Ugghh... 0-2 on Upgrades (Nfab SS and Wet Okole)

WTF...I must be cursed!

I have a 2013 Double cab and I was trying to add some accessories but it's been a joke thus far!

I ordered the Nfab Stainless Steel nerf bars over a month ago and I just saw that surface rust was showing up! SS and rust?? What kind of cheap shit is that? I've read a lot of good things on this forum about them with no mention of rust. Did I just get unlucky or are they shit? I specifically wanted SS so they wouldn't rust...ha, joke's on me. Now I have to try to find a box (because my dopey ass threw the original away) to ship these back to Amazon. BTW...Amazon so far seems to be handling this well but I have no idea where to find a box that's long enough to fit these nerf bars?

Next on my upgrade list was the Wet Okole's to keep my seats protected and provide some additional comfort. I received the rear seats a week ago, front's should be here in the next day or two. Installation is pretty straight forward, nothing difficult and the look and feel are very nice. BUT...they screwed up the rear (driver side) back, you know..the 40 split part of the back seat. There is a latch hole that locks the back seat, the hole that Wet Okole cut was towards the inside of the truck when the latch is more towards the door. Almost like it was stitched together 180 wrong. Waiting to hear a response back from them on how they plan on fixing. Hoping they take care of this quickly, otherwise I will not be pleased.

Just venting, not very happy right now. We all work hard for our money and no one likes to be taken advantage of and throw away hard earned money. I expect these issues to be resolved but now it will cost additional time to uninstall, pack up, ship back, wait for credit and then find something else. I will keep this post updated for those interested. I spend a lot of time reading this forum and making my picks based on what others have said here. Just sharing so that everyone can see that there is a bad side to some of these well known and well loved products.

Thanks for listening, let me know if anyone knows where I can get a large box to ship those nerf bars?

 

Just so you know, cheap stainless still will still rust. Nfab bars shouldn't though. OZ had his for a few years in Canada and the pictures he took in his sale thread still looked good.

Do the steps have to be in a box? Sometimes carries will just carry the raw product, just lash them together and slap a label on them. If you need a large box, get a couple Uhaul or Lowes moving boxes, cut them up and tape the pieces together to make a large, custom sized box that suites your needs.

 

just paint the nerd bars black..being constantly wet or having water sit on them can cause that rust

 

I just had a friend tell me the same thing, cheap SS will rust, but how in the world are you supposed to know if it's good or cheap SS?

Amazon said a box, but I didn't ask otherwise. But I like your idea, might just need to cut up a few boxes and tape them together!

 

If its just surface rust wouldn't it be easier to polish them and go on?

 

Usually you can tell by the grade they advertise. They shouldn't be rusting. I had a set of cheap stainless steel nerf bars on my truck for about 4.5 years and they never rusted. I just sold them off and they still look great. Hopefully you get taken care of. Sounds like someone tried to pass chrome plated for stainless steel.

 

If I've had them on there for a year or longer, then yes. But after only a few weeks?...junk to me!

 

Simple... if it's not 304 or 316 grade stainless don't waste your money. All manufacturers state what they are using if it's good shit. If it's junk they hide it.

304 is typical stainless (sinks etc.)

316 is marine/military grade.

Nfab uses 304 grade stainless steel. It should not be rusting so quickly.

Can we see some pictures of this rust??? I find it hard to believe 304 is rusting so quickly, but it is possible. My sink is 304 and is older then myself with no rust.

 

No rust on my Stainless NFabs after 2 coastal , saltwater Canadian winters

 

Here are some pictures, keep in mind these are just 4 small areas...the rust is everywhere and on both sides! I can't imagine anyone here thinking this is ok after only being on the truck for 3 weeks!?!?

 

Looks like the rail dust that the trucks get sometimes

Sure it's not a surface contamination ?

 

That's not typical of 304 stainless steel that's only 3 weeks old. Seems to be isolated near the welds which I would expect, but that's a issue for sure.

Problem with dealing with Amazon is those bars could be years old and already started corroding before you bought them Was Nfab the seller on Amazon?

That said......... you do live in NJ so maybe the toxic rain has had at it??

 

When I got them, they were nicely wrapped and packaged. Everything looked great, I didn't see any issues when I unboxed them.

When I logged into my Amazon account, this is how it lists the item and seller......

N-FAB T0678CC-SS Polished Stainless Steel Nerf Steps; Wheel 2 Wheel Toyota Tacoma Double Cab All Beds 05-15

N-Fab T0678CC-SS Nerf Step Bar Wheel To Wheel Sold by: Amazon.com LLC

That's some potent toxic NJ rain!! (It's amazing my skin doesn't melt when it rains!)

 

Yea, I would return them. I'm sure you can polish out the rust, but it will keep coming back and NJ will eat them away in a few years if they are that bad off the start.

Maybe Nfab makes shitty bars for Amazon sales?? It's possible they use a lesser material for sales there.

 

I am no expert by any means, but as I ran my hand/finger nail over, it felt pitted to me. From what I understand when it's pitted, it's not surface...it's deeper.

 

Thanks for all the feedback, at least I don't feel crazy. It seems like plenty of other people had success with the Nfab's, I just got unlucky or a lemon. Either way, I will return and look for something else!

I will keep everyone posted on how the return goes, just to see how Amazon does.

Still waiting to hear back from Wet Okole on that one seat cover. I don't expect there to be any issue, I sent them pics so they can see that I am not an idiot and it's not an installation error on my part.

 

Contact Nfab.

 

As for your Wet Okoles, I thought they had messed mine up in my old double cab but it was actually just me not having them installed correctly.

Have you tried removing the seats so you can really spend some time orienting the covers, etc...?

I've had four sets of Wet Okoles and they have all been perfect. Not saying mistakes don't happen, but it'd be shocking to me as the seats in the 2012s didn't change much at all.

Fink

 

I definitely stared at this for awhile and played around to see if I was brain-dead and couldn't figure it out but I am 99.99% sure it was just cut or stitched together incorrectly. Take a look at the photo's, the first one is of the cover laying on the surface in position, the second pic shows that black latch on the right side that the seat hooks into, and the third pic shows the back of the seat cover. (You can clearly see the hole for that hook is on the wrong side.)

If I am crazy and missing something, please let me know?!?!

I got the other side of the rear seat in without issues as well as the seat of this side, so it's only this section in the rear that has a problem.

 

Are the covers left/right specific?