nice, Thanks for the inspiration! I am gonna start on something similar in a couple of days...
...
Thread Starter
JK Super Freak
Joined: May 2009
Posts: 1,446
Likes: 211
From: Laurel, MT
I thought about it a few days... and then just dug through the stuff I had and this came out of it. I like that it is attached and not glued alone... just would always worry about a glued skid coming off on the freeway. It is tight, makes no noise and I think it will defelct any low speed hit that might happen on the trail!