# Sticky  Upgrading the engine splash shield (Gen1 1.4L & 1.8)



## carbon02 (Feb 25, 2011)

Xtreme- If I recall the posts from back in the day, some of the bolts that hold the large original splash shield on use speed nuts that are part of the frame. 

2011's and 2012's that were modified by the recall would still have these speed nuts in the frame, all the owner would need is the bolt. However for 2013 and up I believe the mounting may have changed. 

I remember a similar thread that someone did where they needed to buy hardware and if I recall correctly it wasn't expensive, but it was dealer only stuff.

The original shield is on with a lot of connection points. I think there's close to 10 or 12 on my original 2012 sheild. I'm not sure you would have to use all of them. 

Just letting anyone who tries this know, the holes probably are in your frame, but not sure of the nut portion of the connection is in all of the mounting locations. 

Proud to say original 2012 owner, and my car has never been back to the dealer, outside the first week I had it for a strut support noise. So I have the original splash shield, painted with stencils with the words. "Do NOT CUT".


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## eddiefromcali (Aug 21, 2017)

if my shield hasn't been cut, would it be any different than the $34 shield?


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## XtremeRevolution (Jan 19, 2012)

eddiefromcali said:


> if my shield hasn't been cut, would it be any different than the $34 shield?


Depends on what year your Cruze is. The newer years had a redesigned shield that didn't need to be cut, but was the same size as the ones that were cut.


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## eddiefromcali (Aug 21, 2017)

in my case, a 2014


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## carbon02 (Feb 25, 2011)

eddiefromcali said:


> in my case, a 2014


So your shield doesn't cover as much of the lower body as the $34.00 one. By 2014 the saw procedure was being done by the manufacturer of the shields before they were sent to Lordstown for vehicle assembly.

It does keep the bottom of the engine quite clean, especially in salty winter roads of the midwest. In Cali, is it worth it? That depends. Keeps undercarriage dry if you drive through a lot of water in the rainy seasons.


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## obermd (Mar 3, 2012)

eddiefromcali said:


> in my case, a 2014


It has the cut shield.

Also, the original shield needed a couple more holes drilled in it. After you put the shield on the car sit the car on level ground and you'll see a couple of low points. Oil will collect at these points. Drill a hole in each low point and the oil will drain out instead of sitting in the engine bay near the exhaust manifold. From the pictures it appears the other problem with the original shield has been fixed - a lip around the entire rear of the shield that held leaked fluids on the shield.


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## XtremeRevolution (Jan 19, 2012)

carbon02 said:


> So your shield doesn't cover as much of the lower body as the $34.00 one. By 2014 the saw procedure was being done by the manufacturer of the shields before they were sent to Lordstown for vehicle assembly.
> 
> It does keep the bottom of the engine quite clean, especially in salty winter roads of the midwest. In Cali, is it worth it? That depends. Keeps undercarriage dry if you drive through a lot of water in the rainy seasons.


There is reduced road noise, improved fuel economy, improved highway stability, and cleaner engine bay from using this. Even if you aren't getting salty winter roads, you are still getting dust and grime.


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## Rivergoer (Mar 30, 2017)

Excellent info.

I take it this does not apply to 1.8L or Diesel models?


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## LiveTrash (May 24, 2015)

Rivergoer said:


> Excellent info.
> 
> I take it this does not apply to 1.8L or Diesel models?


I would tend to think it would not. I was just at the shop with my Diesel. They had it up on the hoist and I had a peak under it. The shield on mine seems rather large and covers quite a bit of the engine bay, similar to the large one pictured in this thread.


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## XtremeRevolution (Jan 19, 2012)

Rivergoer said:


> Excellent info.
> 
> I take it this does not apply to 1.8L or Diesel models?


It will not fit on the diesel, but it looks like the 1.8 uses the same shield.


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## Blasirl (Mar 31, 2015)

XtremeRevolution said:


> Want better fuel economy, a cleaner engine bay, reduced road noise, and better highway stability? This thread is for you!
> 
> Back in 2011 and 2012, the Cruze and the Verano both used the same engine shield. It was a great design. Then, the NHTSA started investigating engine fires. Apparently, sloppy oil change techs would spill oil all over the engine bay, which would accumulate on the shield, splash on the exhaust, and catch fire. Bullshit recall ensued to address the PR nightmare.
> 
> ...


XR, I forgot what year you have, but can you talk more to the bolt holes / hardware issue for those of us that have a 13-16.5?


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## XtremeRevolution (Jan 19, 2012)

Blasirl said:


> XR, I forgot what year you have, but can you talk more to the bolt holes / hardware issue for those of us that have a 13-16.5?


There are anchors that go into the rear of the subframe for the shield to attach to. I'm not entirely certain on what hardware is missing but I assume that's part of it. 

Sent from my BlackBerry PRIV using Tapatalk


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## carbon02 (Feb 25, 2011)

I have not confirmed the information in this thread, but page 3 of the post linked below discusses some of the issues that I mentioned above with the speed nuts in the frame. 

I think the new info is that the splash shield is available in the aftermarket with reasonable shipping. I think the dealers cost for original shields, or shields from the Verano made most people just accept the dealership hack job recall. 

Someone would have to go through the part pages for a 2011 or 2012 cruze and gather the info on the bolts, speed nuts, and fasteners. Either on Nally GMC Wholesale parts (Google it), or your favorite online site for GM part numbers. I mention Nally because back in the day they had parts lists up before GM parts direct, and I believe the would have the pages for the splash shield. I remember seeing them. 

This entire topic is coming back from the dead.. There were a lot of posts back in 2012-2013 about people complaining about the recall and reinstall splash shields. 

http://www.cruzetalk.com/forum/25-g...-engine-splash-shield-need-part-number-3.html


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## Blasirl (Mar 31, 2015)

XtremeRevolution said:


> There are anchors that go into the rear of the subframe for the shield to attach to. I'm not entirely certain on what hardware is missing but I assume that's part of it.
> 
> Sent from my BlackBerry PRIV using Tapatalk


Thanks for the reply.



carbon02 said:


> I have not confirmed the information in this thread, but page 3 of the post linked below discusses some of the issues that I mentioned above with the speed nuts in the frame.
> 
> I think the new info is that the splash shield is available in the aftermarket with reasonable shipping. I think the dealers cost for original shields, or shields from the Verano made most people just accept the dealership hack job recall.
> 
> ...



This may be exactly what I need. This is a post from that thread with what seems to be all the needed info. I am going to try and verify in a few moments.




evanblar said:


> Installed it this morning.
> 
> My car is an early production 2013 (built 8/12), so it came with a factory cut shield. The full shield uses 8 bolts, the cut shield 6. The bolts thread into expanding nuts which clip into rectangular shaped blind holes in the subframe, and there were two missing nuts on mine. I wound up using plastic drywall anchors in those holes as a temporary measure until I get the correct parts. If your shield was cut in the recall I would imagine the nuts would still be there and you would only need 2 extra bolts.
> 
> ...




Pilfered from the link Carbon02 posted above


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## Blasirl (Mar 31, 2015)

_This is what I found.

24441317 __U-Nut _






_




95216004 Splash Shield Retainer _









_94520301 bolt

Don't forget that it is about $14 in shipping as well, even for only one nut._


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## DMC (Oct 22, 2012)

I ordered the Verano splash shield from Amazon a couple of weeks ago and installed it on my Cruze over the weekend after an oil change. I have had the "recall" shield for a long time, but decided it was time to put the original design back. I have to admit, I was skeptical of the claim of reduced road noise, but damned if my car didn't seem quieter on my drive to work on Monday.


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## carbon02 (Feb 25, 2011)

DMC said:


> I ordered the Verano splash shield from Amazon a couple of weeks ago and installed it on my Cruze over the weekend after an oil change. I have had the "recall" shield for a long time, but decided it was time to put the original design back. I have to admit, I was skeptical of the claim of reduced road noise, but damned if my car didn't seem quieter on my drive to work on Monday.


 I just removed my factory uncut shield for about the 3rd time doing maintenance. What did you use for the additional fasterners required? Where did you get them? Specifically the sheet metal screw with the washer attached? I'm missing some of those. It appears they are 8mm heads, but I haven't found anything close yet, and not looking for dealer hardware at $5.00 per screw. 

My research shows that M4.3-13 or something like that is the screw size. Must be a metric thing. 

After 8 years, you could eat of my oil pan and tranny, and living in the rust belt with salt, that's why I kept the shield. 

Glad it worked for you, and they are still avalible.


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## Blasirl (Mar 31, 2015)

I used some Harbor Freight panel nuts and screws for some of them. I listed them here:
*How I installed a Verano engine shield*


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## Ravenkeeper (Sep 10, 2017)

Glad that I stumbled across this one. Been wanting to replace all of the ones on my '14 Eco. Other than the "Stealerships," where can I get them?


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## Blasirl (Mar 31, 2015)

Amazon.com: Engine Splash Shield compatible with VERANO 12-17 Under Cover/Air Deflector w/Aluminum Pad USA Built: Automotive


Buy Engine Splash Shield compatible with VERANO 12-17 Under Cover/Air Deflector w/Aluminum Pad USA Built: Engine Case Guards - Amazon.com ✓ FREE DELIVERY possible on eligible purchases



www.amazon.com


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## BrentBridge (Dec 15, 2018)

So the one listed at Amazon in the previous post fits a 2015 1.4L Cruze? When you check the fitment at Amazon, it doesn't show any Cruzes.


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## Blasirl (Mar 31, 2015)

BrentBridge said:


> So the one listed at Amazon in the previous post fits a 2015 1.4L Cruze? When you check the fitment at Amazon, it doesn't show any Cruzes.


Any Gen I Cruze and related Veranos are interchangeable. The one I listed above is currently on my Vehicle.

*How I installed a Verano engine shield*


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## Miguelcon74 (Sep 2, 2019)

I just bought this one today from this website. There's a couple that have them and just like amazon, it's your choice on where to order. Got it for $45.

*GM1228147 says 1st design 12-14 years? and gm1228148 part #'s 12-17 years.

To me they look exactly identical. The gm1228148 costs a couple dollars more.






Engine Splash Shield/Under Shield/Engine Splash Guard


Undercar shield; oem first design undercar shield; 12-14 veranooe first design




www.plusmore.com







https://www.plusmore.com/body/undercar_shield/gm1228148


*


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## CRUISE-CRUZE (Nov 8, 2010)

I got mine from Rockauto:





VARIOUS MFR GM1228148 Engine Cover | RockAuto


RockAuto ships auto parts and body parts from over 300 manufacturers to customers' doors worldwide, all at warehouse prices. Easy to use parts catalog.



www.rockauto.com


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## Blasirl (Mar 31, 2015)

Miguelcon74 said:


> I just bought this one today from this website. There's a couple that have them and just like amazon, it's your choice on where to order. Got it for $45.
> 
> *GM1228147 says 1st design 12-14 years? and gm1228148 part #'s 12-17 years.
> 
> ...


Good prices, I'll have to bookmark that site for future reference.





I'd go with the $29.00 myself, they both are Replace brand. Or at least write to them and ask what the differences are.


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## txcruze26 (Jul 7, 2015)

Definitely going to have to add these to my To do list, thanks for the info!


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## Valpo Cruze (Feb 23, 2014)

So what kind of increased fuel economy will this produce, I know the OP said some but I did not see that defined.


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## LionIX (Oct 24, 2020)

I’d say <1, recently did it, but there are so many factors to gas mileage that it’s hard to tell. I did it for the cleanliness of the bay and crosswind resistance (can’t really comment on either atm).


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## XtremeRevolution (Jan 19, 2012)

Valpo Cruze said:


> So what kind of increased fuel economy will this produce, I know the OP said some but I did not see that defined.


Will depend on driving speed, use of cruise control, and your particular terrain and environment. 

Sent from my BlackBerry Key2 using Tapatalk


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## Valpo Cruze (Feb 23, 2014)

Alright our new to us 2011 had the recall done and the tech did a shitty job so I might spend the $50 to put a full pan under it. I suspect the “fix” was a knee jerk reaction to try and fix the problem. My Audi is full pans from the front bumper to half way on the trans without any problems. In fact just about the whole underside is panned. The center where the driveshaft abs exhaust is the only area without a pan.


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