Need ideas for belly pan

[JRMichler]

I'd like to put an air dam and belly pan on my Canyon. I'm not real concerned about ROI or payback, but would like to get closer to that magic 40 MPG in summer. Here's a picture taken about six inches above the floor.



The transmission crossmember is several inches below the front crossmember. I figure that a belly pan could angle down from the front crossmember straight to the transmission crossmember. Then the air dam would extend down to the level of the front crossmember. The air dam would be made from conveyor belting. It needs to stand up to smashing into a snowbank.

The problem is this. How do I deal with snow and salt building up on top of the belly pan? I don't mind 100 lbs of snow and sand piled up in there, but the salt in it will rust out anything. And there's no way for rain to flush it out.

Any belly pan that I put in will stay in year around.

[mcrews]

you can certainly create drain holes.

[2000mc]

what would the pan be trapping salt in contact with? could you just spray the spots you're worried about with undercoating prior to install?

[JRMichler]

Around here, they mix salt with sand. The sand/salt mixture gets thrown up and collects in every possible corner, crevice, and flat surface. The salt is hydroscopic, so the mixture will make rust all year, even in fairly dry weather.

Once that rust gets underneath undercoating, it spreads fast until the undercoating is just hanging there.

Somebody fit a belly under their truck by fastening Coroplast to a square tube framework. I'd hate to put something like that in, then watch it fall off from rust in 3 or 4 years.

[COcyclist]

Metal screen (aluminum?) has been used for belly pan material. You could try that for a season.

I have had snow blow in gaps in the belly pan, melt from the exhaust heat, and re-freeze as ice. Eventually it did thaw and drain without removing the belly pan. Perhaps the rubber air dam could be used year round and the belly pan used in the warmer months?

[BamZipPow]

Originally Posted by JRMichler

Around here, they mix salt with sand. The sand/salt mixture gets thrown up and collects in every possible corner, crevice, and flat surface. The salt is hygroscopic (not hydroscopic), so the mixture will make rust all year, even in fairly dry weather.

Once that rust gets underneath undercoating, it spreads fast until the undercoating is just hanging there.

Somebody fit a belly under their truck by fastening Coroplast to a square tube framework. I'd hate to put something like that in, then watch it fall off from rust in 3 or 4 years.

Fixed yer post...
Hygroscopy - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

[Gealii]

if your worried about the salt getting stuck on top of it you could build a belly pan that mud truck racers use, its fully connected in the front 1/4 of the truck then it breaks off remains smooth all the way back with gaps on the side and rear. It would allow you to wash the salt out with ease while keeping most the gains from a smooth underbelly.

The mud trucks use it to glide easily through the mud and then the mud is not stuck on top of the pan creating more weight it just falls out as more water/mud mix flushes through it

[TheEnemy]

Or a hose fitting, some adapters and a pice of pipe with holes drilled in it to flush the belly pan as as easily as possible.