GM Accessories upgraded skid plate

[Tk59194]

Greetings,

I think this part has been covered in a few other threads but thought I would give my initial thoughts and then follow up with installation photos/remarks.

This is the three piece aluminum/steel skid plate offered by GM as an upgrade to the factory plastic piece. It is listed as a front under body shield and can be found here:

https://accessories.chevrolet.com/p...t-under-body-shield-23176881?categoryId=12001

List price is $250.00. I found the part on several different websites and 250.00 was pretty standard across the board +/- a few bucks. I had a $50.00 GM accessories credit and decided to use it towards buying this piece. All in all, while a bit on the pricey side and probably overkill for a vehicle that rarely goes off road, I think it looks nice and is worth the piece of mind that if offers in comparison to the stock plastic piece.

The front plate is comprised of two aluminum pieces. They are 1/8th inch thick. Very stout and appear to be well made.

It comes with a steel rear differential cover as well. I do not have 4WD, so I will not be installing this plate.

The kit does include the hardware.



I had hoped to install this today, but will depend on the weather. I'll post photos as soon as installation is complete.

 

[Tk59194]

Moderators, I meant to post this in exterior. Apologies, please delete or move as necessary.

 

[Tk59194]

Thoughts after installation:

As stated before, this is a well built piece and definitely an upgrade to the stock plastic cover.

A few installation notes:

It was necessary for me to "ream" out the holes a little bit on both panels. Not a lot, but a little. The holes were off by about a 16th of an inch. I could get the front or the rear holes lined up, but not the front/rear at the same time. Not a big deal, but for a 250.00 piece designed for the truck, I would have expected it to all line up perfectly.

On another note, the rear two mounting locations for the front panel did not have threads tapped in the holes in the frame. I used two of the old bolts that held the plastic cover in place to tap the threads in the frame. required a little bit of muscle, but the bolts are pretty tough and had no problem cutting through the frame hole. YMMV.

As soon as I can get the truck on a lift, I will snap some decent photos of the covers. Overall impression is that this is a decent upgrade from the factory panel. Offers protection and also does a good job boxing up the frame which should, in theory, provide a small handling upgrade although I cannot confirm this with any factual data.

Cheers!

 

[cmatt]

I did the same mod and have been happy with mine.




Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

[swathdiver]

I didn't know this was made, the black one is for the transfer case and looks the same as mine. Replaced my plastic one last year with another plastic shell that seemed more pliable, the other was beat and busted and cracked. Thanks for posting.

 

[Doubeleive]

I put metal ones on mine but I really would like the border patrol issued ones but can't seem to find them anywhere

 

[Kpwweb]

Put the GM kit on mine. Very happy.

 

[Kpwweb]

All the holes lined up just fine. Also, the holes are designed to have the threads cut by the bolts.

 

[Tk59194]

All the holes lined up just fine. Also, the holes are designed to have the threads cut by the bolts.

I didn't know that, but definitely worked like a charm on my application.

 

[89Suburban]

Man if I could get this upgrade it would hide all the oil that is leaking out of my tired 5.3 LOL.