One of the first things you'll notice when looking beneath the Wrangler JK is that the evaporative canister is not well protected. It does sit within the frame, but there is nothing really protecting it from rocks or other items on the trail. During my trip to Colorado I most likely damaged the canister while backing over a boulder near Imogene Pass. After returning home from my trip I wanted to find a way to give the vulnerable evap canister some protection.
There are relocation kits available, but I ultimately decided to go with the Skid Row Evap Canister Guard, due to its ease of installation. I finally got around to installing it last week and it was a very simple installation. I think it took around an hour to install and wouldn't expect it to take anyone more than two hours to install. I've included some photos below from the installation.
Installation Instructions
JK Skid Row Offroad Evap Canister Guard Installation Instructions (JP-5007)
Installation Tips
Probably the trickiest part of the installation is attaching the skid plate to the mounting braces. The way I did this was to stack some paint cans and wood beneath the evap canister upon which I rested the skid plate. This doesn't need to place the skid plate flush against the braces, but just needs to position the skid plate close enough to be comfortably attached. I think it is important to attach the front of the skid plate first because it simplifys attaching the rear of the plate which has spacers that need to be installed.
If available, a motorcycle jack works well for holding the skid plate against the mounting braces. I didn't have a motorcycle jack available when I did the installation, but my dad recently installed the same skid beneath his Jeep and it worked very well.
Conclusion
Now that the evap guard is installed I just need to try it out. It was well constructed and I think it will offer significant protection on the trail. As I said before, the installation was relatively simple and the guard was well designed.
Photos
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