Concerns about an Offroad Bumper

[T4RNightHawk]

Hey guys, I posted yesterday that I got hit and it tore my front bumper (you can look in the what did you do today thread). Today the other person's insurance said they stayed honest so hopefully I'll get a check soon.

I'm thinking about a Pelfreybilt bumper to replace the oem one since my friend is a vendor. I talked to my dad about it and he was worried about significant effects on wind noise and gas mileage. I'm hoping some of you guys with bumpers can put his mind to rest.

Also could I get some input on suspension. I'm thinking Bilstein 5100's and OME 885 for the rear and 886 for the front to accommodate the bumper.

 

[CXS]

Any weight you add will impact your mpg's. How much with that bumper? I have no idea.

I know your suspension combination is popular but I'll never understand the mix & match system. I've been an OME user for years and wouldn't think of mixing something else into the setup that's been designed to work together.

 

[Jeremy556]

You probably won't notice a difference in wind noise, but you will negatively affect your drag coefficient and reduce MPGs. The weight won't help MPGs either, but will also negatively affect handling with that weight hanging off the front.

 

[Oneluv13T4R]

[MENTION=122620]muscarellaw[/MENTION]
You guys arent doing so well on easing his Dads mind and keeping him from getting his new bumper.
Like they said yes it will have an effect on mpg's and honestly once you get the bumper=weight then do your lift =wind\drag and I'm sure then some tires=weight your gonna roughly end up losing 1.5 mpg's...woopy doo.
To offset that lose lighten up on the gas pedal a lil and regularly clean maf,O2 sensors, air filter etc etc
theres other things to worry about in life than the loss of a couple mpg's. If he was so worried about that he should have gotten you a prius.

 

[BlackWorksInc]

You have a V8 4Runner, if gas mileage is THAT big a concern for you and your father; this is not the right vehicle for both of you.

I don't know about the wind noise, my ShrockWorks bumper doesn't make any wind noise that I can notice compared to a stock 4Runner. Gas mileage isn't going to really be affected that much as the additional weight of the bumper is for the most part negligible (the factory stuff is about 20~30-ish pounds and I believe my SW bumper clocks in at about 140~150-ish pounds); if anything it'd be equivalent to having a second person in the car with you at all times or a couple 50lbs bags of dog food. You're probably talking maybe 1mpg if that, but again if that's such a big concern I would just buy a commuter vehicle and build the 4Runner up for what you want.

 

[techno]

The ARB on my 3rd gen made absolutely no difference to noise or mileage. I added the appropriate suspension so the handling was fine too. The only cons are the potentially unknown effects on the airbag system (unless you get an ARB) and the increased feeling of confidence that you can run into small things anytime you want.

 

[T4RNightHawk]

Ok so it doesn't sound that bad. Wind noise was the major concern gas mileage is less important. I'm supposed to go get a quote soon so hopefully will get my check soon.

Could any of you give before and after gas numbers. I'm expecting -1 or so. I get anywhere between 13 and 15 now.

Has anyone else had handling problems? I can't imagine that much of a negative effect because it's about the same as having a person on the front of your car and with the upgraded suspension I would think it'd be fine.

 

[BlackWorksInc]

Ok so it doesn't sound that bad. Wind noise was the major concern gas mileage is less important. I'm supposed to go get a quote soon so hopefully will get my check soon.

Could any of you give before and after gas numbers. I'm expecting -1 or so. I get anywhere between 13 and 15 now.

Has anyone else had handling problems? I can't imagine that much of a negative effect because it's about the same as having a person on the front of your car and with the upgraded suspension I would think it'd be fine.

Due to where the weight will be, you may notice a slight bit more nose dive when stopping. But stiffer springs will fix that and it's not a big deal.

 

[who done it]

Pelfrey makes an aluminum version which is about half the weight too. So about a 50 - 60 lb add on shouldn't effect you much if you choose to go that route.

 

[Martinjmpr]

I ran an aftermarket bumper for almost 3 years. Never noticed any difference in noise, as any noise it would make is going to be in front of the engine, a much bigger noise maker.

As for MPG that's a tough one to determine. Like most of us, when I went to the custom bumper I also went to bigger tires and a small (1") lift so yes, I had a slight drop in MPG but was it because of the bumpers, the bigger tires or the lift? The correct answer is probably a little bit of all 3 but in reality, if you're worried about MPG then as was said above, this is the wrong vehicle for you.

When I took my custom bumper off I noticed that it weighed probably 70 - 75 lbs (keep in mind that while mine was a plate bumper in 1/4" steel, it did not have a "stinger" or grille protector, it was a bumper only. The more metal you have obviously the more it will weigh.) I would estimate that the stock parts that were removed to put the bumper on probably weighed around 25 - 30 lbs max.

So you're talking about maybe a 50 lb weight difference.

On a vehicle with a curb weight of 4500 lbs (V8) you're talking about a 1.1% weight increase. Probably not going to make much of a difference in terms of MPG.

 

[T4RNightHawk]

Okay so I've gathered that bumpers are awesome, can decrease mpgs, and are fine with upgraded suspension.

I think I've decided on a CBI bumper due to the looks, pricing, and shipping time. Also my friend who is a vendor sells their stuff and I will soon be working for him.

 

[duffdog]

I actually got better mileage when I replaced the factory bumper with a demello offroad single hoop bumper. I confirmed that with factory bumper I got 14.9, with DO bumper I got 15.1. This is with a 3" lift and 285 Duratracs. Kind of makes sense considering that the DO bumper is full of holes with lots of space for air to flow through it.