I would like to add some under body protection for my 06 GX470. I don't think I can afford to do everything at once. I drive over very rocky areas in Colorado mountains. Any recommendations for what to install first and a good place to get the parts?
Gx470 skid plates (1 Viewer)
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NMBruce
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I have the steel RCI skids, the complete kit, they also have aluminum ones.
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How do you like them and were they easily installed? Also, is the quarter inch aluminum worthwhile considering or is it too soft for rocky areas?
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NMBruce
SILVER Star
I like them, covered them with POR-15 paint, easy to install, don't know about the Aluminum question, some say yes, others say no. there was a discussion on GXOR Facebook site.
The easy way to tell what you need is crawl under the truck and see what's been rubbing. I haven't measured the height difference between a stock 4th gen 4r and a GX. I can tell you that I have two buddies with 4r's. One is still running the stock skids. Last year in CO we ran several rougher trails including Half Moon Gulch and Wheeler Lake. He would occasionally drag the factory gas tank skid, and did damage his muffler on one rock.
This year he was running 2 inches more lift when we did Rose Garden Hill and Hell's revenge in Moab. Once again the factory gas tank skid got drug a few times. The thing I noticed taking the most beating however was his rear lower control arm brackets. Several times they jammed up on rocks and we just kept him moving forward until they drug over the obstacle.
The point is you can do a lot on the factory skids even though they look super flimsy. A lot depends on your driving ability and experience. For as cheap as they are I would definitely get the little sliders that bolt to the lower control arm brackets. I could care less if the bracket gets sanded down a bit. But having them slide over rocks would be a big benefit. After that I would say protect the major stuff like your TC. To me the forward skid, even though a bit flimsy, should still be able to take one good hit. It may buckle, but should dissipate enough energy to keep everything behind it safe.
I ran steel on my 4Runner beat the hell out of them, because I knew I could.
I have the RCI aluminum on my GX and I've only rubbed them on a rock once so far. It took it well, but I'll choose different lines than I did with the 4Runner to avoid really hammering on them.
I have the RCI aluminum on my GX and I've only rubbed them on a rock once so far. It took it well, but I'll choose different lines than I did with the 4Runner to avoid really hammering on them.
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That is really good info! Thanks.
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Thanks for the good reply. Seems like steel would be the way to go.
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Ok, so I spent some time under my GX today. It seemed obvious to me that the muffler is one of the weak spots. It looks ready to hang up on a nice rock. What recommendation do you have to either protect it or replace it with something else? It seems like RCI doesn't make armor to protect the muffler.
Haven't touched it in almost 8 years of wheeling my gx
If it were me I would just leave it alone. If it has a few dents in it, that's no big deal. The only time you will have issue is if the tailpipe gets crushed flat or you hit it hard enough to break the seal between two flanges. When my buddy occasionally flexes his out on a rock the truck will suddenly sound like he has an aftermarket exhaust. Once he's up and over the flanges will re-marry and its back to normal.
The best way to avoid hanging it up is to put your tire on the rocks. A lot of people like to try and drive over stuff (straddle) and this is how you end up with diff strikes, control arm damage, etc. The better move is to get your tire up on the obstacle so the underside of the truck is actually gaining clearance. Of course depending on how high your rockers are you have to be careful when you come down the back side. Also, you can't avoid every rock on the trail.
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Thanks. Sounds good. I figure at this point if I rip it off I'll try to replace it with something smaller or more tucked in. Good pointers on straddling the rocks.
RCI is having a 15-20% sale starting on the 14th. RCI Group Buy - Fall 2019 10/14 - 10/20
Hello, looking to get some under armor skids for my GX but was wondering if I had my KDSS deleted, do I need to buy the one with KDSS or Without one?
Without
Thanks!
