Who would be interested in aftermarket skids?

[bulldog]

From the locker thread. Who would be interested in some aftermarket skids for the 4R? I will make it a poll so it will be easy to see. You can choose multiple options, so click all the skids you want (or not :D)

1 Yes, engine (replace current 2 piece)
2 Yes, replace gas tank skid with more beefy one
3 Yes, transmission skid plate (need some protection there)
4 Yes, replace transfer case with a heavy duty one that will withstand rocks
5 Not interested

One catch is that VVTi engines V6 and V8 will require different skid for transmission and transfer case. Should not be too much of an issue.

[Dealmaker]

yeah, I want the full belly pan. One less worry about what goes on down there when on the rocks.

[bulldog]

yeah, I want the full belly pan. One less worry about what goes on down there when on the rocks.

Me too!! :bigok: My current engine and gas tank skids are all bend at the moment. WHen I got back from SnT I had rubbing when turning. Turned out to be the front skid bend in too the point where it rubbed on the ribbed boot of the steering. :jester:

[05sport4x4]

I agree with you both, the skid plates from the factory are not very heavy. I have only been out twice on some mild desert washes and the gas tank already has a few goods dents. I have been looking under the 4runner lately (while installing the sliders) and a few items hang down quite a bit more from the frame then under my p/up. I remember the gas tank in particular looked to be ripe for damage. :cry:

[landon_toast]

Skids are important, if anyone develops them, I would love to get them (or because shipping would be expenisve out to here on the east coast) get the measurements of them (but that would have to be with the manufacturs consent.

PS, i just saw this smily and i love it :xnuts:

[r0cky]

I can't even remove my skid plate anymore, that's how mangled mine is! Bring on the aftermarket skids!

[landon_toast]

Anyone know where we would get one? I know that demello has one, but its not full protection, and lance had one custom made, but theguy who made it isnt making anymore.

So then, where was everyone thinking of to get them?

[r0cky]

I didn't know if the OP had a source he was thinking of or if it was just a general question ... but the only things I know of are Downey (and really, it's not that much more protection that the stock ones) or getting them custom-made. Not long ago I considered designing one and having a friend cut the steel for me and then I'd just weld the pieces together .... but that all fell through.

Those are the only options I know of. :doh:

[expat]

I'd be in but it would depend upon price. I'm still trying to save for the bullbar and winch! (guess I'll have plenty of time on that tho!)

What thickness steel plate would be desirable?

Mark

[bulldog]

I don't know what would be the idal thickness. I would think that a thicker plate would be good with reinforcements welded to it. I will see if I can get hold of Ken and see what he has to say.

Downey is the only shope that sell them currently, but they don't cover the transmission, transfer case or gas tank.

[Dealmaker]

I had a small bit of on-line dialogue w/DeMello in the Vendor thread at YT, along with an interest list. Apparently he got busy with some high-exposure contracts of something and we fell by the wayside.

His idea is to have like a 1" tube, and then a plate bolted to that, like what he does for the Tacoma. Personally, while that design prolly has good merit, I would prefer no to lose another 1" of clearance.

I can email him again to see if he has any further interest in making a product, or do you (BD) think Ken would be able to do somehting?

[bulldog]

I had a small bit of on-line dialogue w/DeMello in the Vendor thread at YT, along with an interest list. Apparently he got busy with some high-exposure contracts of something and we fell by the wayside.

His idea is to have like a 1" tube, and then a plate bolted to that, like what he does for the Tacoma. Personally, while that design prolly has good merit, I would prefer no to lose another 1" of clearance.

I can email him again to see if he has any further interest in making a product, or do you (BD) think Ken would be able to do somehting?


I will checking in on Ken later next week RE rear bumper and skids. I will let you know what transpires. But looking at some more fabbers is not a bad idea. Only thing is that to be safe we will need to get a 03-04 V8, V6 and 05+ V8 to the shop for measurements. I can probably take care of the V8s if it is a fabber close to me (GX will be same as VVTi 4R), but wil need a V6 to just verify it is the same as the VVTi V8.

[my034runner]

I know I'm in.
I'm glad that this 4th gen 4Runner has a composite tank under that "skid" plate, or I would have already crushed this gas tank like I did on my974Runner! That is a must, right off the bat. Transfer case= yes, engine=yes, transmission=yes, + one that you might not have thought of: that spot in front- under the very very front of the radiator. Sign me up!
:beer: :devil: :rockon:

[bulldog]

We are aware of the spot between the factory bumper and the stock skid. However that spot normally gets covered by aftermarket bumpers like ARB.

So Ken has cme back to me and seems like his time will be very limited for the next year or so. Still trying to see if he can commit to a project like this and the rear bumper. In the mean time I'm also trying to line up a company in Norcal who has a solid reputation for manufacturing aftermarket bumpers, skids, etc. Will keep this updated as we move along.

On the skid side a couple of things to note. The gas tank skid should be the same for all models, so would the engine skid. However there is a difference unber the transmission and tansfer case for VVTi and Non VVTi engines, the crossmember under the transfer case on VVTi engines are slightly back and also the exhaust crosspipe runs lower and behind this crossmember, on the non VVTi engines the pipe runs higher and under the transmission. I am not 100% sure if the V6 and V8 VVTi is exactly the same here, but so far it looks the same. So we will need people to commit to bring their rigs in for measurement and test fitting once we have a fabber lined up. That is why I liked Ken as he was nicely halfway between Nor and So Cal.

[Cruiserhead]

I know I'm in.
I'm glad that this 4th gen 4Runner has a composite tank under that "skid" plate, or I would have already crushed this gas tank like I did on my974Runner!

Yes the 4th gen's composite tank is actually much more resistant to breakage than a steel tank so it can be crushed quite a bit before you worry about leakage.

However, you will also be crushing the capacity of the tank so a heavy duty skid would really be great there. I noticed the front half of the gas tank just gets beat as it probably acts as a 'ramp' for the rest of the tank.

T case is really vulnerable b/c all it has is a puny skid mounted on the t-case. Good thing is it is tucked up pretty well (much better than the 3rd gen) and has that beefy crossmember in front to tell you if you've been naughty.

[my034runner]

Bulldog,
What about All Pro Off Road? Do you think that this project is one that they could do, or would do? And if they aren't doing their own fabricating, maybe they could point us in the right direction. Just a thought. :guns: :rockon:

[bulldog]

Bulldog,
What about All Pro Off Road? Do you think that this project is one that they could do, or would do? And if they aren't doing their own fabricating, maybe they could point us in the right direction. Just a thought. :guns: :rockon:
Haven't looked into them, so I dunno. Why don't you check with them?

More options are always a good thing.

[my034runner]

Remind me tomorrow (Thursday) and I'll try getting a hold of Sarah, and see what she can do, if anything. :devil: :drink:

[bulldog]

Remind me tomorrow (Thursday) and I'll try getting a hold of Sarah, and see what she can do, if anything. :devil: :drink:
Will be interesting to see what they have to say.

[my034runner]

Bulldog,
I called Jerry @ All Pro Off Road today, asked for Sarah, but she's out for the day. He said that they currently aren't doing this type of fabrication yet, but will have a talk with Sarah (manager) and John (owner) to see if that's something that they would want to tackle. I gave him the address to the 120 forum, he's going to read the theads and post up their decision. Hey, It's worth a shot, I bought their rock sliders and am pretty happy with them. And besides, all they do is Toyota stuff, no stinking Fords or the dreded Jeep, only Toyota! :devil: :drink: :beer: :rockon:

http://allprooffroad.com/

[RocKrawler]

Actually its Terry, and glad to be on another enthusiasts board. :wavey:
The idea of skidplates is a good one, but it will, from a business standpoint, depend on the demand and profitability of the part as to whether it will be worth persuing to a production piece. Since its an open forum, what is everyone thinking will be the most desirable parts to develop, and what price points would it need to be at for you to purchase one?
The point being, if a part takes $5K worth of time and money to develop, and say $60 to produce a sellable piece, but everyone wants to buy it at $79 or less, it would take 263 sales to just recoup the original development costs, and if there are only 13 guys wanting that part, it looks like a loss. Dont get us wrong, we want to make and sell top quality components that everyone needs, but it has to make sense. So post up or poll what you think would be reasonable prices for the parts you want, and we can look at it from there. I'll be happy to hit up Jon when he comes back in the office to see what he says.

[bulldog]

Sounds very interesting. Glad to see you are looking into this Terry.

The thing is that the new 4Runners are still in the early phase of offroad adoption so volumes for parts will definitely pick up in the next couple of years. Currently the number of enthiusiasts that take them offroad is not nearly as many as there will be in the future, also traditionally it is the second/third owners of vehicles who realy explore their limits offroad. So pending on how the production works you can definitely make back your initial investment, this should be considered an early batch.

If I look at the sliders we did with Hanna, it was a small initial batch (15 or so I think) but he has since made many for new customers.

[Joel]

Here is a link for design/price ideas..

http://www.budbuilt.com/new/

[Dealmaker]

This link shows Tacoma/4Runner skids/bellypans from $234-500. I would pay somewhere betwen those two amounts for a quality solid front-to-rear sytem (including replacing the flimsy gas tank skid) that didn't require removal of the complete system for oil changes.

About a year ago I had a thread at YT going with a vendor who semed to disappear under other projects (here... (http://www.yotatech.com/showthread.php?t=49588)). There was about ten people interested. I think its safe to say that interest has probably grown substantially since then.

Here is a link for design/price ideas..

http://www.budbuilt.com/new/

[bulldog]

I wouldn't want to set any expectation in regards to price yet, at least till people look at it and see what designs can be made. However we should probably aim for a group buy of 10 or so for a start, maybe 20 trying to do more for a group buy on a new products will be a nightmare.

First things first, lets see if we can get somebody to make these. I am also speaking with another company in Norcal, but they will be a bit of a logistic pain, so let's see how things shape up. Either way I think there is a big market developing for this as the FJC will probably use the same front and gas skids (will have to see).

[RocKrawler]

Our current transfer case shield for the 95.5-04 is interchangable with the 05+ cases, so this would be an immediate bolt on available now, as are the e-locker skid plates. We are currently working on a gas tank skid plate for the 95.5-04 Tacomas, and hopefully will be compatible or easily modifyable to the 05+ As for other skid applications, we will look into it and see what will be feasable, but a full length 1pc belly pan would not be practical as it would be a shipping and mounting nightmare considering the amount of supports required to be welded onto or into the frame rails, and the physical size of the package to deliver it in would be as much to ship as the part itself. Having it a multipiece pan would have hangup points where they joined together after being beatup and bent over rocks. We are more than happy to explore all parts that would interest our customers, keep the ideas coming.

BTW thats a nice Bull, we were breeding English Bulldogs last year, a lot of work! We still have the 3yr old female, cool dogs!

[Cruiserhead]

That sounds great RocKrawler

If a T-case skid is already compatible and possibly a gas tank skid, the other pieces that need replacing are the front belly stock skid replacements.

Maybe you could think of a "package deal" for a full set of skids. A group buy on 10-20 full sets might be a real deal for both sides?

In my experience, the stock skid (under the front diff, between the cv's) and the gas tank take the brunt of damage.

The t-case skid would be for "insurance"- something not likely to get hit but if it does, you are walking home.
While we're at it, what about rear control arm mount protection and/or beefed up rear control arms? Another easily bent item - possibly some cromo arms??

[bulldog]

Just a couple of thoughts from my side.

I agree with you Terry that a one piece would be to big and unpractical for front to under transfer case and 2 pieces might have some application issues.

The 03+ V6 4Runner and 05+ V8 4Runner (both VVTi) have the same layout by the transmission and transfer case with the exhuast pipe crossing loower than the frame. The 03-04 V8 is different by the tranny and transfer, but I believe the front is the same for all. The V6 Taco should be the same as the V6 4R, but I think measurements should be taken. Also remember the Taco doesn't seem to have the cross braces the 4R has by the transmission crossmember.

I doubt the gas tank of the Taco and 4R will be the same as they looked very different to me when I looked at it last.

I think a logical starting point would be the to replace the engine 2 pieces OEM skid with a single piece aftermarket unit. This should be compatible between all models Taco and 4R, a couple of extra holes might be required for different fitment.

Then the 4R really requires a gas tank skid as this is the point where mine takes the most abuse ater a lift and I believe most people have a similar experience after lifting. Not sure about Tacos as theirs seems to be tucked up a bit more.

Lastly for ultimate protection would be the transmission and tansfer skid, this one will probably be where the most differences will be between models.

Terry do you think this might be a logical approach?

[bulldog]

BTW thats a nice Bull, we were breeding English Bulldogs last year, a lot of work! We still have the 3yr old female, cool dogs!


Yeah breeding Bullies looks like a lot of work. Bliksem is still intact and we have been looking for a female for him to breed with. He is a lot of fun, but stubborn as hell sometimes. He goes on most wheeling trips with me, but Pismo is not a fun place for him as he bounces around to much.

[my034runner]

Looks like we've got to revive the Skid Plate discussion again, we haven't followed up on this since "last year". I was under my034runner sanding and painting my rock sliders today, and noticed that my stock Skid Plates are pretty mangled. I need some soon!! I might have to call Terry (RocKrawler) @ All Pro Off Road again and see if they're still possibly interested hooking us up, hopefully. :camping: :devil:

[bulldog]

Sounds good, lets see what they say. I need to follow up again with the guys in Norcal too to see what they say about a possible group buy. They are more a custom shop so I would expect their prices to be more than Allpro, but you never know.

[my034runner]

I tried RocKrawler @ All Pro, but just missed him, I'll try again tomorrow. Also, one of my parts guy @ Findlay Toyota, gave me the name of a place called Dirt Junky's Inc here in Las Vegas. From their advertisement, it looks like they do quite a bit of custom fabrication as well. I called them, but had to leave a message. I'll try them again tomorrow also. If they are willing, or can do this job, I can take my034runner (V6) for measurements. If we need to measure an '03-'04 V8 (if I have any), or new VVT-I V8, I can grab one off of my lot and take it over there. I'll let you know. :devil: :bounce2:

[Joel]

Hey! I just realized you're from vegas! Cool!

Dirt Junkys is only open after 6pm. During the day the guys build trophey trucks for collins motorsports. I tried getting things started to have a cage put in my Blazer, but after meeting with them, I haven't heard back. It's a large project so they may be waiting for the time to get the truck in the shop.

With the tools they have in their shop tho, the *should* be able to whip out some skids w/o problem.

Anyway, when you call again today, try a little after 6pm. The guy's name is Jason.

[RocKrawler]

We have a line of products on the list for the 05+ Tacoma and some are skid plates, but as a priority we are finishing up the Solid Axle Swap for the 95-04 Tacomas now and getting them into the market, and the suspension system for the 05+ Tacoma is next. The other items are going to be farther down the line and based on demand. For now, we have had zero calls on skid plates for the new generation 4 Runners aside from this forum, so those will not likely be an immediate production item like the Tacoma truck line unless someone wants to buy substantial (200+) quantities to stock & sell. The good news is the new suspension system for the 05+ Tacomas will lift the truck and the skid plates will not have such a hard time because of clearance issues.

[bulldog]

Thx Terry good to know. I doubt there will be a demand for 200+ skids right of the bat. But please keep this product in mind for the future.

Also some things are a bit of a chicken and egg, where demand will grow as people know there are products availible. THe OME lift was a classic example for the 4R, I'm not sure how many was sold last year after the introduction, but I would say quite a large number.

[my034runner]

Hey! I just realized you're from Vegas! Cool!

Dirt Junkys is only open after 6pm. During the day the guys build trophy trucks for Collins motorsports. I tried getting things started to have a cage put in my Blazer, but after meeting with them, I haven't heard back. It's a large project so they may be waiting for the time to get the truck in the shop.

With the tools they have in their shop tho, the *should* be able to whip out some skids w/o problem.

Anyway, when you call again today, try a little after 6pm. The guy's name is Jason.



Hey, No-IP.com, I actually just talked to Jason @ 10:00 am. And yes, they are busy building the trucks for this weekends Laughlin Score race. But, he did say that he would be interested, and in fact will be coming down to Findlay Toyota here in Henderson to see me and measure the necessary spots on my034runner. While he's here, I can grab a couple of my V8 4Runners. Will let you know what happens, it all depends on him having his other work done by 6:00pm. If we don't hook up this week, I'll definitely hook up with him after the race. It doesn't look like All Pro has the time to do this project. We'll see. If anyone wants to get a hold of me directly, you all can e-mail me at work: randerson@findlaytoyota.dealerspace.com, I can give you my phone number, as I'm not sure if we're supposed to leave them on the forum.
:camping: :soap:

[my034runner]

I just talked to Jason @ Dirt Junkies again, he's on his way to my work @ Findlay Toyota to measure my034runner and any other 4Runner's that I have on my lot. :wavey: Hope all goes well and he can make us some awesome Skid Protection! I hope that everyone is still on board, we had as many as 13 people that said that they we're interested in getting new skid plates for their 4Runners, and that's the number that I told him. I'd hate to have this guy do this work and not have everybody on board. If there's a way to let me know, that would be great.
:iagree :bigok: :camping:

[r0cky]

i'm still interested, for sure!! :)

i know a ton of people over at t4r.org would be interested too.

[bulldog]

I just talked to Jason @ Dirt Junkies again, he's on his way to my work @ Findlay Toyota to measure my034runner and any other 4Runner's that I have on my lot. :wavey: Hope all goes well and he can make us some awesome Skid Protection! I hope that everyone is still on board, we had as many as 13 people that said that they we're interested in getting new skid plates for their 4Runners, and that's the number that I told him. I'd hate to have this guy do this work and not have everybody on board. If there's a way to let me know, that would be great.
:iagree :bigok: :camping:
This sounds great!!! :bigok:

We should draw up a list of people who want to do a group buy of the skids. Before this can be done, people will need to know how much it will cost for each skid, lets say $x for front skid, $y for gas tank and $z for transmission and transfer. Also it is best if people have an idea of what the skid will look like, normally a prototype(s) is built and pictures are taken. This way people know exactly what they get and how much.

We can start a group buy thread in the vendor area and list people who want to join it. Most vendors require a deposit from people before they produce, so I would say it will only be fair in this case as well. This way we don't end up with people chikening out at the last minute and people are happy with what they get.

So maybe see when you can get some estimated pricing on the skids and then we can start the group buy ball rolling. Once we have the details ironed out a bit more it is easy to point to the group buy thread here from other forums, this saves a lot of confusion and answering a million questions, also avoids inaccurate numbers and saves time in general.

[Joel]

I just talked to Jason @ Dirt Junkies again, he's on his way to my work @ Findlay Toyota

So... how'd it go?

[my034runner]

It went well. When he got to my store, I was delivering a new Xb to some customers, and he was patient. At first, he was getting down on the ground to get under my034runner, then I remembered that even though the shop was closed, we still had a couple of lift rack's in my detail area. We put my034runner up in the air to get a better look, then ran back my customers while he inspected and schemed as to what he would do. When I got back out there, he already had drawn out the separate skids. He said that the gas tank would be most likely the most troublesome. Also, he said that he would do a two piece up in the front, one bolting up front by the bumper (protecting under the radiator) to up under the engine, and another to protect the trans and perhaps extending it to the cross member which would also protect the drive front drive line as well as the trans pan. We also put an '04 V8 4Runner Sport Ed. and saw that the only difference was the exhaust, he said that that wouldn't be much of a problem.

He can't start to work on it further until next week. He is already in Laughlin for the SCORE off road race, he builds trucks for Collins Motor Sports. I was thinking of going down there on Sunday, he said that if I showed up, he'd get me down into the pit, maybe I can get some pictures of his team trucks for him, make a poster for them. If anyone wants to meet up in Laughlin on Sunday, drop me a line, or e-mail me at randerson@findlaytoyota.dealerspace.com, we could find a couple of trails in the area, or just drink beer and watch the race. :beer: :beer: :devil:

[Dealmaker]

This is certainly beginning to sound promising! Perhaps you should mention to him that when (if!) the new ARB comes out many people will probably get one. I don't know if the ARB will cause anything to be taken into consideration with the front skid plate design.

It went well. When he got to my store, I was delivering a new Xb to some customers, and he was patient. At first, he was getting down on the ground to get under my034runner, then I remembered that even though the shop was closed, we still had a couple of lift rack's in my detail area. We put my034runner up in the air to get a better look, then ran back my customers while he inspected and schemed as to what he would do. When I got back out there, he already had drawn out the separate skids. He said that the gas tank would be most likely the most troublesome. Also, he said that he would do a two piece up in the front, one bolting up front by the bumper (protecting under the radiator) to up under the engine, and another to protect the trans and perhaps extending it to the cross member which would also protect the drive front drive line as well as the trans pan. We also put an '04 V8 4Runner Sport Ed. and saw that the only difference was the exhaust, he said that that wouldn't be much of a problem.

He can't start to work on it further until next week. He is already in Laughlin for the SCORE off road race, he builds trucks for Collins Motor Sports. I was thinking of going down there on Sunday, he said that if I showed up, he'd get me down into the pit, maybe I can get some pictures of his team trucks for him, make a poster for them. If anyone wants to meet up in Laughlin on Sunday, drop me a line, or e-mail me at randerson@findlaytoyota.dealerspace.com, we could find a couple of trails in the area, or just drink beer and watch the race. :beer: :beer: :devil:

[bulldog]

Sounds good!! Lets see how it goes.

On the front skid, we probably need to figure out who will eventually get an ARB bumper (whenever that comes out). The ARB bumper seems to cover the area from the front skid to the actual bumper, so no extra protection needed for bumpers like that. Maybe users with bumpers can just have that part of the skid removed, dunno, but something to think about.

[my034runner]

Sounds good!! Lets see how it goes.

On the front skid, we probably need to figure out who will eventually get an ARB bumper (whenever that comes out). The ARB bumper seems to cover the area from the front skid to the actual bumper, so no extra protection needed for bumpers like that. Maybe users with bumpers can just have that part of the skid removed, dunno, but something to think about.



I did ask him about that, because I was even thinking of getting one. He said that that would change things, obviously. But, until it (ARB) is out, I still want the extra protection. If I have to have it modified to match the ARB, then that's what I'd do. :iagree
I kind of really dig my fog lights in my stock bumper, I hope that there's a place for fog lights in the bottom of the ARB, that would be cool - as well as adding lights on top of the bull bar.
:cool1: :rockon: :devil:

[bulldog]

Any update on the skid front?

[my034runner]

Any update on the skid front?


I talked to Jason today, he hasn't had the time yet to price them out yet. After winning the Trophy Truck class @ the Laughlin SCORE off road races, they have still been running the trucks and tweaking them for Baja. He said that he'd get on it soon. It doesn't look like I'll have them in time for the TDS Safari in about 5 weeks from now. I'll keep on his ass until he starts getting things together. I did order the t-case skid from AllPro off-road though, Sarah dropped a whole $10.00 off, it's better than nothing!
:devil: :guns:

[Dealmaker]

cool...be sure to post some photos once you have it in so we can check it out...

... I did order the t-case skid from AllPro off-road though, Sarah dropped a whole $10.00 off, it's better than nothing!
:devil: :guns:

[my034runner]

As soon as he gets to it, I most certainly will. :devil:

[Joel]

Screw these lazy fabbers. I'm gonna make my own al-la Trailex.
http://fourwheeler.com/projectbuild/129_0503_tlex_04_z.jpg

Already sourced a 4x8 sheet of black high density polyethylene locally. I'll let everyone know how it goes. For now I'm just going to go back to the xmember in front of the transfer case. But if it all works nicely, I'll have another xmember made to go behind the xfercase like budbuilt does. Seen on the left of the image below.
http://www.budbuilt.com/new/images/Taco_skids3.JPG

[r0cky]

well, whenever you are ready to mass produce them for the rest of us, just let us know! ;)

j/k, sort of ...

[expat]

high density polyethylene [/img]

Where do you get this stuff from? I agree, stuff waiting around. I've been fabbing up mock plates using some off-cut steel sheets at the local Do It Centre but I'd like to try the poly stuff too.

[bulldog]

Mark, James knows where to get the stuff in LA for cheap apparrently. I don't know how long the poly will last as a skid though. I got some from these guys, cheapest I could find online. I got for some other stuff. http://www.indplastic.com/index.cfm?id=68306&fuseaction=browse&pageid=105

I will speak with the guys at 4x4labs up in Norcal again to see how we can move skids forward for a small group buy, if the other guys don't come through. I will however need somebody witha VVTi engine to use for measurements as well. It is a bit of a drive for me to their shop, so I wont be able to get round to it till summer basically. :(

[Joel]

Where do you get this stuff from? I agree, stuff waiting around. I've been fabbing up mock plates using some off-cut steel sheets at the local Do It Centre but I'd like to try the poly stuff too.

I searched for plastic in yahoo yellow pages and the first place I called had what I needed! :)

I just mocked it up in cardboard tonight. Going to get the HDPE and longer bolts tomorrow. Should have something in place by the weekend..

[Joel]

I don't know how long the poly will last as a skid though.

What makes you say that?

[bulldog]

What makes you say that?
I don't know if the mounting holes in the poly will hold up after some abuse. They might tear up. Also the poly will have more flex than metal which might make it do strange things in the long run. Only one way to find out though :D

James was thinking about it quite some time ago and we discussed it with Ken Hanna at his shop when we got the sliders. Ken was very sceptical as well in terms of the long term durability of using poly. We might be completely wrong however.

[my034runner]

I searched for plastic in yahoo yellow pages and the first place I called had what I needed! :)

I just mocked it up in cardboard tonight. Going to get the HDPE and longer bolts tomorrow. Should have something in place by the weekend..


Hey Joel, that sure would of come in handy on Sunday. After we put my034runner up on the lift today, well, lets just say that Brett (my Master Tech @ work) wasn't happy, and neither was I.
:mecry:
He's pissed because he has to fix everything. He found a crack in my T-case, and of course the trailering arm bracket on the frame. So, just getting back on topic, he's just going to try and make some skids to protect the t-case, and the engine. Then, he's going to cut the bracket and bend it back and re-weld it and make a kind of custom skid for the bracket also. He also said "screw the fabbers, I'll just do it myself". So I'll let you all know. Anybody know where to buy wholesale steel?
:devil:

[my034runner]

I showed Brett those poly skids after you posted, and he might be thinking about somehow using a combination of steel and poly. We'll see, we only have so much time before TDS.
:devil:

[Joel]

Anybody know where to buy wholesale steel?
:devil:

Curtis Steel

[Joel]

He found a crack in my T-case

:eek: Pic?

[bulldog]

[off topic]
Oh man cracked Tcase :eek:

You might want to start a seperate thread on that one, where did it crack and if you know how and why. Might save others from the same fate. Oh and yeah some pics would be good :D I think you are in an exclusive club as the first person to bust a tcase ona 4th gen.
[on topic]

The custom build skids sounds like a good idea. If using poly sheets, building a steel frame and then mounting the poly sheets on it might save you a lot of trouble in mounting, strength, as well as installing and removing later on for maintenance, etc. Might be the way to go. But then again what do I know about fabbing :jester: (I measure twice and still mess it up when cutting)

[coin50]

I enjoyed reading the posts in the forum. I have searched a lot for skid plates, when I came across this thread.
Terry, it was good to see your response. From price perspective - at Skidplates.com the skids for engine are approx $280, gas-tank approx $270.
At these prices, if you can make skids so that a rookie like me can install (), I would be interested.
I guess the requirements would be that (1) it should be easily installable - nuts and bolts, no welds (2) it should be easily removable/accessible for oil and filter changes/maintenance (3) well fitting and atleast 4-5 mm thick.

Your place is too far (CA, I am in GA) or I would have driven there to get it installed :)

Actually its Terry, and glad to be on another enthusiasts board. :wavey:
The idea of skidplates is a good one, but it will, from a business standpoint, depend on the demand and profitability of the part ....

[Joel]

Working on them and should have them in about a month. Trying to get a donor truck has been the hard thing.
Talk soon!
Bud
----- Original Message ----- From: "Joel" <joel@vitalwerks.com>
To: <bud@budbuilt.com>
Sent: Tuesday, January 31, 2006 5:10 PM
Subject: 4th gen 4runner skids


Hi, I was pointed in the direction of your site by someone with a tacoma that has your skid plates. Do you plan on making a set of skids for a 4th gen 4runner? If so, what is the time estimate on them?

Thanks!
Joel

[my034runner]

I sent an e-mail to this guy from All Phase Off Road. Below you'll find the reply that he sent back. Since I e-mailed him, Joel has come up with the great idea of the hdpe skids. If after reading, everybody let me know if we want to continue with him or not.
Thanks for your time.
Robert :devil:


----- Original Message -----
From: vaughn bigelow
To: 'Robert Anderson'
Sent: Wednesday, February 01, 2006 11:07 AM
Subject: RE: Skid plate for 4th gen 4Runner


Hi Robert, I think this sounds like a great opportunity for both parties. We are actually working on a similar situation with a VW Touareg club that actually wheels them. It may also work out well for you guys that my wife actually drives an 03 4runner that I can design off of.



We would be more than willing to do the R&D of design and such but would maybe want to talk about possibly pre-selling a handful of the different skids to help us cover the upfront cost of an initial production run.

It would take a little time to take the parts thorough production, ready to ship but we can certainly put it on the priority list if it looks like we have a decent number of them sold right away.


It sounds like the gas tank skid is most important but if you were able to give me a consensus of what priority you would like to see them designed.



Off the top of my head I have no idea what the cost might be in production. I would have to take a serious look and do a mock up to figure that out.



Let me know your thoughts.



Thanks,

Vaughn




--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: Robert Anderson [mailto:my034runner@cox.net]
Sent: Wednesday, February 01, 2006 12:41 AM
To: info@allphaseoffroad.com
Subject: Skid plate for 4th gen 4Runner



We've been trying to find some body to fabricate some skid plate protection for our 4th gen 4Runners, but thus far, no luck. We currently have at least 13 4Runner owners on http://www.toyota120.com

We also can advertise on http://www.TTORA.com and http://www.yotatech.com and http://www.toyota-4runner.org

We all use our 4Runners as both daily drivers as well as trail rigs. The stock Toyota skid plates are inadequate, are mostly all mangled. Special attention need to go to the gas tank (replace existing skid) as well as replacing the engine, transmission, t-case, upfront under the radiator, and maybe even the driveline. For some reason, all of the fabricators seem to keep putting the 4th generation 4Runner parts on the back burner, in favor of Tacoma's and even the yet to be released FJ Cruiser. If this is something that you'd consider doing, we're looking to buy. Now obviously as consumers, we want a great product, but it still has to be cost effective for the owners as well as your company, or what ever company that can step up to the plate. Nobody is asking for anything for free, but nobody wants to be gouged either. Whoever does take on this project, should know that there are a lot of the 4th gen 4Runners on the road, and although most never see dirt, there are also a lot that do serious trails, and are getting a little tired of beating the under carriage to ****. Let us know if you can help or point us to someone who would, or could. You can e-mail me back at my034runner@cox.net or randerson@findlaytoyota.dealerspace.com

Also, you might want to go ahead and post up on http://www.toyota120.com The discussion on this topic is under http://www.toyota120.com/forum/forumdisplay.php?f=2



Thanks for your time.

Robert

702-460-3926

[bulldog]

I think it is worthwhile to pursue. I would however want to understand at least what it would be like, be fitted, etc before I would put my money down. Also final costs would be great to understand. I am definitely keen to proceed, but need to know what the skids will look like/some basic ideas on specs and cost as well. I bought in on the Hanna sliders before the first set was done, but the basics were covered. I think Ken has sold many since his first development (basically as fast as he can produce them). Unfortunately he seems to be tied up otherwise I would have been at his shop a few times already.

It is always the chicken and egg situation. People would buy in quickly if the product is build and they understand the cost, and fabbers want to know if they can sell these first.

I think there is definitely a good market for these skids and the market will get bigger as time goes on. Especially since they would be able to adapt the 4R skid easily for the FJC and Tacoma.

My suggestion is to get some more info and then we can start a serious group buy thread.

Alternatively Joel has made some good progress with the HDPE skid idea.

[bulldog]

Roams posted this under the bumper section, but I thought it would be good to post here too.

Now this is what I would like for the 4R in terms of skid plates, flows nicely with the bumper too :D
http://www.shrockworks.com/Forum_Images/05x-skids-01.jpg

[Dealmaker]

...if you build it they will come...

[05sport4x4]

Those do look nice :bounce:

[AlexJet]

Roams posted this under the bumper section, but I thought it would be good to post here too.

Now this is what I would like for the 4R in terms of skid plates, flows nicely with the bumper too :D
http://www.shrockworks.com/Forum_Images/05x-skids-01.jpg

What vehicle is that? I want the same for my '05 4Runner, but never saw anything like that. My OEM skid plate has more then 10 bents in it; it's not holding anything...

[bulldog]

That pic was of a Xterra, done by Shrockworks. Teh same company we are working with to make a front bumper for the 4R. Maybe they will make the same setup for the 4R sometime inthe future.

[AlexJet]

That pic was of a Xterra, done by Shrockworks. Teh same company we are working with to make a front bumper for the 4R. Maybe they will make the same setup for the 4R sometime inthe future.

That's great looking skid plate. If it's only been available for 4Runner. I looked most everywhere, no skid plates for 2003-05 4Runner.

[bulldog]

That's great looking skid plate. If it's only been available for 4Runner. I looked most everywhere, no skid plates for 2003-05 4Runner.
Downey offers a skid for the 4R, but it isn't quite what I was looking for. So I'll probably pursue this more agrressively once the front bumper is sorted. I'm not sure of how big the market will be, but I can imagine people will line up if the product is availible.

I also believe Lance was looking at making skids, have no update on how that is moving forward.

Teh gas tank and engine skids will be the same for all models I believe. However the tranny adn transfer will differ between models. This will also be the least requested skid.

[AlexJet]

Downey offers a skid for the 4R, but it isn't quite what I was looking for. So I'll probably pursue this more agrressively once the front bumper is sorted. I'm not sure of how big the market will be, but I can imagine people will line up if the product is availible.

I also believe Lance was looking at making skids, have no update on how that is moving forward.

Teh gas tank and engine skids will be the same for all models I believe. However the tranny adn transfer will differ between models. This will also be the least requested skid.

Downey is good, but small one. It's just an OEM replacement for the engine. The one I'm looking for is full: engine + transmission, maybe fuel tank.

[05sport4x4]

Working on them and should have them in about a month. Trying to get a donor truck has been the hard thing.
Talk soon!
Bud
----- Original Message ----- From: "Joel" <joel@vitalwerks.com>
To: <bud@budbuilt.com>
Sent: Tuesday, January 31, 2006 5:10 PM
Subject: 4th gen 4runner skids


Hi, I was pointed in the direction of your site by someone with a tacoma that has your skid plates. Do you plan on making a set of skids for a 4th gen 4runner? If so, what is the time estimate on them?

Thanks!
Joel

Any news on skid plates from anyone yet? I changed the oil last night and while I was there removed the front and engine skid plates. The engine skid took a beating at DV, tearing in a couple of places and making 1 bolt fairly difficult to remove (the metal is not very thick). I had a look down towards the gas tank skid and it also had a bit of use.

I am not quite ready for a lift yet (waiting for more options in the rear like DR coils and shocks before removing the x-reas) so some added protection for the stock height is needed before tackling and more trails like Mengal pass :)

[DaveC]

I haven't looked closely at my OEM skids so maybe they are the same but looking at the Shrockworks skid I notice all those bolt caps sticking out just waiting to be mangled. How do you get your skids off after the bolt caps have been mangled by rocks? Seems like the bolt caps need a protective well around them; a welded beaded or something like that.

[bulldog]

I haven't looked closely at my OEM skids so maybe they are the same but looking at the Shrockworks skid I notice all those bolt caps sticking out just waiting to be mangled. How do you get your skids off after the bolt caps have been mangled by rocks? Seems like the bolt caps need a protective well around them; a welded beaded or something like that.
The stock skids have the bolts hidden or indented. Unfortunately this willl be very time consuming to reproduce for aftermarket guys as they do not have stamping facilities. SO most have the bolts somewhat exposed. It should not be a major issue as long as you keep some spare bolts to replace ones that do get mangled. You can use an open wrench or some of the special sockets made for rounded bolts, should remove it without an issue.

[expat]

The engine skid took a beating at DV, tearing in a couple of places and making 1 bolt fairly difficult to remove (the metal is not very thick). I had a look down towards the gas tank skid and it also had a bit of use.


John,

LOL - join the club!

Does the wife know this :devil: or you keeping that quiet? :P

[05sport4x4]

Mark,

No she has not seen them as she was not home the evening I took them off. Although she did comment when we scraped or crashed into them on the trails. I will show her this weekend when I try to hammer some shape back into them. :spank:

I really would like something before I take it out on another trip (maybe Mammoth in July). Not quite ready to put the money out for a lift (debating spacers vs. OME or CO) which I think would have made a big difference getting a couple of inches higher off the ground.

[my034runner]

John,
Joel and I are using some HDPE (high density-plastic) and I can tell you, it works Great!!! My034runner is up on the lift at work, getting my new custom rear coils and brake lines installed, and got to check out some of the carnage. But my new skid is holding up to the abuse, much, much better than my stock OEM skids ever did!! This stuff is amazing, and it was only $90.00 for all of this extra protection, and a few extra longer bolts and washers. And, it's light, so doesn't add any extra weight. So, that's what I'd suggest. I got mine cut a few inches longer than Joel did, I wanted to mount it to the bottom of the bumper, so as to protect the radiator, down to the to the cross member, just before the T-Case. On the T-Case, I added a modified All Pro Off Road Tacoma T-Case skid, wayyyyyyyy beefier than the stock. Anyway, just my 2 cents.

[AlexJet]

John,
Joel and I are using some HDPE (high density-plastic) and I can tell you, it works Great!!! My034runner is up on the lift at work, getting my new custom rear coils and brake lines installed, and got to check out some of the carnage. But my new skid is holding up to the abuse, much, much better than my stock OEM skids ever did!! This stuff is amazing, and it was only $90.00 for all of this extra protection, and a few extra longer bolts and washers. And, it's light, so doesn't add any extra weight. So, that's what I'd suggest. I got mine cut a few inches longer than Joel did, I wanted to mount it to the bottom of the bumper, so as to protect the radiator, down to the to the cross member, just before the T-Case. On the T-Case, I added a modified All Pro Off Road Tacoma T-Case skid, wayyyyyyyy beefier than the stock. Anyway, just my 2 cents.

Could you post some images? I'm interesting of how it looks, especially that modified Tacoma T-Case plate.

[my034runner]

Could you post some images? I'm interesting of how it looks, especially that modified Tacoma T-Case plate.


I'll try and get them up when I get back from the Mojave Road this weekend. I took some today while it was up on the lift getting my new coils and SS brake lines installed. :bigok:

[AlexJet]

I'm getting Downey Skid Plate and will fabricate an extra protection based on it (radiator + transfer case).