"Toad" protection
- Thread starter Mayzie
- Start date
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If you have answers, please help by responding to the unanswered posts.
zmotorsports
Well-known member
Personal choice but in my experience I have found the closer to stock a vehicle is the less likely to get damage from rocks. My wife's first Jeep, a 1992 Cherokee (XJ) was bone stock and we towed it for a couple of years without an issue. We then picked her up a 1996 ZJ and no issue for a few years then I lifted it a couple of inches and a very slight oversize on tires and picked up a chip or two in the 14 years total of towing that Jeep and over 100k miles.
We then bought another ZJ and I lifted it 4" with 31" tires, custom built bumper with tow points for the Sterling towbar and picked up a few more rock chips in the two years and approx. 10k miles we towed that.
Now our current Jeep, 2011 Wrangler, with 4" of lift, 35" tires and custom bumpers with towing points for the Sterling towbar and I have more chips than all my previous miles and vehicles combined. Last fall I purchased and installed the Roadmaster Tow Defender and it helps tremendously.
All that said, I doubt you will have any issues unless you start getting a little more distance between the bumpers and body and larger tires with the ability to throw larger rocks or pick them up in the first place.
Personally, if you don't absolutely need the extra protection I wouldn't run it. Just another item to hook up/ unhook for towing.
Mike.
We then bought another ZJ and I lifted it 4" with 31" tires, custom built bumper with tow points for the Sterling towbar and picked up a few more rock chips in the two years and approx. 10k miles we towed that.
Now our current Jeep, 2011 Wrangler, with 4" of lift, 35" tires and custom bumpers with towing points for the Sterling towbar and I have more chips than all my previous miles and vehicles combined. Last fall I purchased and installed the Roadmaster Tow Defender and it helps tremendously.
All that said, I doubt you will have any issues unless you start getting a little more distance between the bumpers and body and larger tires with the ability to throw larger rocks or pick them up in the first place.
Personally, if you don't absolutely need the extra protection I wouldn't run it. Just another item to hook up/ unhook for towing.
Mike.
ArdraF
Well-known member
- Joined
- Feb 12, 2006
- Posts
- 10,695
We have the 3M film on the front of the motorhome and both our cars, either of which is towable. We even did it on the never-towed Lexus we recently traded in, including on the headlights. It's really saved a lot of dings on the front of the motorhome.
ArdraF
ArdraF
NY_Dutch
Well-known member
We use a Protect-A-Tow to keep road debris off our RAV4. It also protects the tow bar, wires, and cables from damage. The extra minute or so it takes to hook it up has been well worth the cost for us. It cost a lot more to get the dings taken out of our previous toad than it did to buy the PAT.
