Grille Guards, Steelcraft vs Westin for a 2017 Tacoma

2017 Tacoma, Grille Guards, my two cents review, Steelcraft vs Westin

I had purchased a HD Steelcraft grille guard, via Carid, for my 2017 Tacoma, but it was not received in acceptable condition (from manufacturing and shipping). After being refunded I purchased a HDX Westin, grille guard, via etrailer. First, I have to say the Westin was much more difficult in install; luckily I had a buddy with more experience on such projects, more patients and the right tools. The instructions covered several years of Tacomas and were poorly written and illustrated. With that said the packaging from Westin was far superior than that of Steelcraft’s. Westin had every part covered by cardboard cut to fit. Under the cardboard the grille guard had been wrapped in foam. The likelihood of the grille being damaged was very unlikely. On the other hand the Steelcraft only had foam and bubble wrap around it with a thin leather like covering around it all on the outside. Before even unpacking the Steelcraft it could be seen were the corners of the up rights had cut through the wrapping. As mentioned the quality of the grille was poor. There were places where it had not been powder coated, the powder coating on the punch out was sloppy and one of the up rights appeared to have been damaged before it had even been wrapped. The Westin was made of thicker and wider steel. Both grilles were one piece units. The Steelcraft bolted to the frame using vertical bolts, which seemed to me could be sheared off on impact, while the Westin grille bolted on horizontally. Steelcraft looked good the way the upper part of the guard turned inward to follow the upper part of the grille, and the Westin upper part turn outward following the angle of the lower part of the grille. The Westin offered more protection. If you were to hit something the wider spread of the Westin uprights seem like they would protect more. The uprights on the Steelcraft were just powder coated medal, but the uprights on the Westin had a nice rubber strip over them, well suited for pushing another vehicle. The Westin cost more, but worth it. Just make sure you’re very patient and having a pass though socket is a great help since there is very limited room to work under the bumper on the upper bolts. And Steelcraft’s warranty is two years while Westin’s is three years.

 

Nice review and write up. I’ve had several Westin products and have been happy with them all. Currently have a Westin bull bar on the front of my truck and it is heavy duty and quality.

 

Thanks, I have been happy with the Westin products I've purchased before too.