Rednroll

Yesterday, I picked up a new Hard Rock 10A, Rubicon-X, Recon....whatever they're calling it these days rear bumper.

I originally wasn't going to do any type of write-up. My thought was, pick up the bumper from the dealership, get home from work, pull the Sahara stock bumper off, throw this one on and 2-3 hours I should be done right? WRONG!!! My typical life as a DIYer, nothing turns out as simple as it seems. I guess that's what I get for not doing any research and minimal planning. So I'm currently waiting on some additional parts, and once I got into this I found out it was going to be much more effort than I originally planned. Since, I'm waiting on parts I figured I might as well start snapping some pictures and post a write-up so anyone else considering doing this can plan better than me and have a little more insight of what you can expect.

1st off I put on the AEV front bumper with all the fixens last summer. I didn't really care for the AEV rear and decided the HR 10A bumper was more along the lines of what I wanted. I was in no hurry, and figured these HR bumpers are OEM bumpers so I'll shop around on CL, and the forum for sale section and try to pick up someone else's take off. I see in most other areas people are taking them off and selling them on CL between $300-$500. I actually saw one for sale a couple years ago on CL for $450 but I wasn't sure at that time if that's what I wanted, so I passed it up. Over the past year, I've seen multiple of these bumpers for sale on CL in my area but everyone seems to be asking $700-$900. I call a few of them, and make them an offer of my max of what I considered a reasonable price for a take off of $500. Their reaction is "No Way!!!, this is a $900 bumper!!!" I send them a link to a local dealership, where I can purchase it new for $640. "$650 is as low as I'll go. That listing must be just the metal part and missing all the trim and the hardware" Ok, that's fine if you can sell it for $650+ then I don't blame you, I wish you the best. I guess, I'm the only one who knows you can get it brand new in the box from a local dealership for $640 with a warranty and be able to return it, if anything is wrong with it.

HR 10A Rear bumper Mopar P/N directly from the Mopar parts catalog=82213654

Local dealership website listing for P/N: 82213654
http://www.moparpartsdiscounted.com/..._82213654.html

So I ordered a new one for $640. Place the order, part arrives at the dealership 3 days later for me to come pick it up.
Here it is just taken out of the box and everything that's included.
- Rear Bumper
- All the plastic trim pieces and rear mounting hardware pre-assembled
- 2 metal mounting brackets
- 1 metal mounting spacer
- 1 Install instructions.




Off with the old (the real easy part).
To remove the stock bumper you'll need a 16mm socket/ratchet, a 2-3in extension will come in handy as well. Remove a total of 8 bolts, 4 holding the side brackets to the frame and there are 2 holding the bumper brackets to the frame cross member, and 2 holding the frame cross member to the brackets. You'll need the extension to reach the 2 bolts screwed into the bumper holding the cross member brackets to the bumper. You may be able to leave those in and just remove the brackets with the bumper. I had trouble getting the bumper to slide out with those brackets attached, so I removed them. Bolt locations circled. Be sure to hold onto these bolts, you'll need to re-use 8 of them to install the HR 10A bumper.

Rednroll

The Side projects

So I've got this habit, that when I'm working on something and I've got things apart and have all this additional access to items I typically don't, to take on some additional minor side projects.

Tow Hook replacement (Driver's side)

My stock driver's side tow hook's paint had worn off, started bubbling, and rusting. Generally looking like sh*t. About 6 months ago, I tried to pull it off with the bumper on, to do some repainting. I got the bolts about half way out and I just couldn't get them to budge any further due to the rear bumper being in the way. They're much easier to access with the bumper off, where you can now get a breaker bar and impact wrench on them with the bumper out of the way. Keep in mind, I live in a rust belt state and my JKU is now 8 years old. So now with the bumper off, I put an impact wrench with a 19mm socket on those tow hook frame rail side mounting bolts. I was hammering on them with the impact wrench and a 2ft long breaker bar. This accomplished one thing. The inner bolts that are welded to the tow hook mounting bracket, the welds let loose.

That's ok, because I decided previously those things aren't worth spending the time and effort trying to repaint because you can get plenty of new condition take-offs tow hooks on Ebay for $18-$20 from individuals buying those aftermarket bumpers that have D-ring hooks and can't use the tow hooks.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/OEM-2007-201...72.m2749.l2649

So once you get the tow hook loosened, it's time to break out the angle grinder and just buzz through those bolts holding it on and throw that old rusted stuff away.


And we're not only going to replace the driver's side tow hook, but we're going to add a passenger side tow hook while we have access to that as well.
Nice new looking tow hooks with unrusted mounting hardware included. Gonna have to put some anti-seize on those mounting bolts when I put these on.


But wait?! Aren't those 2 driver's side tow hooks? Yes, they are....we still need to figure this one out. Those passenger side HR hooks are red, much more expensive, and not readily available as take offs. So I'm going to see what I can come up with in trying to mount a driver's side hook on the passenger side. My OCD symmetry won't like it, but it's more about the functionality of having tow hooks available on both sides.

Passenger Side Tow Hook Install:
Installing a driver side tow hook on the passenger side takes some effort. The easiest way is to purchase a Mopar HR edition passenger tow hook assembly, but they're typically much more expensive to acquire and they're only available in RED. Here are the Mopar part numbers you will need if you prefer to go that route and some ball park prices.

Hard Rock passenger side Tow hook Mopar Part Numbers:
- Right Rear Tow Hook Red (68186541AC) =$50
- Tow Hook Mounting Bolts x3 (6507649AA) $4.00ea=$12.00
- Right Rear Tow Hook Strike Plate. The part that inserts inside the frame rail to attach the tow hook (68186540AB)=$18.00
Total= $80+

So you're looking at over $80 , and you have a RED tow hook, so you need to paint one of your tow hooks so the colors match. This may be the preferred route for those who have OCD where you will end up with a mirror image on the passenger side as the driver side. I purchased a complete assembly of the driver side for $18 on Ebay and am going to put a driver side hook on the passenger side. To do that, you will need to purchase the Right Rear Tow Hook strike Plate (68186540AB).

Driver Side Tow hook, mounted on passenger side:
- Right Rear Tow Hook Strike Plate. The part that inserts inside the frame rail to attach the tow hook (68186540AB)=$18.00
- Driver side Took Hook take off (Ebay)=$18
Total=$36.00



Tow Hook Mount Flip
Remove the Tow Hook mount and flip it so it is on the opposite side of the hook. I recommend temporarily mounting this tow hook on the driver side to be able to remove the 24mm bolt nut that is holding the mount. That nut is on there tight and held by powder coating. You will need to mount it on the vehicle and get a breaker bar on that nut to get it off.


Drilling the holes for passenger side hook
If you have a 2014+, then your JK came with the passenger side frame rail tow hook mounting holes. Jeep seems to have added the holes some time within the 2013 model year when they added the Hard Rock option. If you have a 2013, depending on the time of the year it was built,it may or not not have the holes already present. For 2007-2012 JKs, you will need to drill the mounting holes, there's 3 of them and are an exact mirror image of the driver side tow hook mounting holes.

All 3 mounting holes are 3/4in diameter. For the 2 side frame rail mounting holes, I measured the driver side mounting strike plate in regards to how far it sat back from the end of the frame rail. I then used the driver side strike plate as a template by placing it flat onto the side of the passenger frame rail and marked the locations to drill the 2 side mounting holes.


I used a 1/4in dia steel drill bit to make pilot holes at those locations. Then finished drilling them to 3/4in dia, using a step bit.


Do the same for the bottom of the rail mounting hole. I measured the driver side bottom hole location, and marked a mirror image of the location of the center of the hole on the passenger side. One thing to note, is that the hole is not located in the center of the rail, it is more biased towards the outer side of the rail.

I used rust reformer and then painted the entire rear cross member rail and exposed ends of the frame rail with truck bed liner to address any existing surface rust and add some rust protection for the newly drilled holes. Then mount the passenger side tow hook once the paint dried.


Then install the driver side tow hook.

Tow hooks installed


Tire Carrier and Brake light Adjustment
I'm using a Teraflex rear tire carrier with a BFG KO2 A/T 315/70/R17 wheel/tire mounted to it. An additional benefit of the HR 10A bumper is that the bottom part of the bumper where the spare tire sits is lower, to be able to better accommodate larger tires than the stock bumpers. This allowed me to lower the height of my spare tire and the rear brake light, so they block less of the rear window.

With stock bumper, I was using the middle sets of stud mounting holes to mount the rear spare tire. I moved the mounting studs to the bottom stud mounting holes on the TF tire carrier, and also lowered the TF rear brake light bracket height.4

Rednroll

Mounting the Rear Bumper
There are 4 main attachment points that hold the rear 10A bumper


Mounting bolts (P/N [x4]: 6510998AA not included)
There are 4 main mounting bolts which aren't included with the bumper. There seems to be a lot of confusion on the web of the proper bolts to use. I'm going to attempt to clear some of this confusion up with this write-up. The install instructions call out that you will need Mopar P/N (x4): 6510998AA. I've read some say these are a M12-1.5X110mm, which is close but not correct. They are actually a M12-1.5X130mm bolt. Also, some have tried to re-use the bolts from their aftermarket hitch receiver which they have found are a very tight fit. The reason behind this is that the majority of aftermarket hitch receiver mounting bolts seem to use standard thread bolts, and the 4 mounting holes on the 10A bumper are metric threads. If you have a factory installed hitch receiver, then the OEM hitch receiver comes with the metric threaded bolts and you are likely ok to re-use those bolts. I happen to have an aftermarket hidden hitch branded extended hitch receiver which came with the standard thread mounting bolts, where I found these bolts to be too tight when threading them into the mounting holes on the 10A bumper. Now the standard threaded bolts could likely work if you want to force them in, but you're going to strip the mounting nuts on the 10A bumper, which just seems silly to even attempt it. I ordered (4) of P/N: 6510998AA for $2.26 each. For <$10 it's the right part for the job.
http://www.moparpartsdiscounted.com/...6510998AA.html

Here's the differences.
P/N: 6510998AA shown next to a standard aftermarket hitch receiver mounting bolt. (Standard Hitch receiver bolt=Wrong length, and Wrong threads). Close but no cigar.


With and Without hitch receiver mounting:

Without Hitch Mounting:
If you don't have a hitch to mount, then things are a bit simpler. Put the spacer included with the bumper between the outside of the cross-member rail and the bumper, then insert/tighten the 4 mounting bolts through the front side of the cross-member towards the rear bumper, going through the spacer and then into the bumper mounting holes. Then tighten the (4) bolts to secure the bumper to the rear cross-member.

Bumper mount spacer:



With Hitch Mounting:
There are typically 2 types of hitches available for our JKs.
1. With welded on mounting nuts. (Shown on left)
2. Without welded on mounting nuts. (Shown on right)

The most common aftermarket hitches are the #1 (left) option.


The HR 10A bumper requires hitch type #2 (right) since the hitch mounting nuts would interfere with the bumper mounting. You have a few options to choose between to make this work.
1. If you don't already have a hitch and want one, then you should make sure you purchase the receiver hitch type that doesn't have the welded on mounting nuts (#2 right).
2. If you have a hitch receiver that doesn't have the welded on mounting nuts, then you are good to go.
3. If you have a hitch receiver with the welded on nuts, and would like to re-use it, then this will require using an angle grinder with a metal cut-off wheel, to cut the welded on hitch receiver mounting nuts off.

My situation was option #3. (Already had a hitch receiver, with the welded on mounting nuts) Time to get the angle grinder out and neuter my hitch.
I used a 4.5in metal cut-off wheel on an angle grinder and cut the welded on nuts off of the receiver hitch. My hitch has been on my JKU for 8 years now in a rust belt state and has seen better days. The original paint was flaking off where it mounted to the frame cross rail, and there was a lot of surface rust and scratches from use present. I therefore, used a wire brush wheel and got rid of any loose paint and rust, and sanded it down to bare metal. I then put a coat of rust reformer, primed, then painted with truck bed liner, and put 3 coats of clear coat on top of the bed liner to make it a little more resistant to scratches. It cost less than buying a new receiver for $80+.


Put the 4 mounting bolts (6510998AA), through the back side of the receiver, then through the holes in the cross member, through the receiver holes, and then fasten the bolts into the rear bumper mounting holes.
*Note: You don't use the mounting spacer when installing a hitch because the rear side metal bracket of the hitch replaces the spacer.


Install the L brackets that came with the HR bumper re-using the (8) 16mm bolts from the stock bumper. I recommend, starting the screws on the frame rail side, and then the bracket can be moved around easier to try and align the holes on the bumper side.





Install complete:

SF_E60

I recently did a 10A rear bumper install on my rig. It took me 40min to install, the hardest part probably which I left for a later date was drill the holes for the second tow hook on the passengers side. Some JK's non Hard Rock Edition not sure if this would apply to all but do not have the holes for the passenger side tow hook. The install is straight forward if you have all the parts. The part that's PITA is probably lining up all those long bolts that go threw the tow hitch and bolting them up.

Rednroll

Yep, and you just touched on 2 of the items where I ran into problems. Those 4 long bolts, and not having the holes in the frame rail on the passenger side to add a 2nd tow hook while I have things apart.

What did you use to drill those holes and how large of holes did you need to drill? My current plan is to use a step drill bit but the largest hole I can go is 3/4 in. Diameter with my current step bits which I'm unsure is large enough, so I may have to pick up a larger size.

SF_E60

Uhuh lucky for me the person I bought my 10A bumper from had all these. You can't use your old Tow hitch you have to purchase a new one that's made for the 10A rear bumper.

Rednroll

You can use the old one. That's even in the install instructions. You need to pull out the angle grinder and grind the welded on nuts off. I have a hitch installed, so I thought I was set on those bolts as well but it seems the hitch I have the bolts are the proper length but seems to use standard threads and the 10A bumper threads are metric or it may be vise versa.

I have an aftermarket hitch which is the extended length Hidden Hitch brand which I really like. All the aftermarket hitch bolts seem to come with different hitch bolt threads than the OEM hitch......nothing can be standard between hitch mounting bolts and be simple in my life as a DIYer.

40 minute install!!! Kiss my azz, I'm gonna show you how I can turn this into a week long project.

SF_E60

So that's one of the reasons I ended up using the tow hitch that the 10a bumper uses instead of my old one. I didn't want to grind the welded nuts off. And Yes it did take me 40min to install the rear bumper , like I mentioned before the hardest part was getting those long bolts lined up and bolting them up. I drilled the holes for the other tow hook 3 weeks later and that probably took me half the day since you are drilling into reinforced steel. I didn't have the correct drill bit for the job. I definitely want to read your week long project maybe some stuff I missed!

Rednroll

I just measured those tow hook holes. They're 3/4 in diameter. So hopefully my plan to use the step drill bit will work. The hard part "should" be getting the holes in the right spot and drilling the pilot holes. I know those frame rails aren't fun drilling through. I had to drill through them to mount my air compressors for my onboard air. Went through about 8 bits doing it. Wondering how much fun it's going to be drilling 3/4in dia holes for this.

SF_E60

I almost gave up I went through about 7 bits on and off. I don't have air tools so I bought extra 2 spare batteries to charge while the 3rd was being used. The first 2hrs of drilling I almost gave up and said screw this I don't need extra tow hook , lucky for me my buddy came over with his drill took turns drilling it

P.S. Make sure you drink a cold one before and during your breaks from the drilling