This is not necessarily true. A friend and I made several carbon and carbon/kevlar belly pans for the B5 chassis Audi. We sold them for around $350 each and couldn't keep up with demand. I laid the first one we ever made out in the street and ran over it a few times, with nothing more than a minor scratch on it. Also, I hit an armadillo going ~70 mph with no consequence to the belly pan or car.
To say the skid plate would shatter is an overgeneralization IMO. It depends on the design and materials used. Ours proved to be exceptionally durable and units a few years old have sold in the secondary market for more than we charged.

That's worthy of some kudos, Pat, pretty impressive item...why not do the same for the Boxsters? ;)

...what was the consequence for the armadillo? :dance:

I responded to Rayner's PM about using my car for measurements but never heard back. Let me know if you're interested and where/when we can meet. I don't have much spare time but am willing to help.

if a pan could be made from carbon fiber strong enough not to break, I think it would be price too high.
I feel that the cost would price it out of my hands. From my point of view, a sheet of material on the bottom of my car, that no one can see, that is designed to get hit and scratched, should be as cheap and practical as possible. A press formed sheet of stainless, I would think, cost less and would sell more.

I agree that a carbon fiber skid plate is not a good idea. That's a way too expensive material for a part that is supposed to absorb impact. A carbon underbelly could be useful on the race track, but not on the street. Someone mentioned a metal skid plate to a carbon diffuser. That is the only reason carbon fiber was brought into the discussion.

I like the stainless idea, but stainless is also expensive. Not only the material cost, but there is added machining cost. It's also heavy. The weight isn't a huge problem because of the location on the car, but it is a factor that must be considered.

Could I request that the skid plate be alluminium or plastic?

Would also be ideal if it were made up of relatively small pieces that dzus clipped together. (this would also make shipping much much more affordable!)

Sam

You have valid points. That said, the pan on the B5 has a few vents in it, and it would not be easily made of metal. If someone really wants one made from the OEM mold, metal is not a viable option. We were going for OEM fitment and functionality. As for the cost, yes it is expensive. That said, we couldn't keep up with demand, so I was not concerned about it. Sellers don't determine prices, buyers do. Lastly, real-world testing and usage confirmed the durability was outstanding. Keep in mind the pan was not made like a carbon body panel. it was somewhat flexible, comparable to the OEM pan.

Maybach 62S has a full length belly pan, material looks like FRP (Fiber Reinforced Plastic). Thin gage metal would be very noisy when rocks hit it.

We finally got the prototype in. I thought I would post a pic. Personally, I think it looks amazing. I still need to make sure the measurements are correct, and perform a couple more tests. Does anyone in the Dallas area have an engine we could perform a test fit on?

Looks great! If I was closer than Australia - I'd pop by for a test fit!

Sam

Ryan, I've had an idea for quite some time and just don't have the money or energy to do it now, but I sure would buy it if you guys made it.

Someone needs to come out with some perforated & painted stainless steel rollbar inserts. A CNC machine should be able to do it without a hitch. The plastic ones break, get stolen if the car is left in a parking lot with the top down, or they blow off when you drive quite fast and your passenger reclines their seat.

The only fix is to zip tie them down and that looks like crap.

Just an idea since you asked for ideas for our cars.

Now there's an idea, I'll give Randall a +1 on that!

You're too kind, overdrive :cheers:

Hey, I'd +2 it, but I'm not that awesome. We just have pretty similar taste, it seems. I like function way more than form, but I won't complain when I can accomplish both.

That's an idea I've considered as well. I had some different thoughts on materials and manufacturing processes and it all turned out to be too expensive for me to pursue (at least for now). It is a pretty complex part to manufacture as is not to mention improving on it.

If someone can come up with a better insert I would definitely be an interested potential customer.

hah! i've been watching this thread, wondering when it was going to degenerate from performance parts to carbon fiber this/that and cosmetics bits/pieces. we were almost there when the carbon diffusers came up, but now we are all the way.

i'd like some carbon fiber golf tees please; i rest my balls on them when i drive ...

I'd consider a set of functional diffusers, regardless of what they're made out of, and an underbody panel to protect the engine while providing some airlfow for cooling, to be performance parts in keeping with the title of the thread.

me too; that's why i listed underbody panels in my first 'ask' also. i just think that 99.9% of folks who get a diffuser do it for looks, not performance.

Fyi, Renegade Hybrids have developed an electric power steering kit for the 996. $1200 though ...

Like I was saying, I'm definitely more for function over form. The Aerokit supposedly actually helps the car aerodynamically rather than being strictly an aesthetic package, and if that is indeed the case, great (though I'm not a huge fan of the look), but I can't just go and throw agressive looking parts at the car just to make it look different...I'd rather spend the money on gas. :dance:

Any updates on the development of parts?

Sam