Polaris RZR Skid Plate

Posted on November 17, 2013

Polaris RZR Skid Plate Review

Polaris RZR UHMW Skid Plate from Holz Racing Products
Skid Plate fromHolz Racing Products

Product Review – Skid Plate

Information:

The stock Polaris skid plate is pretty wimpy. Combine that with low ground clearance, and that can spell disaster in rough terrain. Here are a few examples of what can happen to the belly of your RZR with the stock skid plate:

Photos used with permission

There are several skid plates made for the Polaris RZR, but I’m not a big fan of aluminum for UTV skids. The reason is aluminum hangs up on rocks and gets gouged as you slide over them. This is extremely important on trails like theRubicon,Barrett Lake andMoab.

After searching around I found a company making skids using UHMW. UHMW (Ultra High Molecular Weight) is a extremely durable polymer that is used in many applications where abrasion resistance (the ability to slide over a rock) and impact resistance is critical. UHMW sounded like the perfect material for the type of skids I was looking for, so I decided to contact Holz Racing Products to get the ball rolling.

Installation:

The RZR is pretty low to the ground, so it would be pretty difficult to work on the skid plate with all the tires on the ground. If you choose to use jack stands, please be real careful. I am lucky enough to have a neighbor that has a lift in his garage, and that made it real easy to work on the RZR’s belly.

The first step in the installation is to remove the factory skid plate. There are about a dozen 3/8″ bolts with dish-like washers that need to come out. Just make sure you save these because they will be re-used on the new skid plate.

Good view of the underside of a Polaris RZR without the skid plate.

** Side note – With the RZR in the air, and the skid plate off, it it a great time to change your oil and filter without making as big of a mess. If I was going to do this again, I would have taken a bit more time and done a bit of service while the skid plate was off.

At this point, it is time to start installing the new skid plates. You start with the aluminum side skids. The normal HRP side skids look like this:

Well, I have the full body plastic from Fullbore Innovations and that just wasn’t going to fit. Holz Racing Products does sell have two versions of their side skid. The first is as you see it above. The second is for people with nerf bars or aftermarket plastic like me. Unfortunately, I did not think ahead. So instead of sending the side skids back for the smaller versions, we took matters into our own hands:

This hurt a bit since the side skids are really a piece or art…

Holz Racing Products - RZR Skid Plate
UHMW center skid plate with aluminum side skids in place.

Review:

I am very impressed with the UHMW material. It is thicker than the factory skid plate, and looks much tougher.

The fit and finish of each piece is top notch. All of the holes lined up nicely, and everything fit in place well.

The only issue I had with the kit is the rear aluminum skid plate is a pain to install. But if you want additional protection for your rear differential, you are just going to have to be patient. The area is very tight, and the way HRP designed it is about as good as it gets.

If you have nerf bars, aftermarket plastic and/or aftermarket front bumper, be aware that the normal aluminum may not fit. Smaller aluminum side skids are available without as much rocker panel protection.

I am very excited about trying the new skid plates on the Rubicon!

Contact Info: