review of bt tech strut brace and skid plate

I was holding off writing my review of the bt skid plate and their strut tower brace until I had at least several hundred miles of use. I am pleased to report that my expectations of both products have been exceeded. I am already a happy customer of theirs when I purchased the bt stiffening plate 2 years ago. The quality was first rate and if their newest products lived up to the quality of their stiffening plate I knew I would be one happy camper.

The two boxes arrived a few days apart and each product was packaged extremely well and secure. The boxes actually look like they were custom designed to accept the individual components as they were very professional in appearance. All of the parts had a label attached to them indicating where they went and complete hardware along with well written and easy to follow instructions.

I started with the bt tech strut brace. I read the instructions a few times and once I felt confident I went ahead and started the install. The instructions that they provided were extremely clear and easy to follow. I would have liked to see pictorial diagrams but one can not have everything. All of the parts were labeled perfectly and the fit and finish were absolutely superb. I could not have asked for a nicer looking installation and once I had everything in place and buttoned up it looked as if it came from Toyota. My total installation time was just over 1 hour. As soon as my installation was complete I went for a drive around town putting the car through its paces. I immediately noticed that there is less of a lean when turning in both directions and the car seems to track better with less inputs required. The car also feels more solid and able to absorb road imperfections than before. On a scale from 1-10 I would give this new product a solid 10 in both form and function.

On to the bt tech skid plate. I figured that I would have had this part installed in less than an hour but it did not turn out that way for me. I followed the instructions to the T but there were a few things that I feel could have been explained better. Again, pictorial diagrams would have helped a lot and probably would have cut my install time in half. If you have this product, the best suggestion that I can give you is to use ramps for the front end to get it off the pavement. Also, if you have a friend or significant other that can help you, this will make the installation much easier. Unfortunately I did not have anyone on hand to help me and although the install went well, it could have gone even better if I had a spare set of hands. Basically the skid plate replaces the flimsy plastic parts in front that in my case were pretty beaten up already. These parts get removed and the skid plate bolts to the frame and upper wheel well areas to form a barrier of protection against practically anything. Think of it as a M1-Abrahams tank for the bottom front of the Prius! Again, the fit and finish of this product was superb and everything bolted in precisely and with little fuss. The only issue that I had was that removing the factory plastic pin clips was not the easiest thing to do but I used a pair of needle nose pliers and finally removed them with little effort. Once I tightened everything in place, I was amazed at the amount of clearance that I had and how secure the skid plate was. You could literally hit it with a sledge hammer and all you would hear is a “thudâ€. There were no resonances or other issues and once I was sure everything was tight and secure. Just the thought of knowing that the skid plate is there is peace of mind to me. I know that if some huge rock hits it or if I park too far and smack a parking stop, there will be no issues at all. I don’t know how many bt tech has sold but if you have a chance to see one up close, I think that one would be very impressed by the solidness of this part and the way it looks once it is installed.

Overall I can not be happier with both of these new products and once again I feel that bt tech has hit a home run with these. I was one of the first that preordered each and patiently waited for Bryan to ship them.

I have called bt tech numerous times over the past few years to discuss various things. Every time that I have called, bryan has been available to speak to me and answer all of my questions. Even when I had some installation questions a few weeks ago, I was able to get a hold of him on a Sunday no less and he was right there ready to answer my questions. Show me another company with that level of customer service these days?

Frank Boyle
2007 touring