Quote:
Originally Posted by PoopSmith
About a month ago I was lucky enough to have my T4R selected to be the model in the bumper install video! I obviously have no advice on installing it, but I've had 2 weeks to play with it. Here are my initial opinions/tips;
-The first is mostly cosmetic, but If running a single carrier, the empty space left from the original plate mounting location is super ugly, and leaves the screw holes open to the elements. I purchased this blank from amazon to fill it in.
-The wheel studs that come with the carrier are 1/2 threads, not 12mmx1.5 like ours. This totally makes sense due to the carrier being originally designed for Jeeps, but I didn't like having to have separate sets of lug nuts. I ordered 3 studs from Rock Auto (PN: PTC 97192) for .89 each and replaced the 1/2 ones.
-I noticed Daryl mentioned it in the video (and I wish I would have known this before) but having the camera moved so far to the passenger SUCKS. Backing up into a parking spot is weird, and backing up to a trailer is damned near impossible now. Additionally, once you mount a tire, It covers most of the "clean" area of the window where the wiper cleans (kinda hard to see in the photo, but it's really noticeable if it's raining or snowing). Because of both of these, I'd highly recommend going with the tire on the driver's side.
-I haven't wired my LED's in yet, but since they are only 24w total for both (2A), I'm just going to tap into the center pin of the 7-pin trailer harness so they come on with the vehicle reverse lights.
-With the removal of the mud-flaps, there is now a pretty substantial increase in road noise in the rain. This doesn't bother me in the slightest but figured I'd make everyone aware of it as it might annoy some.
-Finally (and I think they have already fixed some of these issues), the license plate bracket is an absolute BEAR to take off if you're pulling the wheel off. You have to remove the 2 bolts for the plate, then the 2 vertical bolts for the whole assembly (which I believe they're using wing nuts now), Then the two bolts for the plate bracket, then pull the LED off so the plate bracket comes through the hub. Way too many steps, and if I'm on a trail or in the middle of the night? That's really going to suck. I would have preferred to see a weatherproof connector that allows you to remove the plate/LED assembly completely before removing the wheel.
All those being said though, I LOVE the bumper. Classic Victory/JCR over-engineered quality, and it looks wayyyy better than any of the other options out there. Keep up the good work fellas!
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One thing that would fix most of these issues is the expedition one camera relocation kit. It actually mounts to the hatch where the license plate did and then extends from the hatch next to the tire. It is designed for their bumper, but these bumpers seem similar enough that I would imagine that it would work here as well. It also handles the license plate nicely by keeping it on the hatch. This solution looks good as well, atleast when the swing is in. I'll admit it looks a little weird with the swing out as there is a long protrusion from the hatch, but a small price to pay for a good solution. Only possible issue I could see here is the hatch not being able to open as much in a garage. If someone here would be willing to try it out that would be pretty awesome. I have been thinking of going this route, but haven't gotten the bumper yet.
