Mid/trans skid plate and rear diff skid plate

Any recommendations for skid plates on my '02 Taco. I'm looking all over online and can't find anything. My front plate is stock. But nothing is wrong with it. I'm just looking to add the mid and rear diff plates.

Also, searching for existing threads on this topic or any topic for that matter on this forum is incredibly difficult. I would love some advice on how to narrow down my searches on Tacomaworld.

Thanks for your help,

Mike

 

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I like my RCI skids.

If you want the beef, go with Bud Built.

Coastal Off-road I believe has 1st Gen skids.

And I would recommend anything from Opt Off-Road’s website; they have a lot of the small business on their site and it’s great quality stuff.

 

Know what you want draw it Shop it around to local Fab Shops.

I have found to search use the search engine of your choice Enter what your looking for Gives you the range of all the forums.

If you only want Tacoma World threads just click on those.

 

Budbilt is pretty beefy, had one myself.



They offer additional armor that extends further back from that mid section.

Or as mentioned, have a fab shop make you one. Sure there are a few bends but everything is pretty flat as far as mounting and all.

 

Lots of time to think with a broken body.

It would be a simple matter with some thought to build a front to rear one piece Skid plate making it simple to install or remove

Air circulation might be an issue nothing that can`t be figured out.

Then of course this would be for very hardcore Off Roading

Then any thing in between is also an option.

 

A full one piece skid may be a bit much for some. The budbilt skid alone weighs what...55lbs? And it only replaces the 2 piece factory setup.

The second add-on to the budbilt adds another 50lbs or more.

 

Agreed; i would absolutely not want a full length, one piece, steel skid. too cumbersome for mounting.

 

Like I said not for everyone !

Then I have been working with things like that all my life at 1000 pounds it would be no big deal for me to install or remove.

Everyday things I did Mission Impossible for others!

It was more of thinking out loud online !!

 

Work smarter not harder

 

The stock "skid plate" is not even a skid plate. In the factory manual it's called an air deflector or something.

If you want a skid plate that will actually be able to "skid" on rocks and stuff, ditch the stock one. It's useless for that.

You'll want something that's 3/16" steel or maybe 1/4" aluminum. Some people do 1/4" steel but that's pretty damn heavy, but will certainly take extreme abuse.

Agree with what others have said about a full one piece. No bueno! A modular design is way more manageable, and you don't take the entire thing off just to work on one thing.

Other things to think about is how much of a skid do yo NEED? When I made mine, I just did a mid skid to cover the transmission. Mounting to the crossmember was easy, and I'm not too worried about the t-case being "exposed". It's still slung up there pretty far and out of the way. Adding a t-case skid would add a significant amount of weight and cost.

 

budbuilt sells a skid plate and belly pan that will work. I think trailgear or 4xinnovations sells diff skids for the rear but unless you're wheeling black trails I wouldn't deem it necessary, the factory axle housing can take a fair amount of abuse.

 

So I bought the skid plate kit from Coastal Offroad and it's looking like a terrible purchase. It came in 17 pieces and I've called a dozen metal fabricators and I can't find anyone that will weld it together for me. So now I'm stuck with a pile of 3/16th" steel that I can't do anything with.

 

You might be able to come close to breaking even selling what you have.

Does you kit have detailed instructions??Are you able to adjust things that might not fit correct??

I venture your truck would be needed to make sure things fit.

lots of fabricators insurance policies you need to remove the fuel tank to do any hot work on a vehicle adding hours to the labor.

Orange can be in quite a few areas which one are you in??

 

I like my skid row plate- has added support/extra mounting points.

 

One thing you won’t regret is buying a welder and teaching yourself to use it if you have the means. I built my front and rear bumpers as well as my transmission skid and added support to my transfer case skid and welded on my sliders. Saved me a lot of money.

 

If you're near the Fresno County, I'll weld it all up for ya for some beer, pizza, and redbull.

I welded up my own Coastal Offroad front bumper and currently have *most* of my own custom rear bumper made.

 

That’s a decent thing to offer, good on you man

 

Many of us are willing to do little jobs like that.

I did my share over the years!

Pizza is always good!!

 

Santa Cruz area and I’ll weld it up for Coke and Hookers.

I’m currently working on a customized CBI Bumper for my 1st gen 4Runner.