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can't get the rear bumper off

bert01xj

bert01xj

NAXJA Forum User
Location
souderton,pa
is there any tricks on getting the rear bumper off. it is going back on. i'm trying to get my tow hitch installed. i need to tow my stuff to my new home.
 
i disconnect it from the brackets, its a torx. and i think one is obscurred somehow?

after that, put 4 holes in the bumper, big enough to get a socket on an extension thru, works fine, i never put all 8 bolts back in. =\
 
The rear bumper on my '96 was bolted from the inside to the brackets. I removed those four bolts first, which then allowed me easier access to the eight bolts that attach the two bumper brackets to the Jeep itself.
 
4 bolts on each bracket hold the bumper on to the rear crossmember. its a tight fit but you should be able to fit a ratchet and socket up there. i did. you may need a breaker bar to get them started.
 
Some people remove the end caps to get at the bolts--I might try that next time on mine.
 
bosco01xj said:
x2. definitely makes it easier.
Click to expand...

Agreed, but.. if you go this route, the top two are studs, and you are removing the nut. you can't get much stroke on each turn haha its like, two clicks on a ratchet. Takes a bit of time. Maybe with some PB Blast you can get your hand in there and spin it off with fingertips.

I actually got so annoyed with mine, I got the two bolts out from the bottom, and bent the whole thing upward so the ratchet can move! Mine is kinda smashed up to begin with... not suggesting this at all. :anon:
 
don't think of me as a hack for doing this, but i drilled 2 holes in the rear bumper to get to the 2 nuts that hold the bumper onto the bumper brackets. it's a 15mm nut and with a deep socket and a 6" extension, it works perfectly.

in the picture, the bottom of the bracket is what mounts to the unibody. the top bolt hole is the impossible one to get to and is also the one i drilled an access hole to. i was a little off with my placement but i was able to elongate the hole with a chisel punch... after you get the bumper off the bumper brackets, it's real easy to get at the other bolts holding the brackets onto the unibody.
images.ashx
 
Last edited:
ok i got the bumper off but can't get the tow hitch on it is pushing up against the gas tank. how do i deal with that

taking the bumper caps off worked out real well thanks
 
.... tow hitch hitting the gas tank? pictures? are you positive you're putting it in right? are you sure the hitch is for a xj?
 
back to the bumper.. I removed the little rubber "filler" piece that runs all the way across the bumper, between the bumper and body. I can now get to the "impossible" top two bolts fine (one per bracket). I remove the four bolts holding the bumper to the brackets, then I remove the brackets once the bumper is off.
 
i wonder if there's a difference between 96- hitches and 97+...
 
Just a hint to those who see this later - it is definitely easier to remove the caps, then take the bumper brackets off, and then remove the bumper from the brackets (if needed!). AND a universal joint on your socket can add just enough clearance to get the top painfully-clearanced bolts out. Just did this a few weeks ago.
 
bert01xj said:
ok i got the bumper off but can't get the tow hitch on it is pushing up against the gas tank. how do i deal with that

taking the bumper caps off worked out real well thanks
Click to expand...

You might have it too far back. The hole closest to the bumper end of the hitch actually bolts through the hole in the pinch seam outside the actual boxed frame rail.
 
glad you could get it to work.
 
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