Rugged Ridge Door Entry Guards; Black (97-06 Jeep Wrangler TJ)

Video Review & Installation

Rugged Ridge does offer a couple different versions of these entry guards. These are going to be the steel version that has a black powder coat on it, but there's also a stainless and an aluminum version, and they can also be polished. Today we're gonna talk through the installation of these guards, which is a very simple one out of three wrench installation. These are going to attach with some 3M adhesive, so you can get these attached to your Jeep in about 15 minutes or less, and we'll talk more about that installation in just a second. Now as far as an entry guard goes, these are still going to work just fine if you plan on yours getting a ton of wear and tear. If you plan on getting lots of scratches in them, maybe going with the stainless or the aluminum, spending a little bit more money, is going to be a good idea for you because, of course, the stainless and the aluminum isn't going to rust like this mild steel would. However, if you're just looking to cover up some existing scratches, you plan on taking care of these, you don't think they're gonna get that much wear and tear and you wanna save a couple of dollars, this version is gonna be just fine.Of course, the main purpose of an entry guard like this is to protect the entry area of the Jeep. As you're getting in and out, especially if you have a side step, sometimes you might step on the side step and then step on that entry area, or you scuff your foot along it. If you have your doors off a lot, you might be resting your foot on that entry area. And of course, because that is just body color-painted, it can get some scratches and it can get worn down a little bit, so that's where something like this comes in. It's going to help to protect, it's going to cover some existing damage if you have any, and it's also going to change up the look of your Jeep a little bit, make it look a little bit more finished. Now one thing to note about covering up existing damage. If you do have existing damage where you have a scratch all the way down to the metal, you are going to wanna cover that up with paint before putting on your entry guard. If you just put this over top of that bare metal, all you're going to end up with is rust on your tub underneath this entry guard, and you're not going to be able to see it until it's too late.So like I said before, this is a very simple one out of three wrench installation. These are going to attach in about 15 minutes without the need for any tools at all. What you're going to do first is hold this up to your Jeep to see which area it's going to make contact with, and that's the area that you're going to need to clean with a good alcohol-based cleaner. If you clean the area properly before you install these, they're gonna stay put for as long as you want them to and you're gonna get good cohesion. So check to see the area that these make contact with, clean that area with a good alcohol-based cleaner, then you can go ahead and peel the adhesive backing off and set these in place. Just push them down and make sure that they stick. Now you are going to wanna install these when the temperatures are moderate, around 70 degrees. If you try doing it when it's very cold, you're not going to get the best adhesion out of the adhesive. But once you attach these to your Jeep, in about 24 hours or so, they're going to be solidly attached. Of course, you can always remove them if you choose to without any permanent damage or permanent modification to the Jeep, but as long as you want them to stay there and continue to protect your entries, they will.This is one of the simplest entry guards offered by Rugged Ridge, and it's also going to be the least expensive. These come in at right around $17 for the pair, and again, that's for these ones that are mild steel. You step up to the stainless or the aluminum, you are gonna spend a little bit more money as well as the plastic. So if you want something that's simple, gonna get the job done, you're okay with mild steel, this is gonna be the least expensive option. So if you're looking for an entry guard to help protect the painted area of your Jeep where people get in and out and could get beat up pretty easily or you have some existing damage that you're looking to cover, this is gonna be one of the least expensive options from Rugged Ridge, and it's still gonna get the job done. So that's my review of the Rugged Ridge Black Entry Guards, fitting your 1997 to 2006 TJ, that you can find right here at extremeterrain.com.