Does anyone else have this tape on their rear doors? It is on the bottom edge towards the rear on booth doors. What is it for?
All new Toyotas will have them near the rear door area (this is the first time I've seen it on the door though.. usually it's in the rear fender). It's basically chip protection from rocks/pebbles.
It takes up such a small area it makes me question whether there's any value to it. Why would rocks/pebbles strike only that particularly small area?
Probably the most susceptible area compared to the other areas?? I'm assuming it's to protect from rocks kicked up by the car itself and not from other vehicles passing by.
I was guessing it was for protecting the corner when opening the door (carelessly) next to a high curb or rock or something else that might scratch up the corner. I wonder how effective this really is. But I'm not about to try it out. Does anyone know if this is the same/similar material as the invisible car bra that many dealers have installed at the ports? Going a bit further, it would have been nice if they had covered the entire door to protect it from people in adjacent cars opening their doors and slamming into yours. Continuing the thought -- imagine a windshield that had an outer coating of some soft material that wasn't as susceptible to cracking as glass is from rocks etc. That would reduce 50% of my paranoia while driving.
That sounds much more like what it's for, especially given how low the car is to the ground/curb and the small area the film covers. A true rock chip film occupies a much larger area (at least the transparent aftermarket ones).
Hmm, mystery over here: 1. If for rock chips etc, would cover more area. 2. If for door protection when opening , hitting curbs etc - why not the front doors? I've seen similar protection on my previous cars, but just behind the wheel openings - truly for stone kicks... It MUST serve a purpose, and for a good reason. Or Toyota would have not installed them. Even .10 per unit manufactured plus a bit of labor is not chump change when they're looking to save every cent. Surprised this thing wasn't marketed as a Port Installed Option and charging us $40.
I would think that if it was meant to protect the door when opening against curbs then I would think it would wrap around aw well.
