Am I Missing Under Body Armor?

About 3 weeks ago, I took my 2020 4Runner Off Road Premium to the dealership to get its 30k service. During that time, they informed me that I needed breaks; $400 for the fronts and $400 for the rears. I opted not to get the break work done because $800 for breaks is overpriced.

Today, I went to my honest, reliable and competent mechanic to have the break pads replaced. When we picked up the vehicle on the lift, he pointed out that my under body armor was missing!

Here are the pictures...



The dealership is telling me that there was never under body armor. I purchased the Off Road Premium BECAUSE it offered under body armor in addition to other features. They looked under a 2022 4Runner Limited as said "it looks the same".

I responded by saying "you can't compare a 2022 that wasn't designed for off road with a 2020 that was."

So my question: Does the 2020 4Runner ORP come with under body armor? If so, then the only thing I can think of is that someone was going for the Cat-Converter and got spooked off before they finished the job, or the dealer didn't put it back on.

I know insurance companies can tell how a vehicle is equipped based on the VIN. Would that work here?

 

All trims have the same skid package unless you get the pro with the pro skid so what the dealership did by looking under a Limited is valid. Looks like you’re missing the little plastic tail on the second skid though. Not really “protection” so I wouldn’t fret

 

I believe your 20 ORP is like my 18 ORP, with 3 pieces of “armor”. Actually more like underbody covers. A plastic cover in front just under the radiator, a metal one further back that covers the oil filter area, and another metal cover behind that with the small door covering the oil drain plug. Those two tabs that stick out of it have nothing connected to them.

 

Unless you had added aftermarket skids, there is no 'armor' that you're missing. You have what comes from the factory. If the sales person told you the off road comes with any armor, they were deceiving you. Your honest, reliable and competent mechanic doesn't appear to know all that much about 4Rs.

 

Nope I thought I was missing one when I got my 2021 brand new. I did the service myself and thought something was missing because of those 2 tabs hanging off the transmission skid plate. Went to the dealer and looked at another Venture like mine and it was the same.

 

Wait $800 for a break job? Wow.

 

Did you run over imitation crab?

 

Worse yet, a brake job at 30,000 miles?????? Why? Is this a taxi in NYC?


There is no missing armor by the way. Even though most forum members here dont consider the two stamped metal factory skid plates as proper armor, anyone else could reasonably refer to it as armor. And to be fair, most people except us here on the forum, would stop, back up, and try another line if we heard the underbody touch down on something. They are decent if used in this way, as long as you dont go bashing around looking for trouble.

But if you need armor to continue pushing through things you’ve hit, then these shouldnt be considered armor.

The tabs on the rear most skidplate are for some sort if additional shield that comes on the Limited trim (plastic shield I think).

The green capped turn screw on the oil drain plate is a little janky though

 

This^^^ I replaced the rear pads on my 2019 at 100k miles. The fronts still had 50k left in them, going by pad thickness. So 30k miles sounds ridiculous.

(And yes, it seems that rear brakes wear more quickly than front in some cases/vehicles. Never used to be the case.)

 

I'm at 65k miles on my 2019 and my brakes still look good...just guestimating but probably another 5-6k miles left. and won't be anywhere near 800 bucks

 

Show me an expert that knows all about every car they touch, and I'll show you a liar. And this is more about product knowledge.

Okay... so maybe "armor" isn't the correct word. Lets call it "shielding". I didn't mean to imply that I expected to see the kind of armor one might find on a rock crawler. But my truck had shielding under it that was in 3 pieces: The first is plastic in front of the front wheels. The second is metal that covered the oil drain plug and then the third piece which is apparently not there.

 

You have all 3. The third piece is the one that has the two tabs sticking out the back and has the access panel for the oil drain. The second one is shorter and covers the oil filter location - see blue outline below. The is no factory option option that covers the catalytic converters and transmission pan.

 

I’m curious what your mechanic thought about the brakes. Were they worn that badly already?

 

You have everything on the truck that came from the factory. There is nothing that attaches to the two tabs on the rear of the third panel.

 

Yeah... thats $200 per tire! I said "no thank you".

 

Yes... I wondered the same thing. But the dealership was being honest; the rears were at 3mm and the fronts at 7mm. I did them all.

 

3mm in the back and 7mm in the front.

Yes, I was surprised as the truck only has 27k.

I always knew that the front breaks wear more quickly because of weight transfer to the front of the vehicle when breaking. But it was explained to me that with the advanced breaking features on newer cars, this isn't necessarily true.

 

As stated, you have all three pieces, so that’s the good news. I am surprised at how quickly you need to replace them.

Also, brakes not breaks.

 

I know this... what's wrong with me?

Anyway, regarding the BRAKES, it was explained to me that new cars with traction control and anti-lock brakes will "sit" when applying the brakes. This leads to a more even wear of the brakes.

 

I was just in for my 50K checkup last week and they said my brakes were showing wear as well. I'd have to pull out the sheet to see by how much. But they're not at the limit of anything AFAIK.

As for the $800, I'd say it's fair (to me). Parts and labor today are what they are. $100/hr if it's a dollar, and all the pieces that go with it. If you want it done on the cheap, you'll have to learn how to use some tools, in my opinion. If I were to do brakes, it would take me all day. If I charged myself the same rate, it would cost me a lot more.

For me, when it's time for brakes, I'm going to spend that day and upgrade my vehicle to a big brake kit. Which is way more than $800!

For a point of comparison, my Ram truck brakes were $1200.

 

I figured as much. I changed mine around 80k (I think). Not sure if they were replaced early as I bought it with 49k already on it (it was a lease in its former life).

I thought the same thing until I started looking into it. I watched some YouTube, read the repair manual, and had a basic mechanical knowledge. It went pretty smooth but it did take me about 3.5 -4hrs.

I also thought about upgrading to a better brake kit but I may invest more into a smoother ride instead.

 

Is this for pads only? $800

 

I would yank all of that crap off and install a full set of CBI skids. Solid product and helps with cat protection from theft.

 

It’s only money

 

I'm at 70K and my brakes look to be at 50%.

 

Whoa, whoa, whoa! I thought we had to choose 2 of these 3. Where did you find such a person?

 

They are expensive. They were the best that I found for full skids and added cat protection.

 

Noooo... parts & labor.

 

@dxhum

Inquiring minds want to know...

 

Not sure what this means...