Mobtown 2016+ Slider Post-installation Review

Thought this deserved it's own review/thread.

In search for a set of sliders for my 2017 Trd Pro, I decided on @Mobtown Offroad Sliders. The main thing that lead me to their sliders was the fact that their sliders require NO DRILLING (true bolt on) and they had some very appealing features. A few of these being the reinforced back end of the slider, the use of beam clamps, and their frame box c-clamp solution. Truly makes for a solid bolt-on solution. Though I haven't tried it myself, many other customers have shown pictures of the entire weight of one side of the vehicle being high-lifted from the slider.

There are enough reviews on how well made and well engineered theses sliders are so I'm going to focus on four things here, delivery, customer service, installation, and build quality. But before we get started, here's obligatory pics every thread needs...

Slider pickup



Sliders installed





Ok, pics out of the way...

I ended up getting on a group by here on TW and had these shipped to me (powder coated) for a total of $851 ($671 for slider/shipping, $150 for powder coat). Looking at all the competition and even local powder coating costs... this was quite the deal and I'm super happy to have been included on the group buy (20% discount).

Onto the review:

Note: There was talk about what torque specs are used for the bolts. I found instructions for a Jeep slider installation that stated using 80 ft/lbs of torque. Though the bolt and nut hardware included with the kit (Grade 8) would handle this torque, I found that the lock washers would stretch and sheer off with anything greater than 35-40 ft/lbs of torque. I stuck with this range as I was going through too many lock washers (thanks for adding extras with the kit!)

Delivery

Mobtown does an impressive job building a custom pallet to ship these sliders on (I mean real impressive... you can tell these guys are engineers. The pallet was almost as impressive as the sliders themselves). They do an excellent job wrapping up the sliders that are powder coated to protect them as well as possible. Shipping is handled by a freight company. The freight company did as well as they could I guess but my sliders did come to me a bit nicked up on the passenger side slider. Some touch up paint might do the trick but I'm not sure how much more Mobtown could do to protect these during shipment. Anymore protection and I'm sure Mobtown would have to increase their prices. Maybe it would be worth it? Depends on how much more they would have to charge. I always just assume there will be some minimal damage to things like sliders when they are shipped with powder coat. However, I guess it would've been nice if the shipping company took a bit more care with deliver (wishful thinking right?).

Customer Service

Mobtown has two users on TW that are very active, @Mobtown Offroad and @jowybyo. Both have been very response through PM on the forum. After receiving my sliders, I had a situation where my kit was missing two fairly important bolts. I posted on the group buy forum late Friday night. Wake up early Saturday morning and both of these users had responded to the thread with one even providing his personal cell number. They clarified a few things and told me I could use the stock bolt in the mean time while the shipped the two missing bolts out as soon as possible. I texted @Mobtown Offroad a few times and got all of my questions answered within seconds. This type of customer service is SUPER hard to find these days. Kudos to this company regarding customer service. I'll just say, "WOW!"

Installation

There is a manual that can be downloaded from Mobtown's website (psst... after the last edit, your manual link on your website doesn't work anymore! Direct link:2005+ Tacoma Rock Slider Installation Instructions.pdf). The manual is decent but misses a few specifics. I think they assume you have to have some technical know-how to install these. I would say that you'd need a bit more knowledge than changing a tire or changing your oil to be able to complete this installation w/out scratching your head too much. Mobtown updated their manual recently and the new edits clarify things so this is good.

Now, the driver side installation is a bit complicated. You have brake lines, boxes, fuel tanks, and clips that make this side's installation a bit of a beast. I have the 2017 TRD Pro so there are a few extra things that make this a bit more challenging of an installation (all 2017's have this extra box thing tucked into the frame that gets in the way). I ended up having to use a vice/clamp tool to squeeze the C-clamp together to get the holes aligned. Figuring out how to lift these sliders into place with a floor jack/jack stands and finding out some of these extra tasks made the driver installation (the first side I attempted) a day-long process. The passenger side was quicker and easier as I didn't have to deal with a fuel tank in the way or all the brake lines. There was another box that required some modifications (details below). The passenger side took me a total of 1.5-2 hours. Much quicker as some lessons were learned from doing the driver side. Still had to squeeze the c-clamp together on the passenger side as well. If I were to do the installation again, I think I could get it all done much quicker as I've had one go at it and understand what needs to be done.

A couple details with the manual that I might as well lay out here:

Step 3: I was able to reuse the plastic brackets that hold the wire looms. I was sure to be careful removing them hence the possibility to reuse them.

Step 12: The pictures shown in Step 12 and Step 13 are different than my 2017. The box mentioned in Step 12 is positioned more to the right as seen in the picture. This causes an issue with alignment (the 2nd bolt location sits on top of one of the square washers from the kit) and I was unable to bolt the 2nd nut of this box back on. Wasn't a big deal as the C-clamp holds it all together. The other bolt was used to keep the box in place. Just an FYI that this box appears to be moving around with different years.

Step 13: I ended up having to use a vice-type clamp to squeeze the formed C clamp in place to line up the bolt holes.

Step 14: The back most hole for one of the bolts is super difficult to get to with the fuel tank in the way. Adding an extra washer with the welded arm would have helped immensely with this one. Feature request?

Step 17: The box talked about in this step on the 2016 and 2017's proved to be a little bit of an issue for me. I moved the plate forward per the instructions but the plastic box would not fit back over the wire looms. I had to dremel the opening to be wider to allow the wire feed to pass through the new location of the box. Not a big deal but it was necessary on my 2017.

Build Quality

The build and powder coating of this slider kit are superb. The attention to detail having the machined parts, such as the washers powder coated, really add that nice finishing touch. The extra machined accessory parts also spoke volumes as to the engineering work that went into these sliders.

My only gripe is that on my passenger side towards the back of the slider, it droops down about a 1/2" compared to the driver side slider. I made sure to use a floor jack to press the slider up towards the back per the instructions but even with this, the slider on the passenger side has a slight slope downwards and hangs about a 1/2" at the very back as compared to the driver side. I'm assuming that little variances like this are common and expected. I'm a perfectionist and notice things like this. I don't think it's an issue or does it look overly awkward or strange to the naked eye.

Aside from this small gripe, all the holes lined up great and I can tell Mobtown spent some time to make sure these sliders accounted for all holes and openings to make sure there weren't any alignment/fit issues. I think adding a few of the details mentioned above to the manual would help people during the installation possibly saving some time.

All-in-all I'm very happy with everything and the sliders look great. I hope to get them dirty soon and will report back once they've served their purpose.

Thanks again, @Mobtown Offroad and @jowybyo for the excellent customer service and for the great product.

 

Thank you so much for the write up Dilan.

We are going to go over your comments to see how we can improve on them. I am working on fixing the link now for the instructions. As for the slider droop, there is something going on there. Often, what happens is the sliders are heavier in the back which causes them to droop during install. Best thing to do is place a floor jack under the back flange that bolts to the chassis where the beam clamps are. Put the jack on the underside of the flange, under the chassis and jack the truck up to the point where the back tire is just off the ground. Go through and loosen all the hardware to the point where they are just snug. The slider will adjust to level. Then go through and tighten all the hardware starting from the back and working forward. Then once all hardware is tight, lower the jack. That should fix it. Let me know if I can help in any other way.

 

No problem! I'm serious when I stated your customer service is off the charts. If and when you grow as a company, try not to lose site if this! It's a big deal to us consumers.

Regarding the droop, I did floor jack the sliders towards the back while installing per recommendation. Today I checked to see if there was any space between the slider and the frame from one of the bottom cutouts towards the back and at the very most I have a half a fingernails width of space on one hole and no pace at all in another. Definitely not 1/2 an inch. When I get the metric bolts, I'll try loosening things up and jack it up again at the very rear of the slider. Not that I'm surprised, but couldn't there very well be some inconsistencies/imperfections between the sliders and the frame? Not all of these parts are built the same, right? Regardless, hopefully it'll just need a little nudge with the floor jack. I can eventually get over my anal-renterive ways and be fine with the 1/2" droop at the back.

Also, one other question, what's the best way to touch up the blemishes in the powder coat? I was thinking of using a brush and some black primer to try and cover the small scratches and create some of the texture. Any recommendations?

 

I understand the customer service side of things and it is the most important thing I view in a company. I try to handle it the same way I'd expect to be treated if I had an issue.

I sent the bolts today. You will have them in 2-3 days. There may be tiny variations in the truck and sliders. We use a fixture to build them. They come out perfect each time. Every single set will match any other set.

As for paint touch up, we like satin black VHT. It matches very well. Light dusting over the area after you clean it with a little acetone.

 

Thanks for the tip on paint. I'll give it a shot. If I can't eliminate the 1/2" droop, I'll chalk this up to the frame then.

Thanks again! Also, if you require any picture of how things look installed on my 2017, let me know (in case you need extra pics for the manual).

 

Send pics. I'm not going to say no. Might be useful.

 

Thanks for sending the missing bolts so quickly. I tried loosening up the left side and jacking the furthest back part of the sliders and re-torquing everything down. I'm still at about 1/2" of "droop" at the very rear as compared to the other side. Not really sure what's up but it doesn't look like it's going to change anytime soon. It's really not horribly noticeable and I'm sure I'll forget about it eventually. Just wanted to post a quick update.

 

We have had a few cases where customers have stated the same that you are. We went back and forth and checked every measurement under the sun and verified that sliders were good. One of the biggest things we learned was on older trucks, the bushings on the cab mounts become soft and the cab leans on the chassis. This isn't so much the case with new Tacomas BUT we have had one with it. A brand new one in Las Vegas, NV was waaaaaaay out. We ended up building him another, crooked on purpose to be parallel with his pinch seam.

 

Yeah, I have about 1.5" between the back end of the slider and the pinch seam on the passenger side and about 1" on the driver side. It's not horrible. Just out of curiosity though, I'm not sure how you handled the Las Vegas customer but I'm assuming he had to send one back and get another one delivered?

 

Correct.

 

Sorry to revive my old thread (and super sorry about the Photobucket broken photos...). However, as mentioned in my review... lots of wood left over from the pallets which lead to this...


Thanks!

 

Nice bike!

I ride a Cannondale 5. Best bike I have ever owned for the money.

 

I just did weld-ons and they went on easily. Minimal grinding required on the frame near the cab mount weld and knocking down two crossmember stud heads on each side.
Very happy with the results. Customer service is top-notch. @Mobtown Offroad thanks a ton!

 

Finished them up tonight with a final coat of matte black.

 

They look great!!!

 

Can't wait to get my Mobtown sliders. Put in my order yesterday. #7970. Hopefully have them ready to go for some fall time off-road!

 

Mobtown FTMFW!

 

Those sliders sure do look nice!
After looking around at some other options out there, Mobtown’s really do stand out as the way to go for bolt on sliders.
Ha ha someday I’ll be able to afford the sliders and skid plates from these fine folks.
I just hope the cost of getting them shipped to Canada isn’t too bad

 

For anyone who has yet to install these, if you unclip everything from your frame, it'll speed up the process. I've found that if you tighten up the bolts on this box first after loosely fitting all other bolts, you'll have a good time.


Bolting up this box can be tricky but you can also give it some encouragement.


Also, if you find the balance point when lining up the slider, you can do it by yourself.



You really don't need to put the beam clamps because it is already really sturdy but I'm OCD and it came with it.


Have fun reaching these bolts. Lol.


Oh and I put a hose on the long nut so it won't be making noise.



Enjoy! Thanks Mobtown!

 

Mine should be coming real soon and I hope I don't have too much trouble getting around my Pelfreybilt skid plates.