A while back, I went to one of those corporate places for an oil change. They fucked up putting the metal thing back on the undercarriage, but a family member told me it would be okay without that. So I’ve been driving without the metal protective layer thing.
This fell off sometime on my drive home from work. We are currently experiencing tornadoes, so I can’t examine it too closely at the moment. It appears that it was just zip tied back on…
I am dead broke - my money this month has to go to car insurance, I can’t even afford registration at this point.
Can I just rip it off? I need an oil change soon, but I’m going to try to stretch it out a month or so.
It’s not critical, but it keeps things clean, keeps salt/snow off in winter, and contributes to fuel economy and ride quality.
Stretching an oil change is a bigger concern, especially if the oil change interval is a long one. Learn to do it yourself, it’s really simple and depending on the car you may be able to do it without ramps or a jack if you’re creative in parking eg over a dip or one wheel (securely) on a curb. Ensure you don’t spill oil into a drain.