Odin
Senior Member
- Joined
- Oct 31, 2014
- Posts
- 566
- Reaction score
- 374
- Location
- Arizona aka HELL
- Ram Year
- 2015 2500
- Engine
- Hemi 6.4L
Well hello my fellow brethren of the RAM!! Let me share with you a tale of install, cursing, and copenhagen...
For this install you will need the following:
Some RAM 2500 OEM Style Fender Flares (made in China I'm sure). These were like $155.00 shipped. Two different listings; one for texture and one for smooth. You'll have to search for smooth as I chose and like the textured version.
https://rover.ebay.com/rover/0/0/0?mpre=https://www.ebay.com/ulk/itm/272519955737
1 can of Copenhagen (your flavor, mine is Natural Extra Long Cut)
Socket wrench with a 5/16 socket and a 3/8 torx screw bit
5/16 drill bit and drill
Toothpicks and tweezers
Acetone (and rags)
Heat gun (optional, explained later)
Simple math skills
Common sense
Patience
Let's begin, this will not be a picture heavy thread. More so my thoughts on install and review with some pics of before and after.
Depending on what condition the exterior of your truck is, make sure at least 4" of your fender is clean all the way around where the flare will be installed. Wipe it fine with acetone to remove any oils or stuck on tire goop which gets thrown up after tires get wet.
Once done you wanna hold the flare up and check for fitment. Mine did not come with predrilled holes, rather they had little marks where the factory screws attach. The rear on this set were missing 2 factory screw locations near the top middle of the fender so I had to mark and drill those. The front were missing 1 factory screw location near the bottom towards the cab of the truck. Hence the basic mathematics being counting.
When checking for fitment make sure to adjust for any marked areas which don't line up properly and drill all the holes.
The first flare I installed, drivers side front, was slightly off even after drilling the holes, not overly noticeable to anyone else but myself.
For the front flares I suggest securing the flare near the cab with the first 3 screws. Pull the flare away from near the front and remove a small section (roughly 2") of the 3M tape film to reveal the tape; this is where the toothpicks and tweezers came into play. This will allow you to make any adjustments you need while installing. Make sure the 2" of film is sticking out between the flare and the body.
Next, secure the front of the flare to the fender but don't tighten the screws down to fully tight or you might not be able to get the 3M film off.
Then, remove the 3 previous tightened screws near the cab and repeat the process you did on the front.
After all screws are tightened to snug, remove the 3M film and tighten the screws the rest of the way. Rub all the exterior of the flare with firm pressure to secure the 3M tape to the fender.
For the back, you'll need to remove whatever the little plastic piece is near the lower rear quarter panel. This is where you will need the 3/16 torx bit. My screws wouldn't come out all the way, luckily they are just plastic, so I ripped them out.
Repeat the same process for install on the rear as you did on the front. Again, make sure you count how many screws there are. I didn't realize there were more on the back so first rear flare I installed I had to remove two more screws and drill two more holes during the install which I hadn't noticed when doing prefitment. The flares come with an addition plug to use on the rear fenders to snug them up more at the top. I suggest they be used.
Once all of the flares were installed is where the heat gun came into play. Depending on your weather, I live in AZ and thought the weather would cooperate but it didn't... Very cold outside compared to recent days. I chose to take the heat gun and on medium heat ran over the flare where the 3M tape is for several passes while rubbing with a rag to help with adhesion.
Curse words flew out here and there but not as many as I was expecting. The whole thing start to finished too about 2 1/2 hours due to readjustment, drilling holes, etc. I had to move the truck in and out of the garage also the sky was rather dark with rain clouds.
Pre install
Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk
For this install you will need the following:
Some RAM 2500 OEM Style Fender Flares (made in China I'm sure). These were like $155.00 shipped. Two different listings; one for texture and one for smooth. You'll have to search for smooth as I chose and like the textured version.
https://rover.ebay.com/rover/0/0/0?mpre=https://www.ebay.com/ulk/itm/272519955737
1 can of Copenhagen (your flavor, mine is Natural Extra Long Cut)
Socket wrench with a 5/16 socket and a 3/8 torx screw bit
5/16 drill bit and drill
Toothpicks and tweezers
Acetone (and rags)
Heat gun (optional, explained later)
Simple math skills
Common sense
Patience
Let's begin, this will not be a picture heavy thread. More so my thoughts on install and review with some pics of before and after.
Depending on what condition the exterior of your truck is, make sure at least 4" of your fender is clean all the way around where the flare will be installed. Wipe it fine with acetone to remove any oils or stuck on tire goop which gets thrown up after tires get wet.
Once done you wanna hold the flare up and check for fitment. Mine did not come with predrilled holes, rather they had little marks where the factory screws attach. The rear on this set were missing 2 factory screw locations near the top middle of the fender so I had to mark and drill those. The front were missing 1 factory screw location near the bottom towards the cab of the truck. Hence the basic mathematics being counting.
When checking for fitment make sure to adjust for any marked areas which don't line up properly and drill all the holes.
The first flare I installed, drivers side front, was slightly off even after drilling the holes, not overly noticeable to anyone else but myself.
For the front flares I suggest securing the flare near the cab with the first 3 screws. Pull the flare away from near the front and remove a small section (roughly 2") of the 3M tape film to reveal the tape; this is where the toothpicks and tweezers came into play. This will allow you to make any adjustments you need while installing. Make sure the 2" of film is sticking out between the flare and the body.
Next, secure the front of the flare to the fender but don't tighten the screws down to fully tight or you might not be able to get the 3M film off.
Then, remove the 3 previous tightened screws near the cab and repeat the process you did on the front.
After all screws are tightened to snug, remove the 3M film and tighten the screws the rest of the way. Rub all the exterior of the flare with firm pressure to secure the 3M tape to the fender.
For the back, you'll need to remove whatever the little plastic piece is near the lower rear quarter panel. This is where you will need the 3/16 torx bit. My screws wouldn't come out all the way, luckily they are just plastic, so I ripped them out.
Repeat the same process for install on the rear as you did on the front. Again, make sure you count how many screws there are. I didn't realize there were more on the back so first rear flare I installed I had to remove two more screws and drill two more holes during the install which I hadn't noticed when doing prefitment. The flares come with an addition plug to use on the rear fenders to snug them up more at the top. I suggest they be used.
Once all of the flares were installed is where the heat gun came into play. Depending on your weather, I live in AZ and thought the weather would cooperate but it didn't... Very cold outside compared to recent days. I chose to take the heat gun and on medium heat ran over the flare where the 3M tape is for several passes while rubbing with a rag to help with adhesion.
Curse words flew out here and there but not as many as I was expecting. The whole thing start to finished too about 2 1/2 hours due to readjustment, drilling holes, etc. I had to move the truck in and out of the garage also the sky was rather dark with rain clouds.
Pre install
Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk