Damage from Mud Flaps

here is what damage you can expect from your mud flaps, if you leave them on too long.

these are not "dirt marks"
these are grooves gouged into the plastic of the fender flare down to the unpainted surface.









my rear ones have been on since i bought the truck (2007)

fortunately, i took the front off soon enough to just get some scraped areas that were easily buffed out

 

mine did the same, once i lifted i left my back flaps on for about another year and a half and i have the same results. Luckily im a BSP so its not as noticeable.

 

sucks, big time!

 

ditto here!!

 

Im not to worried about this, being that I will prolly leave mine on..

 

That bites. I'd like to take mine off too Sock, but I want them to protect the paint on back a ways. What to do...what to do. I'm thinkin' of cutting mine back a little.

Why did you decide to take them off?

 

Oh, hey, a while back, Bill found some trim tape that was the same color as his silver that worked perfect. I'll contact him and see where he got it and if it is available in white.

 

That sucks. Maybe you can use a little color matched vinyl?? Best of luck.

 

i just didn't like the look of them.

i will prob end up putting some vinyl back there anyway

 

sounds good. He said the tape he found was made by 3M.
Vinyl would work too.

 

Id love to remove mine..but being in MN the winters would take a toll. Any suggestions for suitable replacement ideas?

 

....make a pattern.....lil' marketing....nah, no marketing....voila...new Sock product.....like ya got time for more products

 

For Hoosertaco - I like the Rhino Liner idea. A black stripe down the bottom.

 

easy fix, put them back on so you don't kick crap out at other drivers..

 

Just cut about 3" off, it really helps cut down on the wind shear and still protects the side of the truck.
I did this to the fronts.

 

Thats what I did, and have wheeled with them hard since and they have worked just fine.

 

Yup. I always laugh when I see a Tacoma on the freeway and see the front flaps actually "flapping." This was the first mod I did to it once I saw that, I had to bust out the jigsaw.

 

I cut all 4 back about 1/2 way up, trimmed and sanded the edges to stock radius and I really like the way the truck looks - when driving and seeing other trucks, the full length ones just look wrong now

 

The damage is MUCH worse if you take them off! I wish I had never taken mine off in the first place. MUCH more scratched and chipped up paint than that. Luckily I have been able to get my truck re-painted and my mud flaps are staying on! I cut a good bit of length off both, but they are staying on!

 

never had a problem with chipping behind the flaps, just tar.

ended up cutting about 3.5" off and re-installing. will get pics.

i also "deburred" the edge that touches the truck so that it should do no more digging into the flare