Don't try the above feat at home but here you can plainly see how strong the Dieselgeek Panzer Plate is!!

Why should I buy a Dieselgeek Panzer Skid Plate?

  Our heavy duty aluminum Panzer Plate kits protect all of the parts in the bottom of the engine bay, including the cast aluminum oil pan, a/c compressor, radiator, condenser, transmission, and rear subframe. These items, and especially the very thin cast aluminum oil pan, can be easily damaged by road debris, ice chunks, and minor off-road excursions. Many A4 chassis engines have been destroyed by debris putting a hole or a crack in the aluminum oil pan and the subsequent loss of oil and oil pressure. Also, the 1998-2005 generation cars are very low to the ground and the front springs on these cars are relatively soft which causes the cars to bottom out frequently.  Damage often occurs when bottoming out.  In addition, the plastic belly pan that comes with these cars is often damaged. A replacement factory plastic belly pan currently costs up to $329.78 (New Beetle TDI).  Why replace it when you can buy a highly protective aluminum skid plate?  Installing our hefty .190" inch thick aluminum skid plate will help you avoid costly repairs and give you peace of mind that your engine is protected!  Take a look at these pictures:

Key Features of the Panzer Plate:

* Made in the U.S.A.!

* A removable oil drain plug access window has been added to enable TDI Golf and Jetta owners to drain oil from bottom of car!  An optional but free* snap-in sheetmetal cover is also available to keep snow and debris from entering oil drain window.

* An integral three-point stress “bar” at the rear of the skid plate stiffens the somewhat under-reinforced rear suspension subframe and eliminates the need for costly aftermarket lower stress bars.

* Less weight than other plates—23.35 pounds installed (with side skirts) for Panzer Plate versus 34.65 pounds for other plate. 

* Panzer Plate has 6/10 ths of an inch more ground clearance than with the steel skid plate. (4.200” inches for Panzer Plate versus 3.650” inches for steel plate measured on the same car on the same day and measured in the same place. Car was driven ¼ mile and allowed to settle between measurements.  The absolute lowest point of the plate was the measurement location.)

* Maximum impact protection for your oil pan, transmission and subframe, A/C compressor (TDI), power steering pump (1.8T, VR6, 2.0)

* All necessary high-grade hardware is included with kit.

* Panzer Plates are computer designed and CNC manufactured to ensure a great fit and good looks!

* We have the best rivnut installation tool provided with kit. Our rivnut installation procedure is bulletproof!

* Panzer Plate will fit with any aftermarket sway bars.

What about oil changes?

* TDI:  Panzer Skid plates are now punched with an easily removed "keystone" shaped oil drain plug access window.  This hole will allow you or an oil change technician to easily drain the engine oil from the oil pan without removing the plate. We will open this window for you for free if you select that option at the bottom of the page.  As an added bonus, you may also opt for a free* snap-in sheetmetal cover for the oil drain window by selecting that option at the bottom of this page. Alternatively, a Pela 6000 oil extraction device may be purchased to allow you to suck all of the used oil out of the dipstick tube. There is a link to the Pela 6000 at the bottom of this page.   

* VR6, 2.0 and 1.8T:  To access the oil filter on these engines it is necessary to remove the skid plate.  Removal of the plate is a five minute affair and the plate itself only weighs 17.25 pounds. Because you need to remove the skid plate to change the oil filter there is no need to remove the oil drain window knockout below the drain plug.

* Free when purchasing a skid plate.

Do I need to purchase a replacement engine bay side skirt kit?

  You do not need to buy new engine bay side panels if your stock side panels still have the two middle screw holes in the bottom flange nearest to the ground.  The side plastic splash shields keep water and dirt out of the engine bay and also reduce engine noise.  The modifications required to allow use of your existing side plastic splash shields are easy to do and should take 15 minutes maximum by simply cutting them with a hack saw. See instructions for modifying your engine bay side plastic splash shields here.  If you are missing your side panels or if they are too damaged to be used then you may want to order new aluminum side shields from the two links at the bottom of this page. The Panzer Plate will work without them but it's nice to keep water and dirt out of the engine bay.

U.S. Shipping: (Please read!)

  Ground shipping is around $20.00 for most US destinations. Exact shipping rates can be calculated automatically when you select the "Add to Cart" button.  After you get to the cart page just input your zip code into the box on the right side of the page. The shopping cart will calculate the exact shipping amount based on your zip code.  The Panzer Plate can be shipped via FedEx Ground, FedEx Home Delivery or USPS Priority Mail to all U.S destinations including Hawaii and Alaska.  If you select a faster method, you cannot have any other bulky products in your order since it will not add enough shipping money for a two package shipment. (The skid plate and hardware are packaged in one box and nothing bulky or heavy can be added to this box.)

International Shipping: For all international Panzer skid plate kit purchases we use U.S. Postal Service or FedEx.

The very small print: Please note that we receive Panzer Plates from our manufacturer with some very minor cosmetic blemishes so by purchasing a Panzer you are agreeing to accepting these blemishes as terms of sale. The plate will be very scratched up after a few weeks of use.

Instructions links for the installing the Panzer Skid Plate kit are here.