I purchased all 3 skid plates from ford with the hardware. The one by the engine and tranny looks very easy. The one with the fuel tank looks like it could be a pain. Any past experiences installing? Any Advice?

Thanks

Jim

 

I have been looking for skid plates since I lifted. Who made the skid plates or are you talking stock?

 

I just bought the OEM stock ones....I will do little OF so OEM is fine for me.

 

Did you buy them individually or as a set?

What was the cost from Ford?

 

As a set with the hardware kit

 

jim i haven't looked but it should be a bolt in if not a cheap wire welder will do wonders.Look at what you have then try a trial fit to see what you need to do and as this happens it will all fall into place. Cut alot of things apart in my life to make my cars better ,truck may be next when it's thirty years old or so. Remember look , fit, measure twice ,cut and weld. then hit it with a Hammer LOL just kidding.

 

I remember someone doing the same thing a while back. everything was a bolt on except the fuel tank. He said the fuel tank mounting bands had to be replaced with ones that were tapped to take the bolts. it involved removing the fuel tank; he had the dealer do it and they wanted him to run the tank almost empty before bringing it in. Like I said, this is a recollection from a long while ago, so it may not be 100% accurate

 

I too have been looking for aftermarket skid plates for my lift. The only thing I found was Procomp is going to release their front plate at the end of this month or so.

 

Inbred is right on.

I had the stock skid plates added, as part of the deal to purchase the truck. The front skid plate is bolt on. The transfer case skid plate is also bolt on. The fuel tank skid plate requires new tank hangers. The new hangers have studs on the bottom that match up with the holes on the skid plates. The dealer requested we run the tank down before bringing it in. The tank has to be dropped a bit, and the new hangers installed. After that, it is just bolt (nut) on from there.
I was going to do the work myself, but decided against trying to drop the fuel tank on my own. I am sure it could be done, but it was already written in as part of the deal.

Smart of you to add the skid plates. My only beef with this truck is how low slung it is. I used to thing the 4wd GM's sat really low, but now so does the Ford.

Good luck, and remeber to put your smoke out before lowering the fuel tank...

 

Were the original hangers modified or were they replaced with a different type. I was going to tackle this this weekend but if I need to order new brackets I'll do that today. I got all the hardware but no replacement brackets.

Thx for the info.

 

The tank skid plate is an easy install. The tank does not need to be dropped, but the hangers need to be replaced or modified. The ford part you need has studs pressed in place. If you have a welder you could drill holes and tack carriage bolts to the the existing hangers. To remove the hangers one at a time, simply support the tank (nearest the hanger) with a floor jack and a block of wood (to distribute the weight).

 

OK, I guess the tank does not need to be dropped, makes sense. The dealer installed new straps with the studs already installed.