Plastic Skid Plate...

hi, my Daughter's 2000 Beetle is on its second Plastic skid plate & its half gone after losing the buttons that hold it on. they are EXPENSIVE to replace, my question is just how important are they anyway ? can the car be safely driven without it ? Thank for any help

They DO serve a purpose. They keep dirt, sand other things from getting up in the engine bay thus helping oil leaks from developing from dryed out seals.

You can drive w.o one if you want to but its reccomended that you dont (also helps on aerodynamics and fuel economy).
If you go to non dealer oil change facalities they tend to break or "forget" to put back on your 120.00 belly pan.

thanks veedubmechanic. $120. not so bad. the dealer here in Nor-Cal wants almost $400. installed :rofl:

Boy you guys are getting hosed! That plastic skid plate is on Ebay---usually less than 50 bucks. The four bolts as you referred to as buttons are just self tapping screws. You can get them at the hardware store. It takes about five minutes to install this plate. Common guys! Do it yourself, or at least wait till oil change time. They have to pull it off to get at the filter anyway. Let him put the new on back on. You need to have a talk with the daughter about her driving. She is very close to knocking a hole in the oil pan!:lol:

you can get a metal one for about 250 at dieselgeek.com for lowered bugs to protect the oil pan

you can get a metal one for about 250 at dieselgeek.com for lowered bugs to protect the oil pan

I own a 2002 1.8 Turbo Volkswagen Beetle. The skip plate detached. The mechanic that removed it said that there are three pieces, one center and 2 sides. I can't find the side pieces only the center piece. What are the side pieces called?

just dont even worry bout it, the only thing that you might really need it for would be to protect your oil pan, but its plastic so it dosnt even do that.
the noise shouldnt be noticable.
i dont have mine on.
helps just a dad dissapating heat cuz with the plates off you can feel the heat being blown out from underneath when the fans are on.
Heat=death to any car

a "little" problem has developed with leaving the belly plate off ! it & the lower front plastic is the only thing the bottom half of the radiator is anchored too, so now it swings a few inches each way. so now I prolly need a new belly plate & lower front plastic trim & all the buttons. and I still haven't replaced the oil pan yet.

The belly pan, center and sides are available for $65 and $35. You can install them yourself. THe dealer will sell you the parts and the hardware -sell tapping screws. Takes 15 mins.