Picked up my new 2023 Timberline earlier this week and talked with the parts guys while I was there about any kind of protection available for the catalytic converters. According to them Ford offers nothing. The Ford dealer also owns a Toyota dealership nearby and the Ford parts guy directed me to them because they work with a company in town that makes shields for them but also makes them for other brands including Fords. Went to the the Toyota dealer today to get this thing installed and wanted to share pics with y'all showing all of the skid plates from the factory, what covers your cats now, and what this shield looks like. I've seen a post on here about skid plates so I took the opportunity to look around while it was up on the lift.
The front skid plate seems pretty solid and the one under the gas tank is tougher than I thought it would be. That one is plastic but it feels thicker and more rigid than I expected. The material that covered the cats from the factory is essentially a flimsy heat shield on one side and felt material on the other. It provided no under body protection at all.
I will say Ford does a better job tucking the cats up into hard to reach places than Toyota does. The ones on my car are in between the frame and transmission and aren't as accessible as you'll see on Tundras and Tacomas.
1) Factory cover that got replaced
2) Front skid plate and new shield
3) New shield
4) Underbody as it comes from the factory
5) Left cat and flexible factory cover
The front skid plate seems pretty solid and the one under the gas tank is tougher than I thought it would be. That one is plastic but it feels thicker and more rigid than I expected. The material that covered the cats from the factory is essentially a flimsy heat shield on one side and felt material on the other. It provided no under body protection at all.
I will say Ford does a better job tucking the cats up into hard to reach places than Toyota does. The ones on my car are in between the frame and transmission and aren't as accessible as you'll see on Tundras and Tacomas.
1) Factory cover that got replaced
2) Front skid plate and new shield
3) New shield
4) Underbody as it comes from the factory
5) Left cat and flexible factory cover