Words by Bryan Irons
A few issues ago we had complained about the unsanitary condition that humans under the age of 12 bring to the inside of a vehicle. Unlike Grandmas house of plastic wrapped furniture and her demands that shoes be taken off at the front door, we went with new Huskey floor mats and Bushwacker door sill guards for the 2016 Ram 3500 munchkin transporter. These worked wonderfully well, but now we needed to keep the new “boots” on the outside of the truck from kicking up mud across the side of the truck.
Stabbing on the new 315/70-17 AMP Terrain Gripper AT around AEV Salta wheels was definitely the right choice, but the extra width of the tires meant they poke out a bit from the fenders. Here in beautiful British Columbia, this is a no-no when on the highway. Our solution was to go back to Bushwacker and get a set of their bolt on Pocket Style fender flares. We ordered ours from Bushwacker pre-painted in an accent colour. The flares are available in textured black as well, but we wanted something a little different. Bushwacker has developed the paint formula to have the flexibility and durability you would expect from them and are equipped with pre-installed stainless-steel hardware. Ours came in Granite Chrystal Metallic, but other colours are available.
While dealing with the topic of keeping the truck free from road debris flung up off the tires, we knew that with the terrain it sees, the exhaust system was in for a rude awakening and plenty of rusting in it’s future. Typically, we see factory aluminized exhaust systems rust from the end of the tailpipe and eventually infect the entire system. To protect the end from rocks and dirt, beginning the decomposition process, we scooped up a Gem Tubes Lucky7 exhaust tip. The black 4” tip we chose has a staggered cut end and like all their tips, is made from 304 stainless steel. They are ridiculously easy to install and even come with the proper Allen wrench to do so. We really like the compact design and clean welds, as an added bonus, the way we installed ours not only guards against dirt and grime, but also acts like a heat shield. It doesn’t hurt that all the pieces are made in Canada and look GREAT too.
Installation of the flares is pretty straight forward and requires ordinary hand tools. No drilling, cutting, scraping or grinding. The only things we recommend is that you take your time, clean thoroughly and NOT invite a magazine editor over with a video camera. We found it easier to pull the wheels and tires from the truck, but it’s really not necessary.
The added 2” of tire coverage on the rear and 2.6” up front is perfect, and we couldn’t be happier with the look and durability of the Bushwacker flares. They were extremely easy to install and can be removed in the future with no lasting ill-effects. Read on here as we install the flares, exhaust tip from Gem Tubes and removed the factory Ram badges that were in the way.
1 of 10
Bryan Irons and Perry Mack
Despite the cool Ranch Hand bumpers and getting the truck leveled out, it looked “vanilla”.
2 of 10
Bryan Irons and Perry Mack
After tearing off the shipping packaging, we couldn’t wait to bolt them on. They simply use the factory hardware.
3 of 10
Bryan Irons and Perry Mack
On the back side, the all stainless-steel hardware is top notch. It’s not often we see nylocks used for superficial bolts.
4 of 10
Bryan Irons and Perry Mack
Unfortunately, the cool “Cummins Turbo Diesel” emblems had to go. The first step in removal is to heat up the emblem and adhesive. Not too hot to touch though.
5 of 10
Bryan Irons and Perry Mack
We can’t fish to save our lives so we had to sneak next door and raid our neighbours of some fishing line and use it like a tiny saw to get behind the emblem. Some clean-up with adhesive remover and the job is done.
6 of 10
Bryan Irons and Perry Mack
With the emblems safely stashed under Jason’s pillow at night, it’s time to test-fit the flare.
7 of 10
Bryan Irons and Perry Mack
Again with the heat gun, we warmed up the edge of the rubber gasket so that it molded around the tight curves of the flare.
8 of 10
Bryan Irons and Perry Mack
Ta-Da! What an amazing difference to the front of our big Ram.
9 of 10
Bryan Irons and Perry Mack
The Gem Tubes Lucky 7 (seven-sided tube) Stainless Exhaust tip. We’re not into garbage can sized tips and this truck deserved something classier.
10 of 10
Bryan Irons and Perry Mack
In less then 20 minutes a side, the rear went from blah to much better.