Hi all, Looking for input from those that have this skid plate or have seen it installed.

We bought the Lucky 8 LR3 gas tank and just installed it. We are NOT impressed. I removed the OEM skid and did a direct bolt up as I received no instructions and the short description on the website just makes fun of the factory skid. One person on another forum said it is supposed to be installed over (or underneath in this case) the stock skid. I would never entertain that as it would take away from ground clearance. Seeing the HUGE gap in between the skid and gas tank and how low this thing hangs had me speechless. Also there is a side bolt hole doesn't attach to anything so it's just 3 bolts holding in this huge skid and it just hanging out in the breeze, very shaky. I also don't like how the sides of the gas tank are not protected. If a rock gets caught in between the side of the huge gas tank flap and the soft gas tank and frame look out!

exposed gas tank inboard side

exposed tank outboard side

mounting hole doesn't line up to anything

almost 2" gap


I will close by saying I've always been happy with Lucky 8 as a company and their products however with this I really expected a lot more, especially for this price. I've reached out to Lucky 8 and am waiting to hear back. Unless something big changes I am returning the skid and reinstalling the stock one, which fits like a glove and although not pure beefy strength has been quite sufficient for the wheeling we've been doing.

*pics attached, it's hard to get good angles for photos but it shows the inboard and outboard exposed tank sides, teh hole to nowhere, and the huge gap/ clearance loss.

 

You installed it wrong. The factory cradle remains. Its not technically a factory skid plate since it literally holds the tank in place as its primary purpose.

 

Thank you Dakota Travler. I will put the OEM back up and then this and see if I like it. All the other brand off road vehicles we have are the same way, the factory skid, whether strong or not, is how the gas tank is secured to the vehicle.

 

The factory one is pretty good. The issue is they rot out pretty bad after a while and that can weaken areas. Or the damn thing can even fall right off. But they can take impacts and rolling over rocks pretty well. But if you do a lot of rock crawling, a secondary plate is the way to go.

 

Just as an update since the OEM skid was off I took the opportunity to clean and repaint it. There were some very small beginning rust areas that were hit with rust converter then coated over.

The Lucky 8 skid was then installed over the OEM. It’s a bit more sturdy with the OEM tank in place but it hangs LOW. You lose almost 2” of ground clearance with this so you’ll need the skid with as much stuff as you’ll hit. I really wish the plate had the contour of the gas tank instead of just a straight piece. I’m going to look into seeing if I can install a cross brace to tuck it up but may just return it.

Also Lucky 8 responded and said that the bolt hole in the skid midway on the passenger side is meant for certain model LR3’s that have a mounting location there. We have 3x LR3’s and none have anything that hang that low to mount to so I’m curious how that could be. Now I’m gonna be crawling under every LR3 I see, lol!

 

Two inches? Seems excessive. But also keep in mind that plate is flat the factory is contoured. Is it two inches more at the lowest factory points?

By the way, if you are thinking of sending back maybe look at these. They came on up eBay a few months ago. These actually replace the factory shield. These are steel, 10 gauge. But probably weights less than the combination you have now. I am considering one myself. But if I get one, I will be adding some drain holes (I do a lot of water crossings) and I will add some neoprene pads for the tank to rest on to prevent rubbing, etc.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/225426901918