'23 TRD 4Runner Off-road included skid plates vs TRD stamped Front Skid Plate- HELP!

Hello!

Sorry if these questions have already been asked, but I searched the forums the best I could and couldn’t find a definitive answer. I’m getting ready to purchase a TRD 4Runner Off-road, and I am wanting information on the skid plate options that can be purchased from Toyota. I received different information from different dealers… and I have to make a decision by tomorrow.

To my understanding, the stock TRD 4Runner Off-road already includes skid plates. The front skid plate that is stamped “TRD” is not included in this trim. However, there is an accessory that can be purchased that is a “TRD Front Skid Plate.”

1) Does the “TRD” stamped “TRD Front Skid Plate” cover any components that the stock TRD 4Runner Off-road included skid plates do not?

2) Is the “TRD” stamped “TRD Front Skid Plate” overall better or stronger at protecting the underside of the vehicle, or is the main difference just the looks?

Thank you so much for your help!

4RunnerGurl! said:

Hello!

Sorry if these questions have already been asked, but I searched the forums the best I could and couldn’t find a definitive answer. I’m getting ready to purchase a TRD 4Runner Off-road, and I am wanting information on the skid plate options that can be purchased from Toyota. I received different information from different dealers… and I have to make a decision by tomorrow.

To my understanding, the stock TRD 4Runner Off-road already includes skid plates. The front skid plate that is stamped “TRD” is not included in this trim. However, there is an accessory that can be purchased that is a “TRD Front Skid Plate.”

1) Does the “TRD” stamped “TRD Front Skid Plate” cover any components that the stock TRD 4Runner Off-road included skid plates do not?

2) Is the “TRD” stamped “TRD Front Skid Plate” overall better or stronger at protecting the underside of the vehicle, or is the main difference just the looks?

Thank you so much for your help!

Click to expand...

I believe they are the same, i.e. you don't need to buy anything new.


By "stamped" they mean the recess in the plate for the red letters. The red letters are the weakest part; they are attached only by a couple double sided sticky tape squares. One of my red letters was scraped off when I hit a big rock while off roading. Toyota does not have replacement red letters, but other places do, actually in several colors. (I'd have to look up where I got mine).

Some people complain that the TRD skid plate is weaker than some others, but it has a huge advantage over all the others that I have seen in that it goes almost up to the bottom of the front bumper; the others stop at the cross bar below the radiator. Where I scraped off the letter was above that cross bar.

If you want more protection behind that, such as the transmission and transfer case, I got the RCI "integrated" skid plates that mesh perfectly with the OEM TRD plate at the front.

Did the CalRaised front and trans skids on my 23 TRD Sport.

Did the powder coated steel (heavy). Nice build quality and bolt on. They came with everything you need to install them. The main reason I did them was the access to the oil filter and added road and theft protection.

So between the front and trans shields I did the cat shields too. Hopefully if someone looks to remove the cats they decide there are a lot of other easier targets and leaves mine alone.

"Made from stamped and formed 1/4-in.- thick aluminum Red TRD lettering helps provide a sporty look"

Notice how the only thing they point out is "sporty look", no claims about better performance.


The plain ones that came on my '16 TEP and '23 ORP are steel. The '16 has held up just fine. The '23 has 105 miles on it so far.

I doubt that I'd spend the money to replace them even if they made them to fit around the KDSS system.

The stock OEM stamped steel front skid plate is garbage. They quickly bend with rock strikes, then fitment becomes an even worse challenge.

The TRD Pro aluminum skid plate is nice. Even better when you do the stud mount conversion described in a post here by Saker. It was one of the first things I did when we got our 2023 ORP.

Anyone who wants a stock stamped steel front skid along with the plastic insert that fits between the skid and the radiator, I have a brand new one. Make me an offer.

I also posted this in the other (old) thread you asked the question in :

The TRD skid plate is what comes standard on the TRD Pro model (top of the line). I added one to my '23 Off Road Premium - easy swap. It does feel more substantial than the OEM plate that I removed. Whether it covers more - I do not recall, I also added the black valance that also comes standard on the TRD Pro (OEM is silver).

For not much more than a TRD skid plate, you can get a longer skid that covers the oil pan as well. RCI, CaliRaised and Greenlane, plus several others I'm sure make them in aluminium.

I highly recommend the car trim trd pro skid plate. They offer an oil filter change door to make oil changes super easy. You can also change the trd lettering to different colors easily. The material is very nicely made. First time, I seen an aftermarket part that surpasses an Oem part.

The OEM TRD Offroad front skid plate is thin steel and has some gaps in coverage--the TRD aluminum accessory skid plate covers more. It's pretty cheap, and it's lighter aluminum, I'm planning on swapping out to it this fall.

At like $360, it seems like you have to spend a lot more than the TRD accessory skid to get an increase in coverage and performance. I'm not interested in putting a ton more steel under my truck that moderately offroads 10-15 days a year, so I think I'm good with aluminum.

Buy real skids if you are going to spend money on them.

Deuxdiesel said:

For not much more than a TRD skid plate, you can get a longer skid that covers the oil pan as well. RCI, CaliRaised and Greenlane, plus several others I'm sure make them in aluminium.

Click to expand...

How much more would that be? The TRD aluminum front skid is $360 new, available at the dealers, no shipping costs.

Thank you all for your help! I decided to skip the upgraded skid plate option and get something aftermarket. It looks like there are some good options out there that would be stronger and provide more coverage. While the aftermarket price will be more than double that of the upgrade offered by Toyota, I think with the other components that could also receive coverage (including the catalytic converter), the added cost would be worth it.

Thanks again for your help!

FWIW - I pretty well destroyed both the OEM steel skid and a TRD Pro (aluminum) one. I think the steel one gets dented up much easier, but is stronger and I would trust it to handle repeated abuse longer than the aluminum one. I collapsed the middle of the aluminum one on my first difficult offroad trip. It did not fail completely to the point that anything protected was damaged. However, it was no longer structurally sound. The steel one looked like a raisin after a few years, but was still more structurally sound than the aluminum one after one difficult trail (the Rubicon in California).




I ended up building a custom steel version of the aluminum plate. But I probably have a few tools you don't.

It held up very well, but the weak point becomes the rear two mounting brackets. They will eventually collapse if you play too hard on the OEM mount points only. That's why the aftermarket ones extend back to the next crossmember - it provides a much better structural point to mount to.

If you want to go play in the rocks regularly - you don't really want either. If you want to use them for the occasional impact on rocks - both are probably similar in terms of protection. They will both protect everythign above them from all normal gravel and rocks from other vehicles and from pretty decent impacts on other stuff. Neither are intended for regular rock crawling. If you want to do that - buy an aftermarket set of skids. By the time you're doing that you'll also need sliders, gas tank skid, and lower control arms at a minimum IMO. That's why they tend to all go as a package.

I like the look of the aluminum one better. So, there's that.

Good luck with whatever you choose. They'll all get you home. The aftermarket will just last longer to repeated abuse.

Does your truck have KDSS? the TRD skid won't fit without some significant trimming if you do. if you are planning to do actual off roading, I would avoid the TRD and CarTrimHome (thinner than TRD but has access doors) skids. I would get something like C4, CBI, RCI, or another reputable brand.