Has anyone had good/bad luck with aftermarket guards for the '05's? If so, what's the story?

Only BAD luck, all the grill guards you can get destroy your approach angle, and, in an accident, actually cause more damage than they prevent...people who hit deer, etc...find more damage than if they had NO guard.

The replacement steel bumpers seem to be the only way to go and gain any actual protection up front.

For the 2005, the Shrockworks front bumper looks like the way to go. Calmini has a 2005 compatible bumper as well, but most here except Jeff are partial to the Shrockworks version.



Not much more $ than a well made Guard like Waag or Westin, but will eat deer for lunch instead of totaling your truck.

mmm, venison....

i wish i could go the path of getting a shockworks bumper..but it is just too much for not offroading at all...oh well

i got the grille guard..that i know you all hate oh so much..its going on monday

Thanks for the info!!

I would recomend a Westin bull bar (not a brush guard). The bull bars are made of much tougher materials and should add the protection you're looking for, though I'm not sure they have one for the 05 yet.

http://www.westinautomotive.com/photographs/SMALL%20JPGs/NSBB302WPR.jpg

..but if you can aford it, get the Shrockworks bumper. It adds a lot of protection and looks cool to boot (though I haven't seen the final version yet). Even if you don't off-road, I'm sure you'll love the Shrock bumper.

Additionaly, once you have it on, who knows, you might be tempted to go off-roading after all.