screws came off and i was dragging my plastic cover. screwed it back on but its funky looking and scrapes on dips and bumps. anyone drive without it?

 

ur in socal
rain and stuff will be a rusting problem but socal doesnt rain much...
so...
imo not much prob...

 

i cut off the front half since i didn't want to drill holes in my new bumper. just gets a bit dirtier, but then again i clean my car like twice a week so who cares? it is just for protection from stuff flying up into your engine bay and such. not going to cause any rusting or whatnot.

 

The splash pan is there to protect delicate items such as these oxygen sensors and wiring. Get one.

 

good call davidv
!!

 

Plastic wont help against rusting/corrosion.....

 

It's not there to protect anything.
It's not going to stop rust, salt water etc.
It's not supposed to try and keep it clean.

Look at the picture above, notice how flat everything is and it would be flatter still if the pictured Z had the stock exhaust. The belly pan is part of the standard 350Z aerodynamics package to help minimize turbulence and smooth out air flow under the car.

You don't NEED it, and you may not notice if it's gone, but if you are looking to get the most out of your Z leaving it off is not really the answer. If it were me, I would the hardware store and get the 10mm bolts and put it back on.

Chris

 

Areodynamic lift...

 

i finally got my 1st oil change and took it to a local Nissan dealer (Ontario Nissan - they suck btw, dont go there).
as i was waiting (2 hrs!!!), i saw the mechanic unscrew the plastic bottom cover and bent it, to get a better feel for the oil filter.
I asked the mechanic if i can take it off, he advised not to, since it protects the engine from certain things (i imagine water and dirt).
WHen i saw him bend the plastic cover, i couldnt help myself get a lil upset, since he was bending it with no respect to my vehicle.

 

It's for aerodynamics...

 

Jiffy Lube will do the same (note the motor oil all over the front passenger side). They pull a few bolts out of the splash guard, pull it down, the drain the oil and remove the filter: oil splashes everywhere. Pride and auto service seem to be contradictory terms. While the splash guard was off, I scrubbed it at the car wash. At least that's pretty clean.

 

I think it is funny that when you take it to an oil changing monkey, they want an additional charge to deal with it. Then all they do is bend it out of the way, so WTF is the extra charge for? Besides screwing you.

 

It doesnt hurt anything to not have it.

And about bending it remove the filter, It doesnt hurt it to be bent, its very thin plastic, try working in a garage and change oil on 30 cars a day that all have a plastic or steel cover (suvs), you'd be bending them if you could too.

 

Dude its just a plastic piece!!!! If you start losing it for that,..Geez, I'd hate to see you get into an accident!

 

I have mine off. It was scraping on something whenever I pressed in my clutch so I removed it. I took it to the dealer twice to have them look at it and they didn't do squat both times.

I want to get another one though for piece of mind. I believe they cost around $100. Ugh.

 

Get sheetmetal skid plates!!!!

 

ive been driving without mine for about 6 months, mine broke when i hit a raccoon havent had any prbs yet

 

I took mine off because its just a pain in the A$$ to take off everytime I change my oil. None of my old cars had them, so I'm not worried about having it off.

 

Why do I bother

Chris

 

Its about $80 bux to replace...

It is mostly for aero dynamics...

Tony hasnt had his on since he put on his first aftermarket bumper...

Mine have always come out and dragged, so I cut off the front part that flapps when you dont have the screws in, and left the rest on...

The lower engine cover doesnt go as far back to cover the O2 sensors in the cats that harness clip onto the trans bracket...

A fedex truck tire ripped those out from my car once too...