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I've got the WeatherTech's and if I figure out how to post a picture of the rear mudflap here you should be able to see a little bit. I don't think that they will be low enough to keep the mud out of the bumper as I've seen that I'm still getting stuff on the lower part of the fender just in front of the bumper. They could be at least 2-3 inches longer and that would eliminate that. The next ones that I'll put on will be the Duraflaps. They look a bit wider and hang lower I believe.
As far as the front's that I have, they could be longer as well. I get lots of slush and snow up on the step, but further back than if I had nothing at all.
I ordered my 2015 F-350 DRW with Ford OEM mudflaps...BIG mistake. They do NOT cover the width of the front tires, and the rear flaps are too short to work well. I bought the longer length DuraFlaps, also wide enough to actually COVER the tire width. DuraFlaps costs $300... try to spend that little amount of $$$ getting the rocker panels, rear wheel fenders, and rear bumper replaced.
The trick to mudflaps is two-fold -- decide what you are trying to protect and get enough coverage. If you are towing and are worried about throwing rocks at your trailer, you need very low protection, to within 3-4 inches of the ground. If worried about mud in the wheel well or bumper, or on the running boards, you still need low protection, but not quite as extreme, but need a lot of width. Don't make the mistake of getting flaps that are only the width of the tire, or flaps that hang from support rods.
As far as protection, lower, longer, and wider are better. The molded ones aren't very long and really just avoid mud spray in the immediate vicinity of the wheel well. They don't protect significantly against thrown rocks or give complete protection against mud. Also, we've had a couple pairs that came on trucks and they somehow tend to crack -- the shapes tend to have stress risers that make them fail after a few years. Now we take off anything that happens to come on a truck and replace them with Duraflaps. Generally we get the Duraflaps as long and as wide as will fit. Often this means getting models with the weights on the ends to minimize sailing when driving at highway speeds. We don't do sport offroad, where you might want to second-guess this because you don't want the mudflap catching on ground clutter, but for dirt roads and reasonably flat fields, a four inch ground clearance in the rear has never given us problems.
On the front, the Duraflaps will technically fit but with 20 inch wheels there's very little room. We found that installing mudflaps of any kind on the front could leave on some trucks only a quarter inch or so of clearance. If you pick up mud and rock, or if your wheel wells ice up a bit, it becomes a problem. The molded ones didn't do much better. I no longer live where chains or cables are important, but it's hard to drive a current SuperDuty with 20 inch wheels and expect to fit even Super-Z's without rubbing. Maybe it's an emergency solution, but if you're going to be putting chains on regularly, think about trucks with 18 inch wheels and smaller tire profiles. I can't imagine what the 2017 SD is going to be like for chains with its 21 inch wheels.
I looked at them, and the other "flat" flaps. I don't dislike them, but was leaning toward the molded / contoured style.
I'm half tempted to try to find some plain flat 1/8 - 1/4" think black plastic and cut my own. That way I can make sure they cover everything in the fender wells - front to back, top to bottom, in and out. Splash guards everywhere!
Any idea where I can get some? LOL!
EDIT - Saw another thread where someone was looking for guards for the FRONT side of the FRONT fender to keep the front bumper from filling up with mud (by the fog lights). I'd be interested in that too. That's what lead me to think about finding ram materials and making some of my own flaps.
Another vote for DuraFlap. They even have all the best materials available for the do it yourselfer like you. I do not recommend flat material on the side facing the tires. It does not stop anything, the mud finds it way around to the edges of flat surfaces. The rain grooves make a big difference and directs all of that to the ground.
The longer the better, but there is a trade off. Any closer than 6" of the ground, and you run a large risk of pinching them between the tire and a curb or parking guard. I have always run them 7" off the ground, and my boat is completely protected.
Theory, the rocks that might get under that low do not have the opportunity to gain altitude enough to hit the front of my toad. Since the Duraflap are not contoured, they stay the full 12", 14" or 20" wide all the way down instead of having to start curving inward the last couple inches. Since they do not fly up as I go down the road, they stay in place protecting at all times.
When comparing the cost of the Duraflap without the stainless steel on the bottom, they are not that much more than the others that do not offer the stainless steel, yet you do not have to drill holes in your truck. If you are a member reading this, call them for a 10% discount on top of all that.
01-19-2016, 11:10 AM
