I'm researching bumpers now that my lift has been fully planned and will be installed soon...I really want to replace the wimpy factory bumper, my 2001 tj had a more solid bumper...

Has anyone had an incident like someone hitting them and there being suspension damage that wouldn't have happened had you been running a wider bumper?

Just thinking what a nightmare it would be dealing with an insurance adjuster trying to get your lift repaired etc

Matthew

 

I just bought new bumpers and almost went with midwidth in the rear. I changed my mind because I didnt like how much of the bottom of the quarter panel behind the rear wheel was exposed. there are certainly a lot of benefits when rock crawling but the lack of protection could cause pain later on. I went with a full rear and mid front. Since I am not interested in hard core rock crawling it eemed like the right direction to take.

 

Just happen to know how this plays out. I have a stubby bumper and was hit head on. The other car just missed the bumper and hit the front axle causing over $9,000 in damage. I personally would not let this decide which bumper to chose as a full or Mid width bumper probably would have caused much more frame damage and possible frame replacement. In other words bigger is not always better chose a bumper based on what you do with your Jeep more than how it will affect an accident. However do buy a quality bumper so it can hold up in the event of a accident it won't be any protection if it falls off due to poor welds. I was a body shop manager and insurance adjuster so I do know a thing or two in this field. Also if you are the claimant (other drivers fault) the other insurance company will pay for any accessories you have intsalled that are damaged up to the value of the vehicle (total loss). If it's your policy you will need an additional rider to cover these check with your insurance company to see what is covered and if you need additional coverage for those items. Hope this helps.

 

After asking, my insurance company informed me that any aftermarket accessories & parts installed on my vehicle WILL be covered. Even if I have items stored in the Jeep that get stolen, I can file a claim & recuperate my loss. After all, isn't that the whole point of insurance?

Safe journeys, my friends.

 

I can't remember which forum I saw it, but someone with a stubby hit an animal and it caused more damage than it would have received with a full or mid width bumper. They were OK, though. On my search, I found this cool bumper (I know it's a TJ on the JK Forum.....don't flame):



It's kind of stubby, on the bottom.......I guess.

 

That's terrible. It looks like a playground mounted to the front

 

Did I forget the insurance company gave me over 3k for the front axle so I upgraded to a dynatrac pro rock 44! That sounds like an upside to me.

 

This was posted on AEV's Facebook page yesterday morning... about hitting a deer at Highway Speeds when driving their new AEV Brute across country....

"I was almost to the Idaho/Utah border on I-15 last night when I saw a deer in the silhouette of on coming traffic, plenty of time to slow down from 75 to about 50, saw the buck go down into the median and thought it was fine to start to speed back up. Just then the buck reversed direction and ran full speed into the right front corner of the Brute. Glad to report the ESP, ABS, and the AEV bumper and suspension all worked perfectly, I wasn't sure till this morning when I could see it in the daylight, but no damage at all. The buck was sadly not as fortunate.

One of the IPF lights was pushed back, but easily straightened. Without the bumper, the buck would surely have been into the radiator, grill, fender flare and likely the driver door. Exactly what I had in mind when designing that bumper...protect the radiator at all costs. Without it I probably would have been calling a tow truck and it would have meant the end of my trip."

Possible that a stubby may have faired the same, but just thought I'd throw this in. Pics available on their fb page.

 

Sounds good! What's the name of the insurance company? Maybe I should check them out since I am not so sure about mine...!

 

Well they look good, lighter,better approach angles, I am going to say no