how NOT to fix a bent bumper

[Seanz0rz]

those of you in chat know the story, but since no one is ever in there, ill explain:

tuesday, was suppose to get up early and work on the landscaping in the front yard, but generally didnt feel like doing it. instead i went to home depot, bought paint, etc etc etc. i had a full load in the back of the 4runner, so i pulled up in the middle of our very long, 2 car wide driveway. unloaded everything, and forgot to move my truck. i usually back in far to the left side of the driveway, and dad backs in next to me on the right side. so when he came home at 6 oclock, its dark and he did not look before backing into the driveway. i am sitting in the dining room, and hear my alarm shock sensor chirp, but not go off. i immediately know what just happened. i jump up and run out the door, dad is pulling back on to the street, i jump in mine and back it up where it should be. then we inspect the damage:

http://i103.photobucket.com/albums/m141/hamiltoncomputers/DSC02163.jpg
my damage, the picture does not fully capture the extent, it folded my bumper up into my newly painted grill (didnt harm it thankfully) and pushed it back about 1.5 inches so the tire rubs on it, making it not driveable.

http://i103.photobucket.com/albums/m141/hamiltoncomputers/DSC02165.jpg
dad's damage to the rear bumper of his superduty. one small dent from the frame end, broke the plastic clip that holds the plastic topper, and pushed it down and back about 1/4 inch in each direction.

i obviously fared much worse.

now today, finally get a good look at the damage, and i certainly need to pull the front bumper out. so i disconnect my grill, once again. put a strap around my bumper and attached it to the hitch pin of my dad's truck. backed up and pulled it out a bit, but it was still protruding into the wheel well. so one more try.


POP!


cracked the passenger side bumper bracket, and really tweaked the bumper.

so this is what she looks like now, the front plate is zip tied to the frame, half of the bolts holding the valance were missing, i still rub on the right side, though not as bad as before.

http://i103.photobucket.com/albums/m141/hamiltoncomputers/DSC02166.jpg
http://i103.photobucket.com/albums/m141/hamiltoncomputers/DSC02167.jpg
http://i103.photobucket.com/albums/m141/hamiltoncomputers/DSC02169.jpg

[20005spd]

that sucks. make your dad buy you a shrockworks bumper :D , i know they make it for tacomas so im sure they have some for 4runners.

[Seanz0rz]

oh i forgot to mention, i already preordered the new shrockworks bumper in OCT, it should ship the 30th, and maybe be here by the 7th of dec. im going to call them tomorrow (hope they are open tomorrow) and see if they can ship it out early.

[20005spd]

nice dude, those are the best looking bumpers on the market for our trucks i think. did you get the winch mount bumper or regular?

[Seanz0rz]

http://shrockworks.com/Toyota-4Runner-Winch-Bumper-Front-Bumper-Bull-Bar-Offroad-pr-16217.html

ordered it sans coating, painting it to match the sliders with rustoleum silver hammer finish paint. also got it with the full top bars, not just the single bar in the middle.

still trying to find fog lights other than the piaa, i dont really want to shell out 200 bucks for fogs.

[20005spd]

that is nice but holy crap its expensive. im glad i made mine, cost $200 for 1 3/4" .120 wall seamless dom tubing and my dad owns a machine shop so he flipped that bill :D

[Lee]

dude, im sorry but you deserved that outcome :laugh: bumper repair by attaching a strap to another vehicle and pulling it out!? :laugh:

you shouldve just remove the bumper and taken something like a wood block and a deadblow and banged it out straight :)

oh well good luck w the shrockworks bumper!

[Seanz0rz]

nah if i take the bumper off its never ever going back on.

of course i deserve the outcome, it was a stupid redneck fix! if i hadnt gassed it so much it would have been fine. ohwell.

[Nuthuts96]

could have faired a LOT worse, like a cracked rad or something, and with a new bumper on the way, i figure i would have done the same thing! :D my dad and i once "fixed" his bent bumper on an F-250 by strapping it to a dead tree (one we were felling), threw it in reverse, and floored it. needless to say, it came out pretty well. well enough my mom didn't notice for awhile! i like those shockworks bumpers too, look sexy!

[cglickman]

I have a bumper on order from Shrockworks and I keep dropping by the shop to check on the progress. Jim is going to kill me if I keep bugging him with questions, but each time I see the prototype there on Toyfamily's 3rd gen I am reassured that this bumper is worth the money and the wait! :thumbup:

Anyway, I have been looking for lights to fit the fog light mounts that were less expensive than the PIAA's (which are nice but expensive), and I found the Hella Optilux 2500 "Angel Eyes" that should fit just right/ Note that I have NOT test fit them yet, as the bumper isn't finished yet, but the measurements look the same as the PIAA's.

These have the "Angel Eyes", which is basically two LED's that when switched on create a white glow around the perimeter of the light. It may look kinda ricey, but you don't have to switch them on if you don't like the effect. I think I will like it, but you never know until they're installed...

I think I paid around $50 for the kit, which is both lamps, relay, and harness. They appear to be on par with the Hella 500's, which have served me well and are excellent for the money.

I also looked at the turn signal assembly in the Shrockworks bumper, and it is a Hella assembly of very nice quality and uses bayonet base bulbs, which I am going to swap out with LED's.

I'll let you know how it all works out and post some pictures if anyone's interested.

~Clark

[Seanz0rz]

cool, thanks for the post clark!!!

the halo's on the lights might make nice DRLs! ill have to look into those tomorrow, when im not getting ready for bed!

thanks for the info on the lights.

i sure hope they ship by their expected date, my truck looks very very redneck right now!!!

[cglickman]

Here is a link to the lights on Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000CO9F0A/ref=cm_cr_rev_prod_title

$43.04 delivered - helluva deal, especially if they fit!