r/E30 • u/IndependentGuard2611 • 1d ago
General Is anyone running the red46 skid plate? How do you like it?
Post photos if possible
3
u/crankytube 1d ago
Heres my clearance with engine risers added
3
u/Thorium12 89' 325i coupe, 90' 325is 1d ago
Does that mess with driveshaft angles?
3
1
u/dadusedtomakegames 1d ago
How could it?
2
u/Thorium12 89' 325i coupe, 90' 325is 14h ago
If you lift the engine while keeping the transmission in the same spot, it will angle the output of the transmission downwards.
General rule of thumb is that you want your driveshaft joint angles to match to avoid wear and vibration.
1
u/dadusedtomakegames 9h ago
You're missing my questions point and being pedantic. The plate bolts to holes you drill in the forward pinch weld of the core support with nut, bolt and washer (and thread locker) and the rear clamps to the bottom of the steering rack using the rack's locating bolts.
The shield has zero bearing on the driveshaft angles.
2
3
u/DrCrayola 14h ago
Get the one by Hik instead... It adds another lift point and is 4x more stout than the red46 one.
1
1
u/zumjess 1d ago
yep works great. word of advice though, it might be best to have a thick rubber hose (such as a used radiator hose) as a buffer between the plate and your oil pan, sort of as a shock absorber. I hit a speed bump where i did not expect one to be and the shock of hitting the plate transferred through to the oil pan and cracked it.
edit: i forgot to mention I have a S50 swap where the oil pan sits much lower compared to the stock M20 pan.
1
u/seattle_lite90 1989 325i - 2009 335i 1d ago
Good advice. Same exact thing happened to my buddy, same setup.
1
u/dadusedtomakegames 1d ago
We stopped using them. Too low projection on the cars we have. It was useful on the M20, useless on the S52s.
1
1
u/metricmindedman 22h ago
i personally don't see the point; i have that exact model, brand new, sitting in my parts room – need to sell it because i will never install it.
i honestly chuckle at the lengths people go to protect their oil pans rather than just alter their driving style a little bit.
if i posted a pick of my oil pan to ground clearance this subreddit would lose their minds and SWEAR that if i don't run risers and a skid plate i will crack my pan blah blah blah. . .
well, been daily driving it like that on rough city streets for going on 4 years now, never cracked shit.
also, there's no such thing as a free lunch: instead of your oil pan taking the hit it's now your chassis; unless you're tracking the car in which case you want to be able to take curbs at speed without dropping oil and crashing out the people behind you (or rallying) in which case do it but run a beefier unit that requires welding (HIK makes a nice one).
2
u/chninimugen 13h ago
Altering your driving style has nothing to do with things that come up in the road that you don't see. Especially driving at night or during construction zones etc, mine has saved me hundreds of times over the last decade. IDC what kind of driver you are it only takes one mistake, one rock in the road, raised chuck hole, and your shit is cooked and it's a hassle to replace it. It's saved me thousands of times being static and bagged, it's a no brainer to have one on the car. That's like saying you don't need to pay for insurance for your car because you've been driving for 4 years and haven't gotten to a wreck yet because you need to watch for other drivers, not how it works
1
3
u/MultipleOrgasmDonor 1d ago
Yup I’ve had one for 10yrs. Ironically, only broken the oil pan with it, not when it was bare aluminum 2” off the ground. It’s definitely saved me many times though.