Finished the underpan on my VX

[GasSavers_TomO]

Spent some time today and fitted a front under pan and covered the center of the car with some 2' wide flashing so the exhaust isn't hanging in the stream of air. This is basically the last step in my VX under pan since I did the sides of the car long ago.

I'll get better pics in the daylight but for now:
What I first installed (view from behind the car)


Finished (view from under the drivers side front)


No SuperMID to report solid numbers with, but I should see a 1-2 MPG gain since I drive Highway speeds 90%+ of the time as well as the school season starting again. So far I've noticed better coasting at highway speeds (up to 65MPH)

[SVOboy]

on the nice work.

[basjoos]

That front and mid section now looks like the underside of my car. Now all you need to do is to finish covering the area from the gas tank to the back bumper, including that curved section of the exhaust pipe (the only area open on the underside of my car is the underside of the muffler.

[GasSavers_TomO]

Thanks for the props!

I actually ran the flashing all the way to the rear sway bar in the back of the car, lol. I don't think I'll be doing much more to it this year. The muffler fills the void on the passengers' side and I have the stock VX diffuser in the drivers rear.

[basjoos]

The CX didn't have a stock diffuser, just the exposed gas tank, underside of the spare tire well, and back bumper, so I also covered that area of the car with coroplast.

[Sigifrith]

This would be perfect for a how to do write up.

[GasSavers_TomO]

Yeah, it could be good for a how-to... if it weren't for me not taking any pics during the construction, lol.

Basically, it went like this:

Parts -
4'x8' Sheet of Coroplast (from a sign shop, $12)
2'x4' Sheet of Coroplast (free campaign sign)
20"x10' roll of aluminum roof flashing (from Home Depot, $9)
100 small self drilling screws (from hardware store, $4)
100 small washers with rubber lining (from hardware store, $7)
~10ft. of aluminum foil tape (From Home Depot, bought a 50ft. roll, $12)

How I did it:
I split the 4'x8' sheet lengthwise to get two 2'x8' sheets.
Then I removed the factory side skirt plastic retainers and slid the coroplast between the side skirt and the unibody.
Re-installed the plastic retainers securing the coroplast on one side.
Then used the self drilling screws and washers to secure the inner side of the coroplast to the unibody near the exhaust.
Trimmed the length of the two strips near the back of the car.
I then took the 2'x4' piece and screwed and trimmed it to fit the contour of the front underside of the car and to clear the suspension bits.
I cut a slot out of the front piece to clear the exhaust bits.
Then I screwed in the leading edge of the flashing to the front of the underside of the car covering the slot I made in the colorplast.
I secured the opposite end temporarily so I could put in some screws along the length of the flashing.
I covered up the edges of the flashing as well as the edges of the coroplast with the foil tape.
VIOLA! Underpan!

[Bill in Houston]

Good stuff. Thanks for sharing.

[GasSavers_TomO]

No problem, Bill. That is what we're all here for, to share and learn.




Jeez, I sound like an afterschool special, lol.

[Nerds laugh at me]

Nice stainless steel exaust !
I'd love to hear some more on your results with the front piece under the engine and transmission.
I just scored some ( 1/16" ? ) aluminum sheetmetal that was being thrown out as garbage. I plan to cover the underside just as you have.

One of my main concerns is that the sheetmetal will rattle and make all sorts of noise. I made and installed an aluminum belly pan just under the engine and transmission on my car. The thong worked fine when driven along, but rattled and buzzed at idle.
I made the first one out of thin flashing akluminum riveted to aluminum cross bracing, so I'm hoping that this thicker stuff I have n0ow will work better.

If you have time, I 'd love to see some more images of your work.