What Skids Are Necessary? “Can of Worms” Thread

[SoCal Gunner]

So as a new Mojave owner who intends (how many say that- lol) to stay stock height and maybe get 35s when the 33s are bald, sounds like rear shock mounts and control arms are tops?

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[antwon412]

So as a new Mojave owner who intends (how many say that- lol) to stay stock height and maybe get 35s when the 33s are bald, sounds like rear shock mounts and control arms are tops?

I’m on 35s with my Mojave and I scrape my belly every single time I go out. Every time. It’s just so long with a terrible break over angle.

I would upgrade all the skid plates underneath your Mojave. I bought the Asfir set and they are great.

I have an AEV 2” lift, rear shock mount skids and control arm skids going on tomorrow.

 

[Divided_Wood]

I added a diff skid and LCA frame side skids to my JT just because it's so long, but for what it's worth I beat the everloving crap out of the stock skids on my JKUR and never had any issues. They are a lot more durable than people think as long as you are mindful of low hanging objects (mainly trans cooler line). Here's a pic after my last trip out to Moab.

 

[kickingaz]

We don't have all the same options with the diesel engines. I ordered and received the OilPan/Transmission and the Transfer Case skid plates from M.O.R.E. for my JTR Diesel. They have arrived but I did not install them yet. Because they are steel, they are heavy but appear to be very well made. The OilPan/Transmission skid plate retails for $499 and the Transfer Case $202, both black powder coated. There is not a fuel tank skid plate for the diesel yet, but I will purchase that as well when it becomes available. I also caught a Labor Day sale for 20% off and it appears they run these specials occasionally. I will also be installing the Mopar 2" lift at the same time I install the skid plates.

 

[Wolf Island Diver]

Since you can never get the break over on the JT near to the JL, my plan is a belly skid, (probably Nextventure, once I find a buyer for my right kidney) and some diff sliders, and I’ll just hump my way over the bigger rocks.

skids are permission to care less about lines/obstacles, at least until the FAD casting breaks in half.

 

[kickingaz]

Since you can never get the break over on the JT near to the JL, my plan is a belly skid, (probably Nextventure, once I find a buyer for my right kidney) and some diff sliders, and I’ll just hump my way over the bigger rocks.

skids are permission to care less about lines/obstacles, at least until the FAD casting breaks in half.

Of course this answer could be very different depending upon what part of the country you live in. Here in AZ we have a lot of rock crawling vs. the terrain you encounter in VA vs. others in other states.

 

[WILDHOBO]

Since you can never get the break over on the JT near to the JL, my plan is a belly skid, (probably Nextventure, once I find a buyer for my right kidney) and some diff sliders, and I’ll just hump my way over the bigger rocks.

skids are permission to care less about lines/obstacles, at least until the FAD casting breaks in half.

Absolutely. Just left Moab and let my friend drive for many of the tough obstacles. When the occasional scraping noises started, I was able to relaxingly say, “it’s fine, just skids”.

 

[Wolf Island Diver]

Of course this answer could be very different depending upon what part of the country you live in. Here in AZ we have a lot of rock crawling vs. the terrain you encounter in VA vs. others in other states.

I’m actually thinking more about out West rock crawling in buying a belly skid. Kind of a generalization but back East we have rocks too but wet and muddy conditions are more prevalent and little to no slick rock. We have wet rock. I’m not sure a belly skid will have wildly different effects in either terrain though.

The biggest differences to me is that back East you’re likely to capture a lot of debris in the skid going through mud. Out West, heat management is more of an issue, and a lot of modern vehicles are designed to pull air in through the grill and dump it underneath. A full belly skid might cause problems with that.

 

[PlayfulBird]

 

[Wolf Island Diver]

It’s always been obvious to me that Jeeps clearly need windshield skid plates.

 

[PlayfulBird]

It’s always been obvious to me that Jeeps clearly need windshield skid plates.

 

[Rusty PW]

I’m actually thinking more about out West rock crawling in buying a belly skid. Kind of a generalization but back East we have rocks too but wet and muddy conditions are more prevalent and little to no slick rock. We have wet rock. I’m not sure a belly skid will have wildly different effects in either terrain though.

The biggest differences to me is that back East you’re likely to capture a lot of debris in the skid going through mud. Out West, heat management is more of an issue, and a lot of modern vehicles are designed to pull air in through the grill and dump it underneath. A full belly skid might cause problems with that.

You want rocks on the East coast. Go to AOAA and do Mammoth Trail.

 

[Summitsearcher]

I often wonder if a certain belly skid could also protect/deter catalytic converter thieves from hacking mine off. Sometimes my truck sits outside.

 

[WILDHOBO]

I’m actually thinking more about out West rock crawling in buying a belly skid. Kind of a generalization but back East we have rocks too but wet and muddy conditions are more prevalent and little to no slick rock. We have wet rock. I’m not sure a belly skid will have wildly different effects in either terrain though.

The biggest differences to me is that back East you’re likely to capture a lot of debris in the skid going through mud. Out West, heat management is more of an issue, and a lot of modern vehicles are designed to pull air in through the grill and dump it underneath. A full belly skid might cause problems with that.

So many people talk about heat management with belly skids. I live out west and have never seen it get so much as warm with my skid on. Under the engine, it’s just a plate to protect the oil pan and tranny. It’s far enough away that heat can go wherever it wants. The transfer case has plenty of room behind to let heat out. The rest is gas tank. Zero issues. Look at a picture on nextventure.com. You’ll see that heat trapping isn’t an issue by what it covers.

regarding hang ups on rocks, I do my fair share of boulder and rocky trails in Colorado. Totally different than Utah desert. I’ve never had an issue with hang ups. But I got hung up constantly with the stock skids because of those dumb cross bars. Now that it’s smooth and doesn’t stop and start, it just glides over things.

 

[Wolf Island Diver]

So many people talk about heat management with belly skids. I live out west and have never seen it get so much as warm with my skid on. Under the engine, it’s just a plate to protect the oil pan and tranny. It’s far enough away that heat can go wherever it wants. The transfer case has plenty of room behind to let heat out. The rest is gas tank. Zero issues. Look at a picture on nextventure.com. You’ll see that heat trapping isn’t an issue by what it covers.

regarding hang ups on rocks, I do my fair share of boulder and rocky trails in Colorado. Totally different than Utah desert. I’ve never had an issue with hang ups. But I got hung up constantly with the stock skids because of those dumb cross bars. Now that it’s smooth and doesn’t stop and start, it just glides over things.

The only concern I personally have about heat management is all of the exhaust components on my diesel, like the DPF. But protecting those better is the main reason I plan on buying a belly skid. There’s a LiteBrite video recently where a guy smashes the drain cap for his fuel/water separator and they have to keep kluging it down the trail. I’m not trying to deal with that after driving 3k miles across the country.

I’m curious is anyone with a belly skid and the diesel has seen any issues? My truck likes to go into regen on the trail. I wonder how problematic that would be with the skid if at all.

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