88 4runner winch and bumper issue

[Doncolberto530]

So I got a peach of a deal on an 88 4runner. After I paid the guy and everything for the 4runner he mentions that he has some stuff to go with it. We go around to the garage and there lying on the ground is a full bull bar with a Warn winch that goes to the truck. So I know have the 4runner (AWESOME) and a the full bumper winch setup (SUPER AWESOME) the only problem is that I am not sure if I have all the parts to mount the bumper and winch back on the truck. I guess the previous owner didn't like the way it looked.

It came with a couple little plates that look like they attach on either side of the skid plate onto the frame but I am missing the bolts. Anyone know what size/type of bolts I need? I know there has to be more to mounting this thing than I am seeing. That just seems kinda weak for somewhere a winch mounts. The bar says WARN on it also but does not look like any Warn bumper I have ever seen before. I sent Warn an email so maybe that will turn something up.

 

[Doncolberto530]

Oh yeah, here is a pic of it:

You likey?

 

[BamBam]

Looks fantastic. Has it been repaired around the back wheels, or has it never rusted? It looks great. You don't see many that are rust free on the wheel wells like that. Nice score.

 

[Doncolberto530]

As far as I can tell it does not have any rust. The frame is super clean and when I checked inside the wheel wells I did not see any signs of rust or rust repair. The guy I bought it from only had it for less than a year and was only selling it because it was his vacation car and they were selling their vacation house. The person he got it off was a little old man who primarily towed it behind his RV. So that explains the condition and low mileage. The paintjob is about a year old also so that helps I'm sure. It came with the winch bumper setup and the driveline disconnect thingamajob and the special bar setup for being towed behind something. I have no clue how to hook it all back up but I got it. Any advice on how to figure out how to remount the winch and winch bumper?

 

[BamBam]

The best advice I can offer is to find a vehicle around you with a similar setup and climb down and look at how it is mounted up and take some pictures. It sounds crazy, but I've done this before and it works great.

You might also run through the thread on pics of 1G 4Runners and see if anybody on the site has anything similar hooked up and ask them how they had it set up. From the pics I am having a hard time figuring out how it was hooked up unless the guy had the current bumper off. I am guessing he got that bumper you currently have on there and put it on instead of what was on there before, unless you are seeing some obvious drill holes on it.

 

[cometobanks]

NICE!

Take the stock bumper off and jack the new bumper up to where it goes. Then you can see what you got and what you need.

 

[Doncolberto530]

Wow, so I emailed Warn yesterday asking for any information possible on my setup and they have already gotten back to me! That is pretty darn quick. Here is what they said (copied and pasted the errors are not mine):

Colbert,

That looks like an old combo kit that was produced before the Trans4mer systems came out.

However, the horizontal pieces on the bottom look like they were fabricated up as part of some type of custom attachment.


Sorry but we no longer manufacture those kits or the vehicle specific hardware components that were needed to mount the. Your best bet would be to have a fabricater build you some custom brackets to attach it to your specific vehicle.


Michael McEwen

Technical Customer Service Representative

So long story short I gotta find someone that knows how to fabricate stuff. Every shop I have called has given me an estimate of like 5-$600 without even looking at it. So here is my question: Anyone in the Chico Ca area with welding/fab experience wanna HABU? (hook a brotha up)

 

[cometobanks]

Im only like 6 states away BUT I work for vodka...

 

[fourwd1]

NICE!

Take the stock bumper off and jack the new bumper up to where it goes. Then you can see what you got and what you need.

That does not replace the stock bumper.
It bolts on over it.
I have a similar one from Ramsey on my 83.
And like Warn said, the bottom horizontal pieces don't look original.

 

[cometobanks]

Really?? Why would you bolt a winch on the factory bumper??? The tabs that hold the bumper on are like a foot long and are made of tin foil!

Man thats a cool deal you got, just jack it up to the stock bumper and see what you need to bolt it up. Once you eyeball it it probably wont be to hard! Cant wait to see it on your runner!

OH! and before fourwd1 corrects me, its really only like 4 states to Missouri!

 

[BamBam]

If you ever get out to Utah I will help you hook it up. I am sure there are a few guys that hang out in Moab that could have it on in a short amount of time.

 

[Doncolberto530]

Thanks for the offer on the help guys. If I happen to be in your area with the bumper in the back of my rig and a bottle of vodka I will look you up... Just by looking at the thing I think it just mounts with two little metal plates that bolt on on either side of the skidplate. This just seems really weak to me and I am thinking there is more to it. As far as the two little side pieces that have been added I think they might have been on for the little towing attachment system that it came with also since it was originally towed behind an rv. If nothing else they make a sweet spot for some more lighting! I am debating right now whether to try taking the setup apart to put some truck bed liner on it to make it look all shiny and new to match my cherry paint job.

 

[topdown4runner]

Very nice

Try looking online for a local off road club, preferably a yota specific club
They would not neccessarily need to be 1st gen specific, but I am sure you will find someone there who would love to help a brother out, especially if you joined them. If you were in Florida, I know my group of guys would help ya out and get that properly mounted. :beer:

 

[Doncolberto530]

OK, so I talked to my buddy that has fabbed up custom and bumpers and stuff before so he is going to help me out with the bumper and winch. In the mean time though I got my roof rack setup installed yesterday. It's six yakima raingutter towers, three 58 inch bars, an older Yakima Rocketbox 16 and a Yakima Viper for my Mountain Bike. I think it just might get the job done... I plan on getting the Slee hi lift mount for it so I can put a high lift up there also.