[s-cars] I will NOT buy MORE UNDERTRAY Hardware!

Mon Nov 8 15:16:30 PST 2010

That's funny I just saw the metal undertrays for the M's the other day and
was thinking the same thing. They also have CF undertrays for the E46's for
$1300. Unbelievable. Some people must really need excuses to spend money.

Anyway, re: a metal tray - I'm sure the ribs/ridges in the plastic tray
serve not only airflow purposes but stiffening purpose so you might have
trouble with a sheet metal pan flexing/deforming/oil-canning unless you
reinforced it.  Another thing about the OEM plastic UrS tray is that it has
those nice little NACA ducts in it to keep engine compartment airflow going
smoothly - hard to replicate that in sheet metal unlessn you're a master
tinsmith, although my easy fix suggestion would be to cut a rectangular hole
in the metal pan, then rivet a cut-out square from the plastic tray in there
with the plastic NACA's... You could also fab up a nice quick-release
oil-filter removal hatch on a metal tray with dzus fasteners or something
racey like that so you could do oil changes with the tray in place..

BTW IMO most undertray failures are because of this - mechs/garages that
just don't put all the fasteners back or half-ass them. I have NEVER EVER
lost a single fastener / fitting on my C4 or C5 when I refitted the
undertray myself and ensured every fastener was there and fully attached.

JC

---- current ----
1995.5 S6 Avant
2003 E46 M3 Cic
2008 A3 2.0tDSG
---- past lives ----
2006 A4 2.0TQA
1998 A6Q 2.8 PES G2
1989 200TQA SJM
1990 CQ
1997 A4 1.8TQ Wett
1987 4kCSQ

John J. Cunningham
jc at j2c3.com
US Mobile +1 (617) 750-5025
China Mobile: +86 (0) 136 8175 8180

> -----Original Message-----
> From: s-car-list-bounces at audifans.com
> [mailto:s-car-list-bounces at audifans.com] On Behalf Of Dusten Tornow
> Sent: Tuesday, November 09, 2010 4:44 AM
> To: Harold McComas; s-car-list at audifans.com
> Cc: jc at j2c3.com
> Subject: Re: [s-cars] I will NOT buy MORE UNDERTRAY Hardware!
>
> My undertray is on the side of Pena Blvd in Denver if anyone
> is interested in a well used replacement.
>
> Germans didn't do plastic bits very well in the 90s, did
> they?  Between cooling systems and under trays, I've seen too
> many failures.
>
> On my M3, I had this:
> http://motionmotorsport.net/products/product_info.php?cPath=22
> &products_id=28&osCsid=0e34391f18adfb7f209ffff2af6c477e, is
> there an aluminum skid plate option for our cars?  Or do I
> need to make it from scratch?
>
> Thanks,
> Dusten
> '95 S6 Avant
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: s-car-list-bounces at audifans.com
> [mailto:s-car-list-bounces at audifans.com] On Behalf Of Harold McComas
> Sent: Sunday, November 07, 2010 4:14 PM
> To: s-car-list at audifans.com
> Cc: jc at j2c3.com
> Subject: Re: [s-cars] I will NOT buy MORE UNDERTRAY Hardware!
>
> Where you at again JC? Maybe we can help with the recommendation.
>
> When I had my S6 I never bothered with the fender fasteners.
>
> I used to have my oil changed at an oil place, bro-in-laws'
> bro-in-law was the manager so I thought I would be taken care
> of. EVERY time I went they said your are missing several
> fasteners. When they overfilled by a quart I said no more.
> Did my own oil changes and in 3 yrs never lost a fastener.
>
> Doug L, if it is the shop I am thinking of, I had a good
> experience there, my brother in law did not.
>
> Harold
>
> > From: "JC" <jc at j2c3.com>
> > Subject: [s-cars] I will NOT buy MORE UNDERTRAY Hardware!
> > To: <s-car-list at audifans.com>
> > Message-ID: <A17A75C0479A4F1D82510EB8D95A78DD at VibroSonic>
> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"
> >
> > Getting under the car for the first time in a long time
> today to take
> > care of my blown X-plug I discover that YET AGAIN the last time she
> > was in the shop, a bunch of the undertray hardware was lost (if I'm
> > being generous) or just blown off (most likely).
> >
> > The 2 front metal pins had lost their little backside retainer
> > thingies (which I always re-make when they get lost so I am always
> > sure it is all there when it arrives at the shop), and ALL of the 4
> > plastic fender-liner pins were completely missing. You might think
> > they just came loose, but to underline the fact that it was
> > negligence, the tray wasn't properly in the bumper slots up
> front, and
> > the side 'wings' were completely wrong in the fender wells
> (on the outside not the inside of the fender liner).
> > Obviously
> > somebody jammed the crap out of it, didn't get it lined up right,
> > pulled the metal pins out so they lost the retainers, just
> > jam-jam-jammered it around until they could get the metal
> pins in, and
> > then completely blew off the fender-liner part of it.
> >
> > I've bought new pins for those damn things time and again after
> > getting it back from the mechs with one or two gone
> missing. Most of
> > the time I've generously thought hey OK they didn't fully
> engage the
> > pin and it probably fell out on the test drive or way
> home.. but this
> > time I can tell they just said "F-it" with those side pins.
> This would
> > have also been the service after which I found the bumper
> grills were
> > jammed in so half-assed the engagement clips got all bent and
> > malformed and wouldn't clip in properly because somebody had just
> > force-slammed 'em in there without paying attention. I'm lucky I
> > didn't loose the grills actually.  Oh and never re-clipped
> the ambient
> > temp sensor either...
> >
> > /rant.  Just had to vent.  F at hhk I need a good shop.  No
> such thing I
> > guess.
> >
>
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