?Advantages to aftermarket rear bumper?

What are some advantages to an aftermarket rear bumper? I already have a hitch, so thats my towpoint/jackpoint. I cant think of any, other than less crunch if i got rear-ended. Any thoughts? -Shawn

you ever land on a rock? or back into one? sheet metal dont like that.....

but seriously... i had a corolla hit my stock bumper goin 30mph.... not a dent, just a scratch of THEIR paint was left on my bumper... so eh...

choose....

i like my sotck rear bumper set up, the only reason that i would get a different one would be to mount the spare tire carrier...

the way taht i installed the electrical when i did my tow hitch was i drilled a hole in the stock bumper and put the electrical connections into the bumper right above teh hitch - to keep the electrical from being beaten when rock crawling and because i think it looks cool.

cliff notes: no need for aftermarket bumper IMHO

It really depends as to what trails or terrain you're on. I kept dragging the hitch in the rear which was irritating to say the least. When got rid of hitch (flipped it upside down and stuffed it into the frame rail) I stopped dragging by beeeehind when approaching obstacles or banging it on rocks when coming of them.

umm not sure if the 97+ xjs have a diff bumper but the factory chrome sheetmetal bumper on my 88 was bent and dented to peices, and if u build your own bumper u can make it a wrap around like the one im almost done with and have some pretty good protection. no offense to those that say there is no need for aftermarket, how hard do u wheel? and what on? around here i havent seen a stock cherokee bumper that was on a rig that was wheeled fairly hard and was still strait, not to mention the crappy PLASTIC bumper endcaps that scratch and bend up horibly, right before i took the stock off i dented the endcap in so bad i had to take it off to beat the dent back out off the plastic, and im not talking about a little dent.

kolby

lankchevy said:

umm not sure if the 97+ xjs have a diff bumper but the factory chrome sheetmetal bumper on my 88 was bent and dented to peices,

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97+ is just as flimsy: in order to remove it off the mount I had to use a prybar as it bent itself shut around the mount after a close encounter with a rock.

rear bumpers are a good idea, because its a pain in the ass to have to walk around to the front bumper to get your beer bottle open

witt said:

you ever land on a rock? or back into one? sheet metal dont like that.....

but seriously... i had a corolla hit my stock bumper goin 30mph.... not a dent, just a scratch of THEIR paint was left on my bumper... so eh...

choose....

Click to expand...

I had an old 5.0 mustang hit my front bumper going atleast 35 and since he went under me and hit my tow hooks, nothing happened to my bumper besides my license plate fell off. Oh it was nice.

lankchevy said:

protection. no offense to those that say there is no need for aftermarket, how hard do u wheel? and what on?

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oh, no, im not saying their invincible, just that they work for what i need. My hitch hits first, so my bumper is protected... though my endcaps look like crap and there are more dents in it than i care to show my dad...

That sounds just like the rear end of my XJ!
Who says he has to know?:gag:

From a practical point of view aftermarket bumpers when done correctly stiffen the frame and tie it in better. I put a tomken w/receiver on my 98 and while they do supply straps to tie it into the frame rails they are only held into the bumper with one self threading bolt. I picked up some steel and have slowly been bending it up to fit along the frame rails, using 4 bolts, then the original hole on the bottom of the bumper and from there up the face where it will get two more bolts thru the bumper and bolted thru it. I've had two people run into my rear since I put it on in parking lots.

The new straps bring up another question, I have been heating the steel with a propane bottle torch and using an old old old grandfather supplied vise with an anvil built into it and a baby sledge for the forming. Question is when all the bending is done do I need to heat the whole strap and quench it, heat it and let it cool or just leave it alone ??

I'm not sure if you want to heat it and let it cool naturally or not, But do NOT heat it and then quench it. It will help to make the steel more brittle which can lead to problems if it gets hit again.