Vehicle protection priorities

[overland_fam]

I’ve reached the point of my overland build (Jeep JLUR) that I’d like to start adding some amor/protection to my vehicle to have a little more peace of mind on the trail.

Like most, my build has been incremental over time and so I’m wondering what I should prioritize and add first.

Here is what I’ve been thinking in terms of priority but I’d love to get feedback from others as I’m new to most of this.

1. Front/rear bumpers
2. Rock sliders (skids)
3. Front/rear differential skid
4. Gas tank skid?
5. ????

What would you say are the parts of the vehicle that I should prioritize and add protection to?

Thank you in advance for any advice.

 

[Tango Tiger]

I’ve reached the point of my overland build (Jeep JLUR) that I’d like to start adding some amor/protection to my vehicle to have a little more peace of mind on the trail.

Like most, my build has been incremental over time and so I’m wondering what I should prioritize and add first.

Here is what I’ve been thinking in terms of priority but I’d love to get feedback from others as I’m new to most of this.

1. Front/rear bumpers
2. Rock sliders (skids)
3. Front/rear differential skid
4. Gas tank skid?
5. ????

What would you say are the parts of the vehicle that I should prioritize and add protection to?

Thank you in advance for any advice.

In a nutshell, rock sliders and front skids would be my top priority. After that it depends on how you plan to use your rig.

I installed the front skid and rock sliders at the same time. My next addition was a front bumper, but that was simply so I could add a winch. I still have my stock rear bumper and intend to keep it unless it gets damaged. I have not added rear skids because thats overkill for anything I’m doing on trails. With that said, I certainly realize there are plenty of people that need that kind of protection. If I was going to do serious wheeling I would prioritize rear skids over bumpers. You can drive your rig with a busted bumper. Tear up something underneath and you may not be going anywhere without help.

That’s just my two cents and I make no claims of being any kind of expert or authority on the subject.

P.S. That’s a good looking rig.

 

[Deleted member 59857]

Sliders, then any skids to protect the low hanging fruit.
If you want diff armor, get beefed up covers. You won't need them for touring.

Rubicons come pretty well equipped. I suspect the only things you may want are more beefy skids to replace the stock if needed.
I thought Rubicons came with rock sliders?

Only other thing is maybe some metal guards for the taillights

I envy the Jeep guys, the aftermarket is huge.

 

[madcratebuilder]

Sliders, skidz and then bumpers.

 

[trail_runn4r]

I installed a front skid first, then sliders. Especially here in Colorado, from my experience the front skid has been much more useful than sliders. I got a set of stock (lightweight) skids in other areas that also have been used quite a bit and soon I will replace with stronger ones. Pics below.

 

[LostInThought]

I’ve reached the point of my overland build (Jeep JLUR) that I’d like to start adding some amor/protection to my vehicle to have a little more peace of mind on the trail.

Like most, my build has been incremental over time and so I’m wondering what I should prioritize and add first.

Here is what I’ve been thinking in terms of priority but I’d love to get feedback from others as I’m new to most of this.

1. Front/rear bumpers
2. Rock sliders (skids)
3. Front/rear differential skid
4. Gas tank skid?
5. ????

What would you say are the parts of the vehicle that I should prioritize and add protection to?

Thank you in advance for any advice.

Here's a weird suggestion: crawl under the rig regularly and look at where the combination of your driving and the rig configuration are creating fresh scrapes and scars under there. The difference between what you need for driving rocky 4wd trails vs what you need for rock-crawling is immense. Anyway, here's my list with a little explanation of my thinking for each item.

1. Front Skid & Gas Skid
   1. a bad hit on either the oil pan or gas tank can be pretty crippling to the vehicle - it's amazing how quickly you can lose a tank of gas... just ask me :(
   2. factory skids here will absorb some hits but inspect them regularly, and if you're consistently beating them up, heavier skids may be necessary
2. Sliders
   1. a hard hit on a rocker panel can cause collateral damage to doors, floorboards, and B-pillar creating a potential for very expensive repairs
   2. until you have sliders, you need to be much more conscious of your breakover angle and rocks to your sides
   3. adding rock sliders changes the capability of the vehicle allowing your driving technique to take advantage of the "slide" sideways or over
3. Front bumper / winch
   1. do this for the winch if you need more self-recovery than traction boards or if you're having consistent approach problems
   2. picking the *right* front bumper can improve the approach angle if you're seeing consistent approach issues
   3. you can always stack a few rocks
4. Rear bumper
   1. I see this as mostly a storage/cargo issue (fuel, tire, jack, boards)
   2. picking the *right* rear bumper can improve the departure angle if you're seeing consistent departure issues, but in most cases the hitch will be the first to drag regardless
   3. for some vehicles (4runner) you'd do this to move the spare tire for departure
   4. again stacking a few rocks can get you by
5. Lower control arms
   1. the arms are generally stronger than steel sheet, but a bad drop here can do a lot of damage. fortunately the tire and tire placement generally protects clearance here.
6. Diffs
   1. diffs are much stronger than steel sheet, but if you're consistently hanging up on them... well, I'd still stack a few rocks rather than relying on a skid here.

A spotter with more practice can often do a better job of solving approach, departure, control arm, and diff issues than armor.

Anyhow, just my opinion, I could be wrong. I'm looking forward to hearing how folks are thinking more than seeing the lists.

 

[LostInThought]

I installed a front skid first, then sliders. Especially here in Colorado, from my experience the front skid has been much more useful than sliders. I got a set of stock (lightweight) skids in other areas that also have been used quite a bit and soon I will replace with stronger ones. Pics below.

View attachment 174161View attachment 174162View attachment 174163

Is it weird that I can recognize the make/model of your vehicle from *only* pictures of the undercarriage?

 

[Deleted member 59857]

The Jeep has a sfa. The front skid needs are not the same as the 4Runner.
For touring, upgrading OEM skids will be more than sufficient. The OEM skids are probably just fine for purpose.

 

[socal66]

As a recent JLUR owner I have found the following:

The first part to armor up are the sliders. The Rubicon does have sliders but they are mounted on the pinch seams of the body as opposed to the frame and under heavy duress body damage will occur. Get sliders that mount on the frame or body mounts to the frame (the latter is somewhat controversial as you can snap the bolts securing the body to the frame if you mess that up). I put on some sliders that had tubes extending a couple of inches outward. The advantages of that include getting an entry step for shorter riders and it also serves as protection to one of the greatest damage threats which are people carelessly opening their car doors into your easily dentable aluminum doors. They also reduce the amount of mud and gravel being flung up the side of the Jeep too.

I bought the factory metal bumpers which I sort of regret after the fact as that money could have been used for better bumper solutions. That said the general consensus is that the front bumper is 'ok' given the weight and capabilities but the rear bumper is pretty poor. If you heavily bounce onto the Mopar rear bumper your body is exposed and will get damage vs. bumper solutions that have thicker armor that extend to beneath the rear body.

The under skids are dependent on how good of a driver you are and what you are doing with your vehicle. If you regularly go out rock crawling and seek out danger you may have different needs vs. someone who is more of an overlander that avoids those situations unless necessary. Skid plates are generally a tradeoff between effectiveness vs additional weight/cost and for the most part the factory skids are considered a good tradeoff. I have been looking at the skid system by Metalcloak as it provides more coverage and supposedly gives close to an inch more clearance as it runs tighter to the underbody but I am having second thoughts as to if I really need that.

One area where there are a lot of complaints under the body is with the forward facing drain plug on the front Dana 44 axle. Many people armor this up or replace the front cover with an aftermarket cover that relocates the drain. I figure if I bang that up I will then just replace the diff cover at that time.

 

[Dlnuckolls]

I tend to agree for the most part with others here. The best rule of thumb would be to upgrade areas that your most worried about first.

For me it was the fuel and transfer case areas, then moved on to the sliders. I try to avoid steep approach and departure angles, so those areas will be lay on my list. I did upgrade the front bumper and add a winch to aid in recovery situations, but still run the stock rear bumper.

 

[Alanymarce]

Or ...(different viewpoint) if you're "overlanding" and not "rock crawling" maybe you don't need to add anything. You're starting with a very capable vehicle in terms of protection, so do you really want to add weight (and cost)? We don't go "rock crawling" although we have covered some difficult terrain on overland travel, and in 47 years have never damaged anything more than having torn off a plastic cover and put a slight dent into a sump pan (which we replaced out of caution, but which wasn't leaking and would probably have been fine).

 

[grubworm]

when i'm rock crawling or going on rough trails, one of my main concerns is protection from the loud noises coming from the passenger seat....