Hey..

I got my 4runner about 2 months ago, and when i opened the hood..it had this hard, insulation like material on the hood. is this needed to keep heat from melting the paint on the outside of the hood. i have removed parts of it and it seems as though my paint on the hood seems to be melting away.

i will take pictures tommorrow as i do not have the 4Runer now (getting a new windshield)..

kyle

 

Personally, I hate that insulation junk. I had it on my 98 Tacoma, but I do not have it on my 96 4Runner. The insulation collects dirt, and make pressure-washing the engine really fun. Removing it will not have any adverse effects on your engine if that is what you are asking. In fact, my 4Runner runs cooler than my Tacoma did (same engine).

 

My old 2nd didn't have insulatior neither does my current 3rd gen I think it looks way better w/o the insulation

 

Kyle- it is a fire suppression blanket. The plastic tabs are supposed to melt and the blanket will then drop to cover the motor. Most yotas I have seen, including my own, don't have it installed. I would like to see some pics of your paint tho if you can post them. It would have to be EXTREMELY hot to mess up the paint on your hood...and I'm talking hot like being able to light a cig off your intake hot. If it is a newer yota take it to the dealer and have them fix your hood if the paint is messing up on it.

 

also- it could very well be that i had just washed it and it hadnt completely dried, but the thing had been sitting in the sun for a couple of hours.

thanks

 

i took mine off a long time ago and have noticed no problems with the paint even after 6 or 7 hour drives.

 

I took mine off a few weeks ago cause it was in shreds. Not running any cooler but havnt melted paint either. I'd get it checked out!

 

The heat shield is just to try and protect the paint. If you have a scooped hood you can dissipate some heat even better, but that's all it's for. Some want it to save the paint, others are against it. It IS an insulator though so it does make your engine bay hotter, possibly sacrificing minor performance.

Zach