Pro's and Con's of Bottom pan ON or OFF?

Howdy All,
Im not sure of the name of the bottom sheet metal tray that bolts onto the under side of early vans or if it has a name.

Who out there know of the Pro's and con's of run the van with it ON or OFF ?

When I bought my van it didn't have one on it, but I have since found one that is in good shape, I'm not sure if I should put it on. Is thier a good purpose for them? Air Flow, looks, protection, extra weight, tool catcher.....WHY?

It's called a belly pan and it is designed to force the air, through the radiator to keep the engine running cool.

also offers some radiator protection from road debris.
wildbillinva

My vote is mostly radiator protection. Most of us are fair weather drivers. If you have ever put one of these in a snowbank without the pan you end up with an iceblock in the doghouse.

I bow to Occam's razor on this one.
If the factory spent the time and money to design, manufacture, and install these, that is a good reason to reinstall one.
The only time I drove one without a belly pan for a long distance, the engine holed a piston. Was that the cause? Probably not. The engine was tired, the day was hot and it was the first time I'd driven it long distance on the freeway. I won't do back-to-back testing to prove it.
Unless you are in the middle of a project that requires it's removal, why not install it and keep the airflow up and debris out?

I don't have one onmy 65, Based on my aerodynamics education I think they are designed wrong as far as airflow goes. They probobly will protect the rad somewhat.

I havn't seen any difference in cooling on or off except they are very in the way when it comes to working on my van.

M1D

I am thinking along the same lines as M1D. This is my third early, my 65 had the gut pan on it but I took it off to work on the rad and it never went back on. My 68 never did have it when I bought it, so I'm thinking some one did the same thing I did on the 65......So on the fence I sit....ON or OFF.

Is the belly pan on your Van, do you like the complete orginal stock look or What Ever?

I have a v8 and the belly pan keeps IN to much heat in the summer. Running without I get a lot more dirt and dust on the motor / dog house. I have put it back on now that the summer is over and so far no heat problem and a much cleaner engine.
I would say in you are running a 6 you should have it