Air dam removal from my 2024 Tacoma - process & photos

[Blue Crush Taco]

I removed my air dam chin spoiler and it is very easy (took about 45 seconds with cordless drill and 10mm socket) there are 9 easily accessible fasteners.

Mileage wise I don't expect to see very much difference. TFLTruck noted a .5 mpg difference I believe.

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[TACOMA4G24]

Looks even better without the chin.

 

[Lando]

Mine will be the same truck as yours but with the black and white seats. It’s coming off too.

 

[bigd9247]

I removed my air dam chin spoiler and it is very easy (took about 45 seconds with cordless drill and 10mm socket) there are 9 easily accessible fasteners.

Mileage wise I don't expect to see very much difference. TFLTruck noted a .5 mpg difference I believe.

Looks good! What’s hanging down below the front bumper (on either side of the license plate) in the straight on picture?

 

[Blue Crush Taco]

Looks good! What’s hanging down below the front bumper (on either side of the license plate) in the straight on picture?

That is the fake skid plate. It's made of some sort of Fibreboard it looks like. The off road would have a thin metal skid plate. The sport is like this. Still debating what to do there.

 

[bresna]

That is the fake skid plate. It's made of some sort of Fibreboard it looks like. The off road would have a thin metal skid plate. The sport is like this. Still debating what to do there.

I just picked up a TRD Sport and I'm considering taking off the chin scoop but I don't like the look of the Sport skid plate afterward. Looks like little air scoops. I went back to the dealer and looked at a TRD Off Road and saw that the skid plate on that has a lip at the front to reduce drag. It looks to be the same plastic/fiberglass material as the one on my Sport. It did not look like metal at all.

I've tried finding the part number for that plastic skid plate for the 24 TRD OR without any luck. I guess I'll just have to wait until people start modding their ORs to find one on the used market or maybe someone here can pull it out of their trash bin?

 

[Powhunter]

Yeah I can confirm on my Off Road that the skid plate is not metal, it’s some form of laminated composite. It’s not plastic though, looks much more durable than plastic.

 

[ridetime]

That is the fake skid plate. It's made of some sort of Fibreboard it looks like. The off road would have a thin metal skid plate. The sport is like this. Still debating what to do there.

You should watch that area. I removed mine the first day I got it and that stuff started to wear/feather after a month or so. I put mine back on until I can find a skid plate I like.

 

[Tacoflvrd]

You should watch that area. I removed mine the first day I got it and that stuff started to wear/feather after a month or so. I put mine back on until I can find a skid plate I like.

im looking around for a lightweight one with access to the oil filter. Hoping one comes out soon that isn’t crazy expensive.

 

[Goriders]

That is the fake skid plate. It's made of some sort of Fibreboard it looks like. The off road would have a thin metal skid plate. The sport is like this. Still debating what to do there.

Did you come up with a solution for this? Looks like it might get torn off at highway speed.

 

[OldTimer]

You should watch that area. I removed mine the first day I got it and that stuff started to wear/feather after a month or so. I put mine back on until I can find a skid plate I like.

When I removed my air dam, the first thing I noticed was the two large dips on both sides which I figured would be subject to wind drag and possibly start to tear over time. The Sport skid appears to be designed to be used in conjunction with the air dam which blocks the large gaps when it is installed.

I bought the OEM Off Road skid plate from a local dealer which comes in two pieces (additional piece behind the engine skid that the Sport model does not have). I did have to drill holes in order to mount the front skid since the front bolt holes differ on the Sport and Offroad. The Offroad has an additional cross member, and that is where the front bolts mount on the OEM skid plate.

 

[Goriders]

im looking around for a lightweight one with access to the oil filter. Hoping one comes out soon that isn’t crazy expensive.

Looks like Victory 4x4 and Krave Automotive have skid plates now. They might not fit your requirement of not crazy expensive.

I’m looking as well after seeing the photos of the dam being removed.

 

[bresna]

Did you come up with a solution for this? Looks like it might get torn off at highway speed.

I think the OR skid plate will work for this application. I just have to find the PN for it. I searched the Toyota website for hours with no luck. The OR skid plate has a lip so that leading edge is not exposed.

OR skid plate:

Sport skid plate:

You can see where the two bolts are on both skid plates. On the Sport skid plate, they're right at the front edge. On the OR skid plate, they're set back from the front edge, which is much higher on that skid plate.

I think the OR skid plate will work well with the chin scoop removed on my Sport.

 

[Victory 4x4]

Looks like Victory 4x4 and Krave Automotive have skid plates now. They might not fit your requirement of not crazy expensive.

I’m looking as well after seeing the photos of the dam being removed.

American made, and currently on sale

https://www.victory4x4.com/category/T4G.html

 

[Gurvy522]

I think the OR skid plate will work for this application. I just have to find the PN for it. I searched the Toyota website for hours with no luck. The OR skid plate has a lip so that leading edge is not exposed.

OR skid plate:

Sport skid plate:

You can see where the two bolts are on both skid plates. On the Sport skid plate, they're right at the front edge. On the OR skid plate, they're set back from the front edge, which is much higher on that skid plate.

I think the OR skid plate will work well with the chin scoop removed on my Sport.

You ever figure out the part number? I guess where I'm confused is that the TRD OR has an additional crossmember that the OEM skid plates bolt up to. But the pictures you posted make the mounting location appear identical.

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