Catalytic Converter Protection - 2023 Timberline

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TimberTex

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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
 

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TimberTex

TimberTex

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1) side view of the new shield
2) fuel tank
3) right side cat and factory cover
4) factory cover and both cats
 

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RacerBX1

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The Ford Parts guy at your dealership was wrong and Ford does make a shield for that, but it’s called the “Transmission Underbody Shield” (Part No: NL1Z5D032C) and it replaces the hard felt piece with the heat shielding. I think the one you got might go slightly further back though.
 

Calidad

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Only good protection is garage parking.
However the only houses hit here were in groups of houses with zero night lighting and zero security cameras. Pretty obvious they came trough and eyed the targets before. My neighbors and I have security lights, cameras etc and haven’t had any issues. Helps if you have Prius owners all over the area keeping the crooks busy
 
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TimberTex

TimberTex

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Couldn't agree more about garage parking and thats where I keep mine when I'm home. These guys get people at the grocery store, malls, etc and I just wanted peace of mind knowing mine was a harder target than most. Hopefully they'll get a look under there and move on to an easier car, like something with a Toyota logo on it.
 

Going_Going_Gone

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Spending that much money on undercarriage shielding for a vehicle that I wouldn't use for off roading is something I could not justify. Of course a lot of my reasoning is based on how we use the truck, where we live, and where & for how long it might sit unattended while running errands. But that's just me.
 
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TimberTex

TimberTex

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My protection options…
I get where you’re coming from but in the real world this isn’t practical. Do you bring all that with you and leave it in a parking lot when you’re shopping, or going to baseball game? Are you standing watch after you park or do you go inside the place you just drove to?
 
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TimberTex

TimberTex

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Spending that much money on undercarriage shielding for a vehicle that I wouldn't use for off roading is something I could not justify. Of course a lot of my reasoning is based on how we use the truck, where we live, and where & for how long it might sit unattended while running errands. But that's just me.
Same can be said for a lot of things. This is a 4 wheel drive, slightly more capable off road trim level but I doubt any of us are going rock crawling in it. The primary reason for the purchase wasn’t off road protection but catalytic converter theft protection. I live and work in a major city and crime is a problem. This device makes my car a little less likely to be targeting in a parking lot and thieves won’t want to spend the time messing with it. They should just move on to the next car. If I lived in rural Montana I wouldn’t have even considered this. Just wanted to share under body pics and a useful product for those that may need it.
 

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