is it better to get the $300-$400 real trd pro grill or a knock off one for $150?

Real one will have Toyota part numbers on the back.

 

Yep, thats the toyota part number on an oem one.

 

Some people have principles that say buy OEM. Some do it out of fear.

I can tell you you won't have issues with a quality aftermarket from a reputable dealer.

I refuse to give Toyota one penny as the act of raising prices on a trim part is greedy, and restricted selling is ignorant.

Aftermarket parts keep OEMs in check.

 

That blue with TRD grill looks money.

 

I agree when the part is labor intensive to replace if the part is lower quality...say a turbo charger, water pump and the like.

In the case of trim pieces, I weigh the decision on individual merits.

In the case of the TRD grill I took a chance and it paid off $400 savings.

Those savings will pay for a premium part that matters on another vehicle.

 

I went through this same debate for like 2 months. I had the money for an OEM but couldn't shell out $350+ for a piece of plastic on principle. I bought an aftermarket Amazon one for like $100 and it fit and looked great... until I decided I liked the stock grill better anyways. Needless to say glad it wasn't OEM when I sold it for $75:

 

Ultimately you get what you pay for one way or another, either through the quality of the product or your pocketbook. China isn't some great country because they suddenly decided to enter the the global stage and focus on education. They became the power they became by stealing, lying, pillaging and strong arming dumbfuck American corporations, consumers and politicians that were more than eager to save a buck or get a vote. They are still using Sun Tau's tactics. If you study history nothing has changed with them. Their advancements came at the expense of American ingenuity and invention under the guise of becoming more "democratic" in exchange for the "exchange of ideas".

Every dollar spent is a declaration of what you truly believe. People can bitch all they want about manufacturing and jobs going overseas, but they are the one's who decided they wanted the jobs to leave our shores by saying, "I'd rather buy the cheaper version." When I say you get what you pay for, I mean either you pay for cheap shit from foreign companies and jobs go overseas or you pay through the nose for American made products and jobs stay here.

 

If an uneducated person in another country can do the job with the same QC, kinda hard for that worker to whine about it as what they are asking for is a handout.

I always find it ironic that people who scream "buy american" are the same ones who don't believe in investing in our nation's education system.

Not attacking you, but your above statement doesn't take into consideration many of the benefits of not having low paying manufacturing jobs here to begin with.

 

The blackout looks good. I don't care for the Tacohat logo. Kind of old-school, but always liked the vintage T O Y O T A on the original FJ40

 

What do you mean by uneducated? You have to have some sort of skill set to manufacture anything, so there is education involved. I don't really understand what you're talking about about a worker whining

The American educational system is a piece of shit that needs to be blown up. We, as a nation are slipping because of our educational system. It has absolutely nothing to do with the investment into the system, it has to do with where the money is spent and how it is spent. The educational administration system is nothing but a bunch of do nothing politicians who are only concerned about their image. Most of them are worthless fucks.

I don't take any offense, but what benefits are there without them? So low paying mindless, do nothing burger flipping fuck jobs are better? Not everyone is going to be a astrphysicist, chemical engineer or lawyer. Lower end jobs were always stepping stone jobs to gain skill sets to move on, but now we have people that think you should be able to have 2.5 kids, a two story house and two bmws on a McDonalds job. Low paying manufacturing, learning a skill set to advance versus low paying retail and service jobs, what's better?

 

OEM but I had no other choice back in 2017.
It does have a slight sheen to it, not completely matte. Honestly I can't tell the difference when I see other Tacomas on the road with a pro grill...A lot of them are probably knockoffs.

 

As far as I'm concerned this a request to pay more for labor than the labor is worth.

You want to do that fine, to me it's the same as welfare. It's a handout, but with someone else's money.

 

What is that rack? It looks too top.

 

Frontrunner load bar rack

 

I bought a TRD Pro Grille w/ Raptor Lights, from TacoTwonz--they were my first stop after picking up my truck in Denver, back in July.

Good quality; not el-cheapo plastic. Fit was an 8/10.

They are great guys!

 

My friend has OEM, he paid $400.
I got Knock Off, I paid $95.

After comparing the two,
I would buy a knock off again.
OEM is not $300 better than the knock offs.

Its a plastic trim made from the same injection mold as the OEM grills...
Why pay OEM money for something that is possibly made in the same place as the knock offs.

The knock offs are most likely those that got rejected during QC.
Like the stuff that ends up at ROSS.

If you were to buy a knock off, buy from a vendor here, who most likely QCs the good from the bad.
So that you can get a relatively consistent product.

 

Knock it Off

 

OEM if you can afford it. I've heard the knock offs will fade over time

 

I just ordered mine from mad hornets, surprisingly the letters were already set. And not even individually screwed in and pre assembled, but it was one solid mold. I thought it was weird because I was expecting to have to put the letters on...