BUYER BEWARE!: Built NKO.

Hey TW. This morning, I eagerly went to install my new Built NKO TRD Pro grille I ordered a couple of weeks ago. It arrived yesterday evening in tact and the box is in good shape. I ran to my nearest Toyota dealership to pick up new retainer clips to replace the old brittle ones. Upon installation, I realized the bottom three slots were loose and would not click into the clips. The top four fit well but not the bottom.

I've attached videos of the issue. I have emailed the company and hope to hear from them soon. I'll update when I hear from them. I'm giving them the benefit of the doubt until proven otherwise, fingers crossed. I'm just giving everyone information and input on the product.

https://youtu.be/M68Tlw3rFfg

https://youtu.be/MWLwY3geH1w

 

So you are blasting this company before even giving them a chance to correct it?

You clearly are NOT giving them the benefit of doubt here.

 

I'm not blasting them, I just want people to be aware if they're ordering the same part. I'll edit the title, I realize it came off harsh. I hope to hear from them, I was just surprised how cheap the grille feels.

 

Yeah, reviews say it's crap
Modding the OEM grill is still the only way to go.

 

At the very least I got new clips to secure my previously loose OEM grille.

 

UPDATE: Stay far away from this company. I bought this "98-00 Tacoma" grille (05-10-21) for my 1999 Tacoma PreRunner TRD and it does not fit. The bottom three retainer clip seats are manufactured incorrectly and they do not snap into the OEM retainer clips. I emailed the company the day I received the grille (05-21-21) when I realized it was faulty. I sent numerous emails to the company with photos and videos showing the issue, only to be ignored. The only email I received from them said they couldn't view the videos I had sent.

Only after threatening to report them to various consumer protection agencies did I finally get a response from them regarding the actual issue and return instructions (06-09-21). I kept telling them that for whatever reason, it just wouldn't fit into the bottom clips. They sent back generic, impersonal, and possibly even snarky responses that I needed to have it professionally installed if I could not do it myself. Furthermore, they want me to not only pay shipping on the faulty item, but a 25% restocking fee. Yes, you read that correctly... 25%... a quarter of the sales price. My advice is to stay far away from this company.

 

Totally sucks. That’s just extremely poor quality for such an expensive aftermarket grille.

I’ve learned the hard way too about always checking return policies every time before I buy anything substantially expensive.

https://builtnko.com/pages/returns

The 25% restocking fee is a bit high. But then again they’re probably a really small company.

All you can do is leave honest reviews, with videos and pictures, and post like this in all the enthusiast forums.

Thanks for letting everyone else know about the grille and your experience.

Lastly, you could probably make the bottom clips stay in place with a dab of super glue or JB Weld. Not ideal for a $300 grille but at least you’d be able to enjoy your purchase.

 

Bummer dude. For what it’s worth, I consider myself decently handy and I had a very hard time getting all the clips to line up as designed when i was reinstalling my oem grille after removing it a while back. I watched your video and I had similar issues. I don’t mean to say that it’s your fault, just that you’re not alone. Good on ya for letting people know what to expect.

You could always see if a local tw member wants to come work with you to figure out how to make it work. That way the 25% restocking fee can go to beers. Sometimes all it takes is an extra person around and the problem magically fixes itself lol. Seems like a good way to turn a bad experience into a good one.

 

I know it's not ideal for a new purchase but a couple of zip ties will replace the retainer clips.


My grille has been zip tied on for nearly 10 years now

 

Yeah I hear ya, it's the principle of the matter for me. I know I could zip tie it but it's ridiculous to have to do that to a brand new part. I spent $300 on an aftermarket grille that doesn't fit. A good company would do whatever they could to make it right, not insult the intelligence of their customers and show nothing but apathy.

 

I figured out that it's much easier to take the clips out of the truck, insert them into the grille, and then it just pops back into the truck easy peasy. The problem is the plastic tab receiver slots on the bottom of the NKO grille are manufactured slightly too high, so the tab that seats in the narrow part on the OEM grille just falls out of the larger part in the aftermarket. Does that make sense?

 

@Empty_Lord didn't you have an issue with this grill too? Or was it UPS that messed it up, I can't remember

 

Broke in delivery, and then the new one showed up without waters I believe.


Zip ties save lives OP

 

Mine was damaged in shipping. They dealt with it quickly and sent another my way and all was good

they had to send the letters seperate. Did get some freebie raptor lights too

 

That's fair. Sounds like they've done everything they can to earn a 3am butthole pic

 

Gross

 

LOL. They’re not going on. But hey, they’re there

 

Be a b-hole get the b-hole I always say

 

Post them on the 3rd gen forum, profit

 

Meh