They can actually be worse, trapping heat in.

But yea, completely non-functional. Remove it if the clips are broken. You aren't missing anything.

I assume they are talking about the splash guard / aeroplate underneath the engine which helps with MPGs to some extent. The plastic engine cover doesn't even need to be touched during an oil change.

Person I responded to said engine cover, that’s the plastic shit on top of the engine. It’s worthless.

Correct. Only talking about splash guard.

Look up the plastic clip part numbers on a Honda parts site, then cross-reference them via eBay or Amazon to get a significantly cheaper knock-off. I've been able to get a bag of 20 for the price of 1 bought from the dealer parts counter. If they don't last, well you have plenty of spares now.

They're not "non-functional" at all.

They reduce wind noise, increase mileage particularly in colder weather (and speed up engine warmup time), protect the engine from road debris/road salt/water, and reduce lift generated at highway speeds.

"Trapping heat in" isn't a problem in almost any modern vehicle.

There's an engine cover, and a cowl cover - the one on the bottom is good, the fake plastic trim on the top is worthless.

https://www.forgemotorsport.com/Hyundai_i30NVeloster_N_Carbo...

this is worthless, and better to keep it off.

Person I responded with said engine cover. That’s the shit plastic they put on the top of an engine. It traps heat. It’s literally worthless.