skid plate install

i am new to this website and have a problem installing the OEM skid plate on a 2005 tacoma v6 quad cab sport package. First i am not sure if i am suppossed to remove the black factory skid plate that is there now or just install on top of it. furthermore, I tried installing it over it and the gap from the bumber and the skid plate was an inch. the skid plate says that there shouldnt be a gap maximum of 20mm. the skid plate i bought comes with spacers on the two front bolts? can those be removed or must be on there?

 

Skid plate should fit on top of black factory plate. There will be a gap present...mine is about less than an inch, but it doesn't bother me at all. You can try to remove those spacers, but I believe the gap should be there in case you hit something underneath...that way your skid plate won't push up into your bumper and damage that, too.

 

Hhhmmm, yeah, without those spacers mine rubbed against my bumper. I would put them in and not worry too much about the gap (1" is only 25.4mm anyways).

 

Thank you guys very much! I greatly appreciate ur promp response. I will look into it once I get back home.

 

I am sure you are suppose to remove the black factory plate, unless I installed mine wrong.

 

i dont know if it matters. but the instructions say to install over the black one

 

That's what I did and it turned out great!

 

yep me too.

 

On rick's pic, you can see the gap a lot better than on my pic. IMO, I think you should keep the gap and not worry about it.

Nice rig, rick!

 

Yeah, I left mine on too. As thin as the TRD one is, all that will help, I will leave on (short of going to aftermarket, that is)

 

it is desighned to insatll over the factory plate and yes it has a space takes 5 mins follow the directions its easy they look great

 

I still have the factory skid plate in my garage, it was just sitting there I didn't know what to do with it. I guess I'll just put it back on the truck and put the aftermarket skid plate over it.

 

Does anyone have the installation instructions for the skid plate? I'd really appreciate a scanned copy if at all possible.

Thanks

 

Hmm, no, sorry. It was pretty simple for me after doing my FJ skid without instructions. And I only have the wiring manual.

 

I was just curious about installing over the OEM black skid or removing it. The dealer installed my TRD skid and removed the OEM one. I checked another Tacoma my friend has and the OEM black skid was removed on his as well. His came from the factory with the TRD skid and no black steel skid. ????

 

Are these skid plates tougher than the black ones? Where do you get one like these, and how much do they run? I intend on doing some minor offroading will these surfice or should I go another route?

By the way yalls trucks look great.

 

I bought mine for looks only. I didn't like to look of the black "guts" under the front end of my truck. If you know there's a good chance you're going to need a skid plate to protect against rocks, go a different route. The TRD skid is fairly thin aluminum. It looks great, but won't protect against anything much tougher than bushes.

They can be purchased anywhere TRD accessories are sold. I bought mine from TacomaPartsStore.com ($159.95).

 

Actually, the black skid plate is even thinner than the TRD one. I can actually bend it with my bare hands.

 

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