So, we all hate this stupid thing, and hate the stupid plastic fasteners even more.....or is is just me??

A couple of years ago, my splash guard thing suddenly and quietly decided it didn't want to be with me anymore... I honestly have no idea at all where it happened....

OEM Honda ones are damn hard to come by, and when you do find one, they go for, to me anyway, insane amounts of $. So I bought an aftermarket one off of ebay, It was about $70 if i recall. Then...procrastination set in, and I never even opened the box...

Today I finally installed it. The replacement is made of a different plastic. The OEM seems to have been an injection molded piece, the aftermarket one looks to have been formed from a single sheet of material (Actually 2 pieces) and themo-formed in a press. Still, it seems to be of decent quality, and the fitment was excellent. After replacing about a dozen various plastic rivet-fastener things, I departed from the usual and did me a little modification. The 2 fasteners at the back of the shield, the ones to fit into holes in the crossmember, were a constant problem. You have to remove those every time you change the oil, they wear out, fall out and then the shield starts to droop and drag.

Instead of replacing those, I installed nutserts in each hole in the crossmember and fastened the rear 2 points with 1/4" stainless hex bolts with washers and lock-washers. Coating the threads liberally with anti seize to ward odd corrosion. No more worrying about that problem...

If anyone is interested, here's the shield I bought, it has gone up in price since I bought mine, but still a decent part at a good price. https://tinyurl.com/y5wz6ovs

 

A hundo yikes don’t look forward to eventually replacing it.

I gave up on the plastic clips I just cut and use zip ties every time I need access. I think two or three screws towards the front remain.

 

Have never had the “pleasure” ... bought my ‘15 used and it was already gone, never bothered to get a new one. Amazingly, when I’ve had it serviced at the Honda dealer, they didn’t try to sell me one or even mention it LOL.

 

Is the splash guard completely unnecessary? Occasionally I have to drive dirt roads.

 

You're the hero that gotham needs right now

Seriously though, the splash panel and the fasteners SUCK.
I have a Honda HR-V as well, and it uses the same panel and crap fasteners, I have to buy the fasteners in bulk for each oil change

 

I keep a good supply of plastic fasteners on hand as well, as well as the little metal C-clips that the screws go into.

 

I miss dirt roads..... Back when I was growing up, that's how we taught ourselves what the pros call "vehicle control" now, and charge big bucks at performance driving schools to teach...

I don't know about "necessary", I drove mine for a couple of years without one, but I figure Honda put it there for a reason. It's probably as much an aerodynamics thing as it is about protection.

 

From everything I've heard that splash shield is there to smooth out the air flow and improve gas mileage. In stop and go city traffic I doubt it accomplishes much.

And yes I bought a bag of the pop in plastic fasteners. I do not believe they are designed for re-use so I replace them with a fresh one every time I do an oil change or whatever and that works out well.

 

Am sure it’s all about aerodynamics/trying to eke out another 0.5mpg for the EPA....I have no plans to replace mine, it’s not like all of a sudden the engine and accessories need to be protected from water, cars have been “unprotected” from water for over 100 years. Whatever floats one’s boat, but I find it unnecessary... and don’t want to imagine the hassle if you drop a small part or tool when wrenching on it. I’m more than happy with the non-aero-ness of mine, and I don’t think driving in the wet is going to affect anything...honestly

 

I purposely drive through water puddles during a rain storm. That cleans the bottom better than anything else. The undercover actually retain dirt and leaves that you really don't want. How effective is the undercover for aerodynamic efficiency? Consistently, I'm happy to get over 40 mpg on the highway. It's really up to you to have it attached or leaving it off.

 

I hate them with a passion too.

 

I still have mine with 92k miles. Only time I lost a plastic screw was when I let the dealership do the oil change. Since I've done it myself, I've been able to reuse the plastic push pins several times. Only replaced one after I pushed it in crooked and one of the legs broke. Still popped it back in and it held a few hundred miles till I got a chance to order a bag of after market ones.

If I lose the splash guard, then I probably won't replace it.

 

I think it does have to do more with aerodynamics rather than protection. I've removed mine for 2 oil changes now and noticed a drop in gas mileage with the same style of driving. I used to get 40-42 mpg driving conservatively. Lately I'm doing anywhere from 35-36 mpg. I'll put it back on during the next oil change. Hopefully I didn't lose/misplaced any of the screws.

 

Mine has not had any oil change yet, but this UnderGuard looked so clever, that I decided to ask the availability. The seller has not answered yet. I think the idea of a smaller plate for oil change is good, aluminium is propably more durable than plastic when driving through snow banks one and it's also stated to increase ground clearance.

 

...because the dealer has a pile of used ones in the back from oil changes....

 

Can you send the link to that Underguard? It looks interesting.

 

Once when the big main tray failed on me, I wasn't going to fork out $800+ for it. I did temporarily jury rig something to hold it in place but decided that it wasn't worth it. I have probably over 80lbs of sound deadening so I don't miss it. Plus my fuel mileage has hardly taken a hit. If the front one ever fails then I won't bother replacing that one either. My car gets yearly rustproofing so no worries there.

 

GK specific page: underguard.net/undergurad-jazz-gk/

 

I just pulled mine off today. I only have 5400 miles but I have been noticing reduced fuel mileage and slight skid sounds on small road bumps that had not been a problem before. When I looked at it, it was dented and had a bow in it making sit lower than normal. When I tried pulling the dent out it just popped right back so I pulled it off.

 

Mine fell off earlier this year. The hell with getting another thingy. I'm driving around without it. No problems or issues.