Is a front and/or rear bumper worth it's weight?

  • HTML tutorial

Influencer II

You might be overthinking the weight. After removing the rear hitch and bumper, my custom bumper + swing-out only added like 35lbs. Mine is pretty minimalist, but I still wouldnt expect more than 75-100 lbs added to the rear for even a heavy-duty bumper. And, similarly, adding a 150lb bumper to the front might only add around 110-120 lbs of total weight after removing stock stuff. A winch is another 90 or so with a steel cable, or about 65 with synthetic.

All else being equal, adding 200lbs to a 4500lb vehicle will reduce mileage by a bit over 4%, (about 1 mpg) and maybe a little more on the highway with a real aggressive design that exposes the front tires. Thus, assuming you got 20mpg before (optimistic? ;) ), a 5 gallon Jerry Can still adds about 95 miles to your total range :) .


As to the safety....

My wife hit a tree in her first 5th gen 4runner and completely totaled it. The frame was only very slightly tweaked, if at all, but a lot of the body forward if the doors was pretty wrecked. I am almost positive that a solid front bumper would have minimized damage to the vehicle, by inherently negating most of the factory-designed crumple zones. Would she likely still have been fine? Almost certainly, yes. But, I think it is a little naive--and possibly irresponsible--to assert that solid steel bumpers, which will severely hamper the body's ability to crumple on impact, could possibly result in less energy transferred to the occupants on impact.

That said, I have steel bumpers on my 3rd gen 4Runner and happily drive around with my wife, dogs, and even my newborn in the car. But, I am still certainly aware that, at least to some degree, my modifications have technically made the vehicle less safe (especially in front impacts).
I think you're right... I didn't really think it would decrease only by that small amount. I was expecting near 300-400lbs of additional weight being put on, and then throw in the factor of bad aero, possibly kicking it down 2-3mpg's... Yea, 5 gallons is quite a lot of fuel.

Just wondering, what rear bumper do you have, since it only added 35lbs? That's quite impressive.

Yea.. I had a feeling that steel bumpers would negate the safety... But... I hope I won't have to go through that again.. Glad your wife is okay!
 

Influencer II

If you are truly a fam of our front bumpers then get a hidden front winch. mount http://budbuilt.com/2003-2009-4th-Gen-4Runner-Hidden-Winch-Mount_p_546.html
Honestly thought you still won't gain a good recovery point although a good welder/fabricator could do you one up pretty cheaply. As for the rear you could get a receiver mounted shackle. Smittybilt has them and you can find them at 4wheelparts. Now, for light recovery you would be set. There is the factor of clearance though that you need to consider. These bumpers are held on by a few screws and a bunch of plastic body clips. You are an obstacle away from ripping them off anytime you go off road. The approach/departure angle alone and not taking body damage is well worth it. Another thought is that an oversized tire, in my case a 275/70/17, won't fit underneath. The rear bumpers have a tire carrier to remedy that. Well, I mean, it's either that or throw it on the roof (good bye mpg) or in the rear storage (good bye storage space)View attachment 55021I now am having to drive to Colorado like this. An believe me.... I'm not looking forward to it.
My 2 real gripes with this hidden front winch mount is...
1. Cost.. I'm already near 1/2 the cost of a full front end.
2. You still have stock approach angle. Not a bad thing but...

But this solution was something I was heavily debating since I really am not fond of the weight going on.. But the post from above has me second guessing how bad the weight would actually be...
 
  • Like
Reactions: Grantnr

Influencer II

Just wondering... How much have your MPG's gone down?

I honestly was expecting an additional 300-400lbs of steel being put onto the truck, and throw in the factor of aero, and I was thinking MPG's would go down at least 2-3mpgs...

I know this isn't a fuel economic car/prius.. But I also don't want to have to fuel up at every gas station or have to constantly worry about barely making it to the next stand.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Grantnr

Grantnr

Rank III
Launch Member

Enthusiast III

859
San Leon, TX, USA
First Name
Nick
Last Name
Grant
Member #

11391

Hey, relax man. Lol. So Newton law states that every action has an equal yet opposite reaction. You can pro/con the bumper argument to death. Form, fashion, weight, use.... all can be argued for and against. Now as for my PERSONAL opinion. The minor mpg hit that you take is offset by what you gain by going to steel bumpers. Aluminum is available but boy do you pay to save a little weight. I'll take approach angle over aero any day of the week. We dont have a good front recovery point and our headlights are very exposed. Bith get remedied. 0There are only 2 places to put your oversized spare, the cargo area or the roof, the rear bumper gives you a third and more efficient one. This trip I started on had the tire on top of the rig. After losing 3mpg with it up there it is now strapped on top over my cases in the cargo area. Which of course means it has to come out every time to access my gear.
So in closing; yes they cost more, yes they weigh more, and yes they aren't as aerodynamic. But you gain; rock/obstacle protection, recovery points, winch points, a place to store a spare, better approach angles, front giblet protection (grill, headlights etc, and an area with which (in a pinch but don't recomend) to grab and lift with a hi-lift jack
 
  • Like
Reactions: Boort

Lindenwood

Rank V
Launch Member

Member III

2,779
New Mexico
First Name
Jay
Last Name
M
Member #

2636

I think you're right... I didn't really think it would decrease only by that small amount. I was expecting near 300-400lbs of additional weight being put on, and then throw in the factor of bad aero, possibly kicking it down 2-3mpg's... Yea, 5 gallons is quite a lot of fuel.

Just wondering, what rear bumper do you have, since it only added 35lbs? That's quite impressive.

Yea.. I had a feeling that steel bumpers would negate the safety... But... I hope I won't have to go through that again.. Glad your wife is okay!
I made my rear bumper. I have about 15lb of material left to add for side protection, but overall it is pretty minimalist. This includes the rear swing-out tray. 20180422_033054.jpg

And yeqh, I wouldn't stress about the safety, but I think it is at least important to note.