SKID PLATE EVO II

[Luke]

Well, after this fall we will probably retire the trusty skid plate that has been at the receiving end of rocks,ruts,roots and boulders for two seasons now. Several old SAABheads have described the later factory skid plate that had roll cage tubing skis that run all the way from the front bumper to the floor pan and are tabbed into the a-arm mounts. Thick aluminum plate is run in between the two skis. Seth's rally car has a similar setup that we think may be a copy of the original kit that saab sold. Seth try to snap some pictures when you get a chance. Any body else have any suggestions or knowledge about this topic?

[matt]

I'd like to see some wings to protect the a arm mounts, possibly made from bent tubing with a portion of skid plate over it. I think we can sacrifice an inch of ground clearance there to prevent damage to the a arms.
What if the skid plate was two pieces, side by side set with a slight angle between the two, similar to a boat's hull. That should help us get across those water crossings.

[saab]

How about if we attach a giant vaccuum to the front of the car, to suck all the water away before we even drive over it? :badgrin:

Oh wait, you were serious?

[Crazyswede]

You could always mount some puddle wings to the front bumper similiar to the old rally cars. I drove through a deep puddle in my 99 at about 30 mph the other day and most of it ended up on the windshield. I think this happens since the wheel creates somethig similiar to a bow wake, blasts the water up and forward, and then you drive through it.


I'd avoid making the skid plate V shaped. For one thing the welded area is more likely to fracture, and any angle in the middle is more likely to be pounded into submission. I need to take some picture of the motorcycle I am selling...which warrants a new digital camera, so I'll try and take some pics of my old rally car setup.

[Luke]

This weekend I will start construction of the new skid plate. I picked up a some 1.5x .095 wall DOM today to make the basic frame out of. Its going a be a beastly creation, and heavy, but I don't care because I don't want a cracked sump to be a reason for failure ever again. I'll post pics here as progess advances.

[Luke]

Work on the new skid plate has begun. The basic frame is built:


It utilizes 1.5" DOM tubing which is overkill but thou shall not bend! The front ties into the bumper support at the tow hook mounting point and then tubing extends all the way back to the floor pan. This is exactly what was described to me as the solution that saab came up with for the factory cars after suffering cracked gear boxes on the rougher events. This frame meaures almost exactly 2'x4' which makes it convenient for ordering aluminum. The frame will have several more cross members that have not been welded in yet and will be covered with one sheet of 3/16" 6061-T6 which is lighter gauge than the usual 1/4" but I will weld 3 additional strips of 3/16" thick plate about 2" wide each along the length of the plate in the the hard hit areas, this will increase the thickness in those areas to 3/8" which should be more than sufficient given the much better support that the frame will provide. The rear and mid mounting points of the frame will be bolted thru 1/2" rubber sheet to deaden shock loads to the chassis. The additional length of the plate will also help to protect the S bend and front connection of the exhaust which has been another point of failure. Best of all I have managed to keep the whole thing tucked up pretty tight so we have only lost about 1/2" of ground clearance from the former setup, and the whole thing will drop off with 6 bolts readily accessible for an impact gun.




Ohh and other exciting news! The sport and rally flares arrived from Sweden today, woo hoo.


Before I install I will make molds of each of the 4 unique flares so that I can reproduce/replace in the future.

[Crazyswede]

neato...where did you find the fender flares? We've been trying to find a set of those for quite a while.

[max]

So is the skid plate basically just attached directly onto the subframe?

Are those flares going to be spot welded on? JB weld?

[Jordan]

I think they were riveted on, no?

They are nice looking. What are they molded plastic? fiberglass?

[Luke]

They will be riveted on. They are made of fiberglass.

[matt]

I say keep the original fender flares and make a mold to make your own. That way when they get trashed you won't feel as bad about it. plus you could make them with carbon fiber which is JDM SCHWEET Yo!~!!!!!!!!!!!

[Saab99_16vT]

the new skid plate subframe looks bomber and those fender flares are totally bad ass, you should mold the new set with kevlar.

[Luke]

Little more progress on the skid plate this weekend. I built the mounting points for the frame and welded mounting plates onto the car.





I also put a coat of duratec primer on the hood mold. Its a special primer thats designed for surfacing molds.

[Geoff]

Too many bolts holding that skidplate on might give you trouble trying to get it back on once its been used...

The one on my car has rear mounts that slide into place (slide the skidplate backwards into them) and just one bolt that holds it on in the front.

Put some foam between the plate and the gearbox to keep rocks from collecting up there (which could puncture the box when the plate gets smacked)

[Crazyswede]

or consider leaving the subframe attached to the car and just remove the skid plate when necesary....thats how my car is setup. the Skid plate is held to the to tubing with uclamps....though its a PITA to remove and put on...nothing something Iid want to have to do in a hurry at service....however I am sure a quicker attachment system could be created...perhaps a couple of 19mm head bolts so you could use your electric impact to take the plate on and off.