Tyger vs OEM Running Boards (2026): Specs Compared

This comparison is not brand against brand in the usual way. On one side sit two Tyger aftermarket bars you can order online tonight, each with a published rating and a stated warranty. On the other side sits “the factory board” — which is not one product at all, but every truck maker’s own accessory line: a GM Assist Step, a Mopar board, a Toyota Predator step, a Ford Accessories board, each sold under its own part number through a dealer parts counter. That difference in how the two sides are sold decides most of this head-to-head before width or material even enters it. For the full six-product field, start with our pillar guide to the best truck running boards and the truck running boards archive.

One honesty note up front, because it shapes the whole page: genuine factory boards are dealer-sold and have no Amazon listing, so there is no button for the OEM side and we have invented none. Where the OEM entry appears — its card and its review block — a written alternative with a verified link sits directly under it: the APS iBoard, the flat aluminium board from our pillar pool, which is the closest buy-online match for a factory flat board. Our brand-versus-brand fight with APS itself is a separate guide: Tyger running boards vs APS boards.

Quick compare — the two Tyger listings on their makers’ published facts, against the factory-board pattern across the four dealer programs we checked. The OEM column is a pattern, not a single product, and it is labelled that way everywhere it appears.

The APS button under the OEM card above is an alternative, not a factory part: APS is an aftermarket brand, and its own head-to-head with Tyger is the Tyger vs APS comparison. Tyger fitments shown per listing: Rider = Ford F-150 2015–2022 SuperCrew; Star Armor = Chevrolet Colorado / GMC Canyon 2015–2026 Crew Cab only. On every aftermarket listing, select your truck, cab and years before ordering.

How to choose between Tyger and factory boards

How you buy: online part number vs dealer counter

This is the separator everything else hangs on. A Tyger bar is a part number you choose yourself, order online and fit on your driveway, with the listing’s fitment table as your contract. A factory board is a maker part number ordered by VIN through a dealer — or ticked as an option when the truck is built. The dealer route buys you certainty of fit and a counter to return to; it costs you choice, published specifications and any say in timing.

Published ratings: Tyger states them, OEM listings do not

Tyger prints a per-side capacity on its listings — 300 lb for the Rider listing here, 500 lb per side for the Star Armor — and a flat 5-year warranty term. The dealer listings we checked for GM, Mopar and Toyota factory boards publish construction and fitment but no load figure at all. That does not make factory boards weak; it makes them unverifiable on paper. If a number you can hold the maker to matters, the aftermarket side of this comparison is the only side that offers one.

Fit and finish: the factory board’s home ground

Integration is what the dealer premium buys. Factory boards are styled to the truck’s lines, use the vehicle’s own mounting points, and on the GM kits checked arrive preassembled with their brackets. A Tyger bar is engineered per application too, but it is one design language stretched across many trucks. If the truck is new, leased, or headed back to a dealer at trade-in, the factory board’s seamlessness is a real argument, not vanity.

Form choice: two Tyger shapes vs each brand’s one idea

Each truck maker offers its own one or two board designs per truck — a flat board or assist step, sometimes a tube step like Toyota’s Predator. Tyger offers forms the factory catalogues do not: a slim oval nerf bar for the classic look, and an armour bar built to take knocks the rocker would otherwise take. Neither factory program we checked sells rocker protection as the point of the product; the Star Armor exists for exactly that.

Warranty paperwork: stated term vs dealer terms

Tyger’s paperwork is the simpler read: a stated 5-year no-hassle term against manufacturing defects on both bars. Factory boards ride on dealer parts warranty terms — the GM, Mopar and Toyota dealer pages checked state a minimum of 12 months, and Ford’s accessory warranty can run to the remainder of the new vehicle warranty when the accessory is bought with the truck and dealer-installed. That Ford route can beat Tyger’s term; a parts-counter purchase a year later usually will not. Ask which term your purchase actually gets before paying.

Damage and replacement: re-order vs parts counter

Boards live where stones, kerbs and trail edges hit first, so replacement is a when, not an if. A damaged Tyger bar is a repeat online order of the same part number. A damaged factory board is a dealer part-number order at dealer-channel terms, with the old board’s brackets sometimes reusable and sometimes not. Owners who work their trucks hard tend to feel this difference more than any width measurement in the tables.

Fitment notes by vehicle

Aftermarket rows are the verified fitments for the exact part numbers linked in this comparison. Factory rows are the dealer programs checked for this guide; every factory part is one brand, one truck and one cab.

Cab shapes explain every row: a crew cab has four full-size doors, an extended or double cab has smaller rear doors, and boards do not swap between them. Full cab data sits in the pillar guide; tighter-budget cuts are in the under-150 guide and the under-400 guide.

Tyger vs factory boards by commitment

No prices appear in this guide by policy; the separators that matter are published ratings, warranty paperwork and how each side is bought, not cost.

Types of side step, compared

Neither side covers every form: drop steps for lifted trucks and powered retracting steps sit in the pillar field — see the pillar guide before deciding a form neither Tyger nor the factory catalogue answers for your truck.

Detailed reviews

The Tyger listings are judged on their maker’s published specifications for the exact part numbers linked. The factory entry is judged on the dealer programs checked — and it is one entry, honestly, because “OEM board” is a channel, not a product.

Best Oval Nerf Bar: Tyger Auto Rider 3.5-inch Oval Nerf Bars

Tyger pick, F-150

Why the Tyger Rider is our pick

The Rider is the aftermarket argument in its simplest form: a 3.5-inch oval steel tube per side, textured black over an E-coat, bolted to the rocker with no drilling, ordered online and backed by a stated 5-year warranty. Against a factory board it trades styling integration for transparency — you can read its rating, its fitment and its warranty term before money moves. It keeps that place only because we print its real limit, the 300 lb rating on this listing, everywhere it appears.

Tyger Auto Rider 3.5-inch Oval Nerf Bars key specs

• Part number: TG-SS2F35058
• Type: oval nerf bar, cab length
• Tube: 3.5 in oval
• Material: carbon / alloy steel tube
• Finish: textured black powder coat over E-coating
• Step surface: textured pads at the doors
• Maker-rated capacity: 300 lb for this listing (see watch-outs)
• Mount: rocker panel, bolt-on, no drilling per maker
• Fitment of verified listing: Ford F-150 2015–2022 SuperCrew, F-250/F-350 Super Duty 2017–2022 SuperCrew
• Warranty: 5-year no-hassle against manufacturing defects

Tyger Auto Rider 3.5-inch Oval Nerf Bars: fits and best for

The F-150 SuperCrew owner who already has the truck — the buyer the factory route serves worst, because a dealer board fitted years after build is a parts-counter order at dealer terms. The Rider line sells other cabs under different part numbers; this listing is SuperCrew only. If your household needs a flat target rather than a tube, read the OEM block and its APS alternative below before choosing. Owners building the wider truck can browse the running boards archive for the rest of the field.

Tyger Auto Rider 3.5-inch Oval Nerf Bars pros and watch-outs

Tyger Auto Rider 3.5-inch Oval Nerf Bars: what owners report

Tyger Auto Rider 3.5-inch Oval Nerf Bars: who should not buy

Your truck is new or leased and the step must look factory and stay factory at trade-in — take the OEM route in the third block. And if two adults will stand on one side together, the 300 lb listing rating rules this bar out before looks enter the discussion.

Tyger Auto Rider 3.5-inch Oval Nerf Bars: pair it with

Pair it with rated recovery basics if the truck works off pavement — our essential accessories guide covers the kit that belongs behind the seat, and our shackle guide covers the connection hardware.

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We may earn a commission at no cost to you. Listing shown for Ford F-150 2015–2022 SuperCrew Cab — select your truck, cab and years on the listing.

Best Armour Bar: Tyger Auto Star Armor Nerf Bars

Tyger pick, Colorado/Canyon

Why the Tyger Star Armor is our pick

No factory catalogue we checked sells a board whose point is protection; the Star Armor’s point is exactly that. Its patented tri-tube structure puts a dual girder under the rocker, so the bar that helps you climb in is also the first thing a rock meets. Pre-welded brackets, a maker-quoted short bolt-on install and a 500 lb per side rating make it the serious trail-truck pick — and the clearest possible contrast with the styled, unrated factory step.

Tyger Auto Star Armor Nerf Bars key specs

• Part number: TG-AM2C20178
• Type: nerf / armour bar, cab length
• Structure: patented tri-tube, dual girder underside
• Main tube: 2 in diameter carbon steel
• Finish: dual-stage E-coating + textured black powder
• Step surface: star-pattern metal step pads
• Maker-rated capacity: 500 lb per side
• Mount: rocker panel, pre-welded brackets, bolt-on, no drilling
• Maker install estimate: about 20 minutes
• Fitment of verified listing: Chevrolet Colorado / GMC Canyon 2015–2026 Crew Cab only
• Warranty: 5-year for US customers against manufacturing defects

Tyger Auto Star Armor Nerf Bars: fits and best for

Mid-size crew cabs that work: the verified listing is Colorado and Canyon Crew Cab, and Tyger is explicit that it fits no other cab size. The Star Armor line covers other trucks under other part numbers. Choose it when the truck sees gravel, ruts and trail edges weekly and the rocker panels already carry the scars to prove it — the use case our heavy-duty truck guide is written for.

Tyger Auto Star Armor Nerf Bars pros and watch-outs

Tyger Auto Star Armor Nerf Bars: what owners report

Tyger Auto Star Armor Nerf Bars: who should not buy

Your truck is a pavement-only daily driver whose step should disappear into the styling, or your passengers need a wide flat target. The first case is the factory board’s home ground; the second belongs to the APS alternative under the OEM block.

Tyger Auto Star Armor Nerf Bars: pair it with

Pair it with the recovery kit a trail truck should already carry — see our recovery kit guide and snatch block guide for the pulling side of the same build.

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We may earn a commission at no cost to you. Listing shown for Chevrolet Colorado / GMC Canyon 2015–2026 Crew Cab — select your truck, cab and years on the listing.

Best Factory Fit: Factory / OEM Running Boards

Dealer only — Store only

Why the factory board is our pick

The factory board wins the argument it was designed to win: it belongs to the truck. It is styled to the vehicle’s lines, it mounts on the points the maker built for it, GM’s kits arrive preassembled with their brackets, and when it is ordered with a new truck it can be fitted before delivery and covered alongside the vehicle. No aftermarket bar, Tyger included, matches that integration. What it does not offer is paperwork: no published load rating on the dealer listings we checked, a parts-counter buying process, and replacement only through the same channel.

Factory / OEM Running Boards key specs

• Type: factory accessory board / assist step, sold per truck brand
• Representative parts checked: GM 6-inch Assist Steps (86574752 family), Mopar Off-Road Boards 82215514AB, Toyota Predator Tube Steps PT925-35170, Ford Accessories boards
• Construction: aluminium on the Mopar (cast) and Toyota (6061) parts checked; GM steps built to resist corrosion per dealer copy
• Step surface: textured / anti-slip surface or pads, per brand
• Mount: factory attachment points; Mopar states no drilling; GM kits include brackets and hardware, preassembled per dealer copy
• Fitment: one brand, one truck, one cab per part number; VIN checked at the dealer counter
• Maker-rated load capacity: Not published on the dealer listings checked
• Warranty: dealer parts warranty — GM, Mopar and Toyota dealer pages state a minimum of 12 months; Ford Accessories bought with the truck and dealer-installed can carry the new-vehicle term (dealer confirms)
• Availability: dealer parts counter or factory option only — Store only
• Replacement parts: dealer channel only

Factory / OEM Running Boards: fits and best for

New-truck buyers first: anyone ordering or buying a truck who wants the step settled before delivery, styled to the vehicle and covered through the dealer — and lease or resale-minded owners who want the truck to stay all-factory. The four programs checked cover the volume trucks in this cluster: Silverado and Sierra through GM Accessories, Ram through Mopar, Tacoma through Toyota, and Ford through its accessories channel. Everyone else — owners of trucks already in the driveway — should price the dealer route honestly against the two Tyger bars above and the APS alternative below.

Factory / OEM Running Boards pros and watch-outs

Factory / OEM Running Boards: what owners report

Factory / OEM Running Boards: who should not buy

You need a published rating to trust, a form the factory does not sell (armour, drop step, powered), or a board this week without a parts counter. In each case the aftermarket side of this guide is your side: the Star Armor for protection, the APS alternative below for the flat-board form.

Factory / OEM Running Boards: pair it with

Pair a factory board with the same upkeep kit as any board — grip strips for a worn step area and a torque wrench for bracket checks are in the safety section below. For the rest of a factory-fresh truck, our F-150 guide and Tacoma guide cover the pulling side by exact vehicle.

Alternative you can buy online: genuine factory boards are dealer-only, so there is no button for the OEM board itself. The written alternative is the APS iBoard 6-inch — the flat aluminium board from our researched pool, with a full-length grip pad and a published 500 lb APS rating. It is an aftermarket board, not a factory part, and it is labelled that way everywhere it appears in this guide.

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We may earn a commission at no cost to you. Factory boards are sold through your dealer’s parts counter under the maker’s part number — Store only. The button above is for the APS alternative, not a factory part.

Spec comparison

Tyger figures are the makers’ published figures for the exact listings here. The OEM column is the pattern across the four dealer programs checked — where a brand publishes nothing, the cell says so.

Fitment & installation

Both sides mount to the truck’s own structure, and both punish a skipped fitment check. The Tyger bars bolt to the rocker panel with brackets and hardware in the box: no drilling on either bar per the makers, and pre-welded brackets on the Star Armor behind its short install estimate. The factory route splits two ways: ordered with the truck, the board arrives fitted; ordered later, the dealer kit fits the same factory points — Mopar’s off-road boards state no drilling on factory points, and GM’s assist-step kits arrive preassembled with brackets per dealer copy — or the dealer fits it for you at dealer labour terms.

Whichever side you choose, the discipline is identical: confirm the cab from the rear doors, not the badge; keep brackets loose until the board or bar sits level on both sides; torque to the maker’s sheet, in sequence — Tyger publishes a torque table in its Star Armor instructions — and re-check after the first week. A board that rocks or clicks on the driveway is telling you a bracket is swapped or a bolt is short of torque. The same factory-hole respect runs through our mounting guide and truck install guide, and the bumper question is answered separately in mounting a winch to a front bumper.

Safety essentials

Three accessories from this cluster’s verified pool support those rules, and each pairs with the guides in our accessories hub:

HitchMate TireStep — a folding tyre step rated by its maker at 400 lb, for roof and bed access without standing on a wet board edge.

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Red Cat anti-slip grip tape strips — clear pre-cut strips whose maker lists trucks and running boards among their intended surfaces; two strips per step restore bite to a worn pad, factory or aftermarket.

Check Price

TEKTON 24330 torque wrench — a 3/8-inch drive micrometer wrench covering 10–80 ft-lb, the range bracket-torque figures for these boards live in.

Check Price

Build the wider kit from our essential accessories guide and tree saver guide, not at the trailhead.

Troubleshooting

Who should NOT buy these

You need a drop step or a powered step. A lifted truck makes every fixed board here — Tyger or factory — a tall first step. The two-stair drop step and the retracting powered step live in our pillar guide to the best truck running boards — buy the form your truck’s height demands.

Your passengers cannot balance on a tube or a pad. Then the Tyger Rider is the wrong purchase however much you like the look: children, older riders and dogs need a flat board — factory, or the APS alternative under the OEM block.

You want rated rocker protection. The Star Armor is protection-inspired, not a rated slider, and no factory board is armour either. Real trail armour and recovery start from rated hardware — see recovery kits and budget truck winches.

You will not check fitment twice. Every listing and every factory part here is one truck, one cab, one year range. The dealer route forgives this — the counter checks your VIN. The online route does not: a wrong-cab bar helps no one.

You are buying a used truck with a damaged factory board. Price the dealer replacement before you price the truck. A bent OEM board is a dealer part-number order; the same money buys a complete aftermarket pair with published ratings — the comparison starts in the pillar guide.

Final verdict

Best oval nerf bar — Tyger Rider 3.5-inch: the simplest self-ordered step here, with a stated warranty and a plainly printed 300 lb limit. Check its price.

Best armour bar — Tyger Star Armor: the only rocker guard in this comparison and the only verified fit for the Colorado and Canyon. Check its price.

Best factory fit — Factory / OEM boards: the integration winner, dealer-only with no published load rating — order it through your dealer’s parts counter (Store only). The written alternative, a flat aluminium board with a published rating, is the APS iBoard 6-inch.

The honest summary: Tyger wins on published specs, forms and ordering; the factory board wins on integration and dealer cover. Spend by how you buy and what you can verify — or widen the field with the pillar guide.

FAQ

Tyger vs OEM running boards: which should I buy?

Buy Tyger if you already own the truck, want a published load rating and a stated warranty term, and are happy fitting a bar yourself. Buy the factory board if the truck is new or leased, styling integration matters, and you want the step fitted and covered through the dealer. Neither answer is universal — the finder above routes by truck and priority.

Do factory running boards have a weight rating?

On the dealer listings we checked for GM, Mopar and Toyota factory boards, no per-side load rating is published — the listings give construction, fitment and warranty terms instead. Tyger, by contrast, prints a figure per listing: 300 lb for the Rider listing in this guide and 500 lb per side for the Star Armor. Unpublished does not mean weak; it means unverifiable on paper.

Can I buy genuine OEM running boards online?

Not as a normal retail listing, and there is no Amazon listing for a genuine factory board — which is why this guide carries no button for the OEM side and invents none. Factory boards are ordered through your brand’s dealer parts counter by part number and VIN, or fitted as a factory option. The buy-online alternative we list under the OEM entry is the aftermarket APS iBoard.

Are OEM running boards better quality than Tyger?

They are better integrated, which is a different claim: factory boards are styled to the truck, use its own mounting points and can be covered with the vehicle. On published evidence, Tyger is ahead — it states capacities and a 5-year warranty term, while the OEM listings checked publish no load figure and carry dealer parts warranty terms. Quality you can verify beats quality you are asked to assume.

Will a Tyger bar fit the same mounting points as a factory board?

Broadly, yes: both sides mount at the rocker using the truck’s factory holes or pinch-weld points, and both Tyger bars here are bolt-on with no drilling per the maker. They are not interchangeable part-for-part, though — brackets are engineered per product, so a Tyger bar does not reuse factory-board brackets, and a factory board does not reuse Tyger brackets.

What warranty do factory running boards carry?

Dealer parts warranty terms, which vary by brand and by how you buy. The GM, Mopar and Toyota dealer pages we checked state a minimum of 12 months. Ford’s accessory warranty can run to the remainder of the new vehicle warranty when the accessory is bought with the truck and dealer-installed. Tyger’s term is simpler to read: a stated 5 years on both bars in this guide.

Is the Tyger Star Armor a rock slider?

No. It is a slider-inspired armour bar: a patented tri-tube structure with a dual girder that gives real underside protection against knocks and brush, and owners cross-shop it against sliders for that reason. But Tyger does not rate it as a rock slider, it is not a recovery point, and we do not claim either for it. No factory board is a slider either.

My truck came with factory boards and one is damaged. What now?

Two honest routes. The dealer route: a part-number order through your brand’s counter, keeping the truck all-factory, at dealer-channel terms. The aftermarket route: a complete pair — Tyger or another pillar pick — with published ratings, usually fitted on your own driveway. Price both before deciding; the damaged-board case is where the factory channel is hardest to defend.

Do aftermarket boards hurt resale value?

Only at the margins, and mainly on near-new trucks. A tidy, well-known aftermarket bar is neutral on a working truck; a factory board keeps a new or leased truck all-original, which some buyers and lease inspectors reward. What hurts value on any truck is a bent, rusty or loose board of either origin — upkeep matters more than the badge.

Sources & changelog

Manufacturer and dealer sources, and the owner and service material paraphrased above:

• Tyger TG-AM2C20178 product page (Tyger Auto)
• Tyger TG-AM2C20178 installation instructions (maker document)
• Tyger TG-SS2F35058 fitment and details (CSP Racing)
• Mopar Off-Road Running Boards 82215514AB (official Mopar eStore)
• Toyota Predator Tube Steps PT925-35170 (Toyota OEM parts listing)
• GM 6-Inch Rectangular Assist Steps 86574752 (dealer listing)
• GM 6-Inch Oval Assist Steps, Silverado Crew Cab (dealer listing)
• APS iBoard 6-inch F-150 listing (Desertcart) — alternative pick documentation
• APS iBoard F-150 listing data (Carkart) — alternative pick
• Ford running-board service guide, hosted by F150Forum
• TorqueNews — Silverado owner: running board wear and refinishing
• Tyger Star Armor specification table (Desertcart)
• Tyger Rider listing questions and specifications (Desertcart)

Changelog — October 17, 2026: guide first published.

Related guides

• Best truck running boards (pillar guide)
• Tyger running boards vs APS boards
• Truck running boards archive
• Best truck running boards under 150
• Best truck running boards under 400
• Best truck winches
• How to use a winch