Mud flaps or no mud flaps?

[RoarinRow]

With my new Duratec tires I am concerned about scratching my paint and of course throwing debris from the tires. I am thinking of getting mud flaps for my stock 3” lift Silverado.

Your thoughts? Pic for reference.

 

[RoarinRow]

I'm a firm believe in mudflaps and it looks like they would be an easy install on your truck. With my Bison and my upgrade to 33" tires, currently I'm only able to put mudflaps on the rear, the fronts still through everything all the way up to the door handles. Things you should consider in choosing mudflaps they need to be sturdy enough not to be blown back by the wind, but flexible enough if you are off-road and the flaps get in contract with rocks, the ground, tree limbs, you don't want them ripping off or breaking.

Thanks for your feedback. The ones I am looking at use existing holes so if they don’t work out then I wouldn’t have drilled any unnecessary holes for this somewhat experiment.

 

[Mojavewanderer]

I’ve still got the factory mud flaps on my truck, old Toyotas always had them, but most got taken off years ago. I like the look, and they do help. I’m looking at putting some Yosemite Sam flaps on the back, those would look great on my truck!

 

[RoarinRow]

You're welcome, and I like your truck. Check out if Lucerne makes them for your truck, they are the one's I got through Chevy Accessories for the ZR2. I like the quality and flexibility of them.

Thanks man, these ones I am looking at from Amazon are made by G-Plus. I'll post pics after they are installed. I might get them by this Friday.

 

[RoarinRow]

I’ve still got the factory mud flaps on my truck, old Toyotas always had them, but most got taken off years ago. I like the look, and they do help. I’m looking at putting some Yosemite Sam flaps on the back, those would look great on my truck!

Yosemite Sam is the only way to go!

 

[MazeVX]

I kept my original mudflaps, but more because throwing stones and crap at the cars behind me isn't really nice!

 

[RoarinRow]

I kept my original mudflaps, but more because throwing stones and crap at the cars behind me isn't really nice!

Kind of my thought process as well.

 

[ChasingOurTrunks]

I'm very happy with my Weatherteck mudflats. On my daily driver truck, they look nice and do a great job protecting the finish. They came with our overland truck and aren't ideal in off road as they are hard plastic, so while the protection from spray/rocks/grime is excellent, they have no flex and will rip off if they hit something.

However, if your rig spends 90% of it's time on roads and overlanding is more "Gravel road" than "rock crawl" they may fit the bill for you. In really tricky spots, because they are held on by one cam-lock that uses a small Allen key, they are easy to pop off and re-install when the technical bit is through.

 

[RoarinRow]

I'm very happy with my Weatherteck mudflats. On my daily driver truck, they look nice and do a great job protecting the finish. They came with our overland truck and aren't ideal in off road as they are hard plastic, so while the protection from spray/rocks/grime is excellent, they have no flex and will rip off if they hit something.

However, if your rig spends 90% of it's time on roads and overlanding is more "Gravel road" than "rock crawl" they may fit the bill for you. In really tricky spots, because they are held on by one cam-lock that uses a small Allen key, they are easy to pop off and re-install when the technical bit is through.

Yup I've seen those cam-lock style. This one will just use existing hole with some sort of plastic screws? But the one I'm looking at are some harder plastic, which is better for me since most of the driving I do will be highway driving. I usually just drive her once a week to work, then on weekends for kid's stuff or traveling. Daily driver is a sedan that gets at least 30mpg, not 10-11mpg like my truck lol.

 

[MidOH]

I suggest the Bushwacker Extend a Fender, fender flares. Or the ''cut out'' flares.

Put some vinyl under them to protect your paint.

 

[RoarinRow]

I suggest the Bushwacker Extend a Fender, fender flares. Or the ''cut out'' flares.

Put some vinyl under them to protect your paint.

Thanks for the suggestion. Actually, I already 'checked out' of my Amazon account and picked up these OEM looking ones. We'll see how it goes. Since this were not eligible for Amazon Prime members, I won't get them for another week or so.

 

[ChasingOurTrunks]

I suggest the Bushwacker Extend a Fender, fender flares. Or the ''cut out'' flares.

Put some vinyl under them to protect your paint.

If you go with these, make sure you pull them annually to clean behind them and rust proof the steel. Flares are notorious for trapping small bits of dust and debris, and they do move a bit so eventually the dust serves as a grinding compound and they wear through the clear coat and paint. They also trap moisture, which leads to rust.

But, if you pop them off once a year, hose them out with water, and spray the contact area down with Fluid Film, Lanolin, or your favourite rust proofer, it will dramatically mitigate the risk.

 

[RoarinRow]

If you go with these, make sure you pull them annually to clean behind them and rust proof the steel. Flares are notorious for trapping small bits of dust and debris, and they do move a bit so eventually the dust serves as a grinding compound and they wear through the clear coat and paint. They also trap moisture, which leads to rust.

But, if you pop them off once a year, hose them out with water, and spray the contact area down with Fluid Film, Lanolin, or your favourite rust proofer, it will dramatically mitigate the risk.

Thank you appreciate the advice!

 

[MidOH]

That's what the vinyl is for. Sticks, because you have to install each fender twice. Quadrupling the amount of work it takes. But worth it.

 

[ChasingOurTrunks]

Somehow I totally spaced on that entire sentence about the vinyl, I didn't even see it! I don't have any first-hand experience with it but it's a good idea.

I don't use flares on my trucks but I do use wheel well liners, which similarly trap grit and grim. The vinyl would totally work but it's a bit harder to apply in the wheel wells. Should be easy enough for flares, though.

If I did have flares, my preference would be to pull them and check anyway, even with the vinyl, but I'd certainly do that less often. And I despise rust with an unbridled passion and am obsessed with combating it on my vehicles, so this probably says more about that hatred & obsession than it does about good vehicle maintenance practices!

 

[RoarinRow]

No worries I am sure the same maintenance methodology applies. Thanks guys.

 

[toxicity_27]

I don't run mud flaps because they'll get torn off. I know people do, but you typically want to look into some of the more flexible ones so that they can flex when they get into obstacles. I do wish I didn't have snow/salt/mud/gravel/rocks thrown up the side of my Jeep, but it's scratched from trails, so it is what it is.

Post up a picture when you get them installed.

I had mud flaps on my old truck, and at first I thought I'd hate them because I didn't like the look, but it grew on me, and I liked the fact that it didn't throw stuff everywhere. I didn't take that one offroad though.

 

[RoarinRow]

I don't run mud flaps because they'll get torn off. I know people do, but you typically want to look into some of the more flexible ones so that they can flex when they get into obstacles. I do wish I didn't have snow/salt/mud/gravel/rocks thrown up the side of my Jeep, but it's scratched from trails, so it is what it is.

Post up a picture when you get them installed.

I had mud flaps on my old truck, and at first I thought I'd hate them because I didn't like the look, but it grew on me, and I liked the fact that it didn't throw stuff everywhere. I didn't take that one offroad though.

Yeah mud flaps aren’t for everyone. I actually tried to put one of them on today. Then when I got to the screws that came with the flaps I noticed that it didn’t come with nuts.

The holes aligned just no way to secure them. I will need to go to Home Depot or something to find compatible nuts.

 

[Kilo Sierra]

Mudflaps are fine for mild offroading where you're taking dirt trails/tracks where you're not too worried about getting hung up. If you're doing anything technical you risk pulling them off.

I had rears on my X for years (Rallysport not the rigid OEM ones) and I loved them. Travelling on logging roads, trails, and water they did really well. As soon as I hit my first challenging trail I got hung up on some rocks and slid back and pulled one off. Decided it wasn't worth putting them back on again.

 

[Boostpowered]

Removed mine when i got bushwhacker flares. I have more problem with rock being flung off other vehicles hitting me than my own fling off.