TACO GARAGE - TRD Pro grilles (and garnishes)

What he said....

 

That one would be tough because thr mount for the 2020 Pro and 2020 Offroad canera are completely different. Even with OEM parts its not a direct swap for Pro and Offroad cameras on the grilles. Its not just camera placement theh use different mounts on the grill too

 

Would love an option for this as well

 

but it CAN be done...

 

But when can it be done?

 

You’d the the first and only to have an option for us with the front facing camera.

 

Question: I ordered a garnish first because I was initially expecting to get the grille from the dealer. That plan fell through so I ended up ordering a grille without the garnish, hoping to install the garnish already bought. The grille arrived today and it looks like the cover is permanently installed where the garnish would go. Is it still doable cleanly or do I have to order a new grille?

 

You should be able to trim up some of the melted plastic and push the cover plate straight through. A razor might be enough to trim it and get it loose, no need for a new grill. It shouldn't be attached very well honestly, just those two (or three?) posts that are slightly melted to stop it from pulling through on it's own.

 

The grille comes with fused pins but, barely, what we usually do is just tap each of those pins with the back or a screwdrinver or a small hammer, they break right off. Sometimes you may have a few burrs left over and you may need to clean them up with a knife or a file but yes this is normal and you can still install the garnish. BUT, I will say that NOT all garnishes are made equal, we have tested some that don't fit. We guarantee our grilles will fit our garnishes but anything else we cant guarantee.

 

Good to know. Thanks KiRRAx and Taco!

 

So before posting this... I had repeatedly tried to contact @FreshMexicanTaco explaining just how dissatisfied I was visually with the non-OEM garnish is. I was very professional and kind when I did so right after I installed the grille and garnish.

Now let me preface this by saying that I specifically asked him if there were any other options that could possibly be done to have a non-OEM garnish not look so out of place and he said that he “would check to see if there were any darker ones around and he could see what I was referring to” in the pics I sent right after installing. I did not ask for a refund. All I asked for was to upgrade to the OEM garnish and said I would pay the difference and after seeing the very high price on his site for an OEM one maybe we could work something out since I already paid for the non-OEM garnish and I could send it back.

I also felt it looked totally misrepresented on the website and in person stood out like a sore thumb.

He offered to give me a refund for $40 and since I had mentioned that I had found multiple dealership OEM garnishes for $280 or less he said he couldn’t match that (which I tried to understand) and that he would refund me the $40 for the non-OEM garnish which looked horrible. But I will say worked just fine for the 3 days it was installed so that’s a plus.

I said no problem and that would work for me. I even asked about ordering the “color matched” letters he sells and he told me he would take a picture of the truck he or they have and that way I could make sure the color was close (magnetic gray metallic)... Nothing... Refund... Nothing.

I am not the type of person to lash out like this but I even emailed him and said look man let’s just settle this since I’m still waiting for a refund or even a response and that way I don’t have to alert potential buyers about being careful and to be aware of what they are getting since his website looks like a normal OEM garnish when you use the drop down menu... Nothing.

Now I have been a member on here for a long time and I have read tons of complaints on this thread about craftsmanship, longevity, etc. and I tried to give this guy the benefit of the doubt.
Grille = Just fine.
Non-OEM garnish = A complete and utter joke (unless you don’t care how ridiculous it looks)

Customer service = No different than the garnish.

Any potential buyers just realize that what you are buying isn’t always what you see on pics here or on his joke of a website. I gave him a chance. He blew me off so it’s time I let you know that if you want a garnish buy the cheapest OEM you can find because the one he provides looks horrible. Looks don’t matter to some and I can respect that. That’s not me though.

PS. Anyone that wants the PMs back and forth please just ask. I have no problem showing each and every conversation. Meanwhile I will show you how it looked on my truck. If you have never seen the OEM garnish on a TRD Pro or a different model with an OEM garnish you should clearly see a difference. The OEM one stands out and that one even looks somewhat close the the grille.

The 2nd pic is the non-OEM and last 2 pics are OEM that I purchased after paying $40 for the crap that I thought would be comparable in terms of function AND aesthetics. Again, I tried to be cool but as a person using their hard earned money and a US Army veteran at that, I would think this guy would go above and beyond to make sure all the complaints in this thread were just misunderstandings. Not the case. Just ask for the conversations and you will see what I mean. I tried with him and his crew or whoever I was messaging back and forth with. Yes it’s only $40. But it’s also $40 + the price of an OEM that doesn’t look like a clown show on my truck.

Sorry for the negative post but I know many owners want their truck to look good oh and have someone that has good customer service. Buy his grille but find your own garnish. Just me $0.02.

 

Why wouldn’t you just file with PayPal or your CC instead? I have the same garnish but it’s not a $240 problem for me to solve either. OEM is nicer but..

 

Because I feel like he has shown to try and give us a grille at a reasonable price and also has shown many members how to identify the OEM from the “Ebay I’m a good person and I feel like I should at least try and work with the vendor. The radio silence is what made me just have enough. You do bring up a great point though. I will check into to that at this point. I just didn’t want to have to take it there since he has helped many members with just paying a fraction of an OEM grille price. The grille is the good part (I had a 2017 and actually had the OEM grille when they were reasonable and not many knock off options) and his is just fine. I just didn’t think the garnish was acceptable and based off of the pics on here and his website you can see that none of them look as strange as the one I got. I have been on this site long enough to know A LOT of members care about function, looks, and price. It worked fine for the 3 days I used it. It looked hideous and it was cheap, but looked like it.

 

Dang man, yeah I also had some cosmetic concerns on the aftermarket garnish as well, taco garage even sent me out a replacement after I complained but that one was worse than the first so I kept it. These aftermarket ones are made in some chinese sweatshop I have no doubt, and they definitely do not go through quality control. That said, I dont think I noticed mine sticking out that bad - on your oem pics it looks like maybe the front end of your truck is in shadow, what's it look like in the sun? That might be enough to get me to go oem if that version is more hidden in daylight.

Otherwise I like the one i got, and no issues at all with the sensor, works perfectly.

I agree with the customer service, took me two weeks to recieve my order and communication was very slow.

 

Thanks for the reassurance man. So I already replaced it with the OEM but I still have the non-OEM one here since he never worked with me so I could send it back and get a refund. I can’t take different pics but it won’t be on the truck but what you saw was pretty much identical to what it looked like in person. It was around like 6 pm when I took it so not really any shadowing unfortunately. I tell you what I can do... Now that I think about it I will take a pic of the non-OEM beside the installed OEM and that will def show a big difference.

I understand shit happens, but make it right. He offered to refund probably about 3 weeks ago. Since then nothing... I mean that’s just either immaturity or a disrespect to customers. I don’t care what it going on outside of your business. You have to still maintain customer service. I am in PA school (basically med school in 2 years), I just separated from my wife etc. but I still have time to address this issue. All he had to do was communicate.

I wish all vendors were like MESO. He is a stand up guy and will do everything he can to keep his customers.

 

I think my taco garage garnish looks terrible... but I don’t think the OEM one looks much better.

I wonder what would happen if you took the taco garage garnish and added some tinting film... at like 35%... that would darken the “grille” shapes of the garnish and possibly help the look... but would it screw up the tss sensor?

 

He actually suggested doing that but I wasn’t willing to do so. The OEM one already stands out but the one I got was just unacceptable. I just wish he had held up his end of the deal and kept his word. Just shows who are good vendors and who aren’t.

 

aren’t the OEM garnishes like $300?

 

They are

 

seems like someone could make a pretty clip if they made a garnish with a more subtle matte finish...