2024+ Front Shock Top Hat Failure TALLY...

You should be going full-send as frequently as possible, to make sure breakages occur before the warranty expires and not after.

 

Of course

 

Yup half ton front bump stops are located in the shock assembly. I couldn't recall what Ford was doing on the 150. I did not see the bumpstop on the Tacoma shock until I saw the PT&SUV talk video with the bump stop shown on the Icon video. I've atleast made sense of that confusion.

 

I posted this in another thread already on the same topic but my 24 OR Premium Hybrid had a top hat failure on an FSR at 6000km. Small pothole destroyed the shitty potmetal ring. I drive FSRs and trails a couple times a week so was probably repeated stress as the pothole I hit was really small and easily navigated by 50 other trucks and Subarus after it got me. Even worse that this is that there are no parts in Canada and the truck has been in the shop 3 weeks and counting... And will be replaced with the same shitty part it came with. Icon top plates already ordered but I can't tell if these will actually solve the problem or just make it less catastrophic. Anybody with actual off road experience with them?

 

Let’s see some photos

 

Chock it up to early adopter woes. The 2025 4Runner went back to a steel top hat. Not sure if the 2025 Tacos did as well. Picture of a 4Runner at a dealer:

 

cranny what is the build date of your truck ?

 

Had the icon tops on mine for about 5-6 Months, and was off road a lot with no problems. Replaced all 4 shocks with JRI’s.

 

Sure would be nice to find out if they changed the Tacoma top hats to steel. I’d like to replace mine for them rather than adding an aftermarket on top of pot metal ones.

 

How can you tell that it is steel instead of pot metal? I wonder if the 4 Runner part would fit the Tacoma?

 

That looks proper!

 

That's clearly stamped steel like Toyota had been using the previous 40 years. Compare side by side with the 2024 potmetal cap and it's very different. You are welcome to drop by your nearest dealer with a magnet in hand.

 

2024. September build date. Both sides look good after 3,000 miles.

I’m going to look closer during daylight tomorrow

 

Unfortunately, I hit a pothole this weekend and ended up with the same top hat cap getting blown through on my TRD Off-Road Premium. This wasn’t just minor damage—it really shouldn’t have cracked under those conditions. My experience with Toyota was disappointing, as they immediately denied coverage due to my leveling kit. However, I took it to another dealership, showed them the video evidence, and they agreed to start the process without requiring multiple visits.

This highlights a concern: they use aluminum when they should really be steel. The limited number of reports on this issue could be because many trucks primarily stay on pavement, but that doesn’t mean it’s not a real problem. I have a video of the incident, and the damage was caused by nothing more than potholes.

 

Shit!!! Sorry man that sucks.

 

I wonder why Toyota felt the need to reinvent the wheel, so to speak, on the top mount of the front shocks...?

 

Part of the problem is the internal bumpstop. Coupled with a weak top hat. Recipe for destruction. If the truck still had an external bumpstop like all previous Tacomas and even the current land cruiser, would not have happened.

 

Big opportunity for the aftermarket here

 

I'm sure they are working on a decent solution. A balance of strength, and ease of install are key.

Total Chaos has a weld in option available. But it's designed to go with their aftermarket lower control arms.

 

So could U tell it was 'blown' by driving? Or do U hav to see it messed up?