Fuel Tank Skid Plate for 2015 TRD Sport

Looking to buy a fuel tank skid plate for my newly acquired 2015 TRD Sport.
Cali Raised LED said I will need to change out the fuel tank straps to those of the TRD Pro models with the bolts & studs sticking out.

They recommend RCI Metalworks, at $160 a pair

Is the oem part about the same price?

Not overlanding, just a lot of dirt roads in decent shape(graded yearly); Or should I just skip the fuel skid altogether?

 

Saw somewhere you can convert your gas tank straps yourself. Save your money.

 

I would skip the skid plate entirely for the kind of driving you say you'll be doing.

 

OEM. Or the plastic one.

I have steel. Added studded straps. RCI. 1/4 or 3/16”?
For wheeling. But it adds weight.

 

Bud Built has them but mid $250 range and you will need a rear OEM tank mounting strap if your sport does not have a current plastic plate.
Tank is just plastic so sharp rocks or ledges/logs will cut it. Or carry a JB Weld tank stick.
Pick an OEM plastic one and strap up at a junk yard from an Off Road.

 

Not sure if it matters but the tank stick is intended for metal tanks according to JB weld. Permatex makes one for a plastic tank

 

This, No need for any aftermarket skids for graded roads.

 

There's already a LIGHT WEIGHT plastic skid on it..

 

Nope, no plastic skid

Just the metal skid under the engine

 

If you don't have a skid I would go the junkyard plastic skid & straps route for the type of driving you mentioned. Also remember gas weighs about 6 pounds a gallon, this will be much easier to do with an empty, or near empty, tank.

 

I recently changed my fuel pump with a full tank (engine wasn’t running at the time)

I used 2 straps to hold and slowly lower the tank. It was really easy and did it solo.

Using them to temporarily hold the tank while swapping tank straps should be easy too.

 

Sounds interesting. Any pics or write-up on this?

 

The 2nd/3rd gen Tacoma fuel tank tucks flush with the frame, so you can get away with a thick UHMW plastic skid plate. Trail Toys makes one that attaches with nylon straps and buckles. Pick the one corresponding to your cab configuration:
https://trailtoys.net/products/uhmw-gas-tank-skid-plates-2005-tacoma-dcsb-and-access-cab
https://trailtoys.net/products/uhmw-gas-tank-skid-plates-2005-plus-tacoma-dcsb-and-access-cab

Discussion here: https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/trail-toys-uhmw-gas-tank-skid.365312/

 

Yours doesn't have something that looks this? Maybe it's only on TRD models.



https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/16-trd-offroad-fuel-tank-skid.471265/

 

The OP is adding a skid to the tank, so at some point they will need to slide/place the skid between the 2 straps you suggest using to lower the tank. I'm going to stick with the suggestion this will be much easier with an empty, or near empty, tank. Also it was my experience as well as suggested by others on Tacomaworld, that it is easier to align the bolts with the holes on the skid if the tank has a low amount of gas in it.

Of course... YMMV.

 

Yes the plastic skid is only on TRD Off Road and Pro models. Other trims don't have the skid and don't have the studs on the fuel tank straps to accept a skid.

 

You don’t need to lower it to swap the OEM tank straps. Just use a jack or the straps I mentioned to support one side of the tank at a time.

 

Well..... I'll put it this way then:

It is stupid to do this with a full tank of gas if you have a choice. The OP has the choice, that's my suggestion.

 

You’re really making it more complicated than it is. You only need to support half of it while you swap one strap at a time.

60 lbs at most?