Well certainly smaller vehicle will struck that running board first, but the plastic material seems very sturdy, I really like it.

 

Installed running boards today...easy DIY project....1.5 hours in all.

 

its a very very simple procedure...I got the knock off Chinese ones on ebay from a distributer in the US...for $200 and it arrived in 2 days...was real aluminum, a couple of excess plastic from the molding i guess, in certain areas so I took them out with an xacto blade...
the quality is pretty damn good...and for half the price its worth it...

it only took me about 20-30 min. on the first side and compared to the OEM painted ones I took out, they looked and felt about the same...I was honestly shocked that it came together so nicely...

the other side went in even faster (since I already got the hang of it) in about 20min.
the kit came with the extra washer/nuts needed but no instructions...but honestly, you dont need the instructions...

the difficult part was trying to figure out how to take off the 2 plastic pins from each of the wheel wells...its as simple as pulling out the center pin with a needle nose plier and pulling the rest out by hand...very painless to do...
the rest comes off just as easy as everyone else here describes, there is however some wiggling around of the pannels so that they can be freed...be careful cause the front of the stock side boards gets stuck...just take your time wiggle them out cause if you yank it off you might break the inner black plastic one....

I put my stock ones in the box the running boards came in, stored it away in the attic...the new aftermarket running boards look great, went in like a charm and hold my weight of 275lbs...cant complain here...

they are a bit wider than the painted factory moldings i took off...but it probably will take the hits on some door dingers...and they might get your pant legs dirty...but who cares...they look great and function great...check out my pics...

 

/\ Wow, looks great! I've got the same white GLK. Can you give me the ebay link? Thanks!

 

thanks man...I sent you the link

 

Just install running board this pass weekend, took about 2hr total to remove original panel and install running boards, Thanks for all the helpful info here.

 

looks good...great job...mud flaps next.

 

Thanks, I might consider new rims for my next upgrade, the oem one are very hard to clean.