New Southern Style Speed Rear Bumper Prototype Installed

[LawnDart]

I think I could live with that. It's not terrible. I'm looking to completely eliminate the stock bumper cover.

As far as shifting on impact... say if you came down unexpectedly hard on a rock or something... would the bumper shift up at all? I'm looking to avoid any contact with the sheet metal if at all possible.


:boink:

CBI has had to provide a fairly substantial buffer between bumper and surrounding body. So much so that if you look at earlier CBI bumper installs the gap was much more narrow, which some people reporting that on heavy articulation it would impact the plastic bumper and you'd need to smack it back on to the clips to re-seat the panel. That's plastic. It being so close to the body was my concern.

I'm going to stay concerned until I see someone REALLY wheel this thing, not just drive it across country. Color me a skeptic, but I'd rather not put steel/aluminum into sheet metal. Hopefully things work out fine.

 

[SouthernSS]

CBI has had to provide a fairly substantial buffer between bumper and surrounding body. So much so that if you look at earlier CBI bumper installs the gap was much more narrow, which some people reporting that on heavy articulation it would impact the plastic bumper and you'd need to smack it back on to the clips to re-seat the panel. That's plastic. It being so close to the body was my concern.

I'm going to stay concerned until I see someone REALLY wheel this thing, not just drive it across country. Color me a skeptic, but I'd rather not put steel/aluminum into sheet metal. Hopefully things work out fine.

I think I could live with that. It's not terrible. I'm looking to completely eliminate the stock bumper cover.

As far as shifting on impact... say if you came down unexpectedly hard on a rock or something... would the bumper shift up at all? I'm looking to avoid any contact with the sheet metal if at all possible.


:boink:

I'd like to point out that we've been in the offroad scene for many years now and cut our teeth on the GX470. I make extra effort to guarantee that our products dont damage your truck with normal use, and I err' on the side of caution as I'd rather have a larger gap that lets the steel bumper slip past the oem plastic than to have someone call me up and tell me our products damaged their rig.


Here's a couple of pics I found of us wheeling the ever loving poop out of our GX with no contact to the fenders or otherwise.

Here, you can see it has slipped past the oem fender line, but still doesnt contact.

some big ass rocks...

Close up of spacing on the GX for reference

 

[LawnDart]

Great, good to hear. The photos of the existing bumper don't look like a lot of margin, so I'd be interested to see how this does with some extensive use. Good luck, and congrats.

 

[CruzadoBlanco]

I'd like to point out that we've been in the offroad scene for many years now and cut our teeth on the GX470. I make extra effort to guarantee that our products dont damage your truck with normal use, and I err' on the side of caution as I'd rather have a larger gap that lets the steel bumper slip past the oem plastic than to have someone call me up and tell me our products damaged their rig.


Here's a couple of pics I found of us wheeling the ever loving poop out of our GX with no contact to the fenders or otherwise.

Here, you can see it has slipped past the oem fender line, but still doesnt contact.

some big ass rocks...

Close up of spacing on the GX for reference

i just realized i never pulled and edited those gopro videos from jamboree. if you still want them i can actually ya know do that. i think i have the video from yall slamming the GX at the exit to politician i need to check though

 

[SouthernSS]

i just realized i never pulled and edited those gopro videos from jamboree. if you still want them i can actually ya know do that. i think i have the video from yall slamming the GX at the exit to politician i need to check though

Oh man, I remember that now. Jamboree was hard on the ole girl, blown out wheel bearing and bent tie rod after running her through that obstacle course.

PM me [MENTION=108235]CruzadoBlanco[/MENTION], if you find those vids.

 

[Hellamatic]

Not bad. Definitely not feeling the ladder though - looks like someone got carried away with their protractor.

 

[fargo4x4]

CBI has had to provide a fairly substantial buffer between bumper and surrounding body. So much so that if you look at earlier CBI bumper installs the gap was much more narrow, which some people reporting that on heavy articulation it would impact the plastic bumper and you'd need to smack it back on to the clips to re-seat the panel. That's plastic. It being so close to the body was my concern.

I'm going to stay concerned until I see someone REALLY wheel this thing, not just drive it across country. Color me a skeptic, but I'd rather not put steel/aluminum into sheet metal. Hopefully things work out fine.

At the end of the day we can drive across country, tow boats, go rock crawling... a company can be 20 years in the industry or 5 years in, just like jeep owners love their jeeps and toyota owners stand by their toyotas... a cbi owner or arb owner is gonna stand by those brands (or the money they already invested in those brands) no matter what... Other brands looking to innovate and try a new design... isnt gonna hurt the ARB's and CBI's of this industry because they have an established history of reliability and quality products that is undeniable... so dont worry people will still buy the cbi bumper! Its ok!! There is no need to reinforce the quality of their designs... We all know them and their products very well.

For the rest of us... looking for a product that suits our needs and has the look and functionality WE want... we appreciate experienced, humble and innovative brands like Southern Style and so many others... for taking the risks to deliver a product that is custom, functional and reliable. At the end of the day the people craving a CBI bumper arent who Southern Style is necessarily targeting... the people who have been waiting to see what gets made for the 5th gen (the 90%) is exactly who this product was designed for...

So we appreciate the criticism which is why we let you all in on what we have been up to, before it went into production and we are looking to do everything we can to help test this prototype... but at the end of the day some things arent for everyone and that's ok.

 

[LawnDart]

So we appreciate the criticism which is why we let you all in on what we have been up to, before it went into production and we are looking to do everything we can to help test this prototype... but at the end of the day some things arent for everyone and that's ok.

Fargo, first off, dial back the passive aggressive. I'm allowed to criticize or provide feedback on what I see, unlike you I'm not sponsored by a company or have any financial investment in it, so seriously you do yourself a disservice to imply otherwise.

Secondly, "we let you in" implies that we should all be so lucky. You posted, on a public forum, you're not doing us some favor. If you're being open to feedback, cool, otherwise we're not here to fluff you guys if we have some legitimate concerns on a prototype.

Maybe I'll switch from a CBI to a SSS (I can't say I'm a big fan of the front ends, but whatever), but either solicit comments/concerns which is the point of a prototype, or just issue a press release if you don't.

Done. Full stop.

 

[fargo4x4]

Fargo, first off, dial back the passive aggressive. I'm allowed to criticize or provide feedback on what I see, unlike you I'm not sponsored by a company or have any financial investment in it, so seriously you do yourself a disservice to imply otherwise.

Secondly, "we let you in" implies that we should all be so lucky. You posted, on a public forum, you're not doing us some favor. If you're being open to feedback, cool, otherwise we're not here to fluff you guys if we have some legitimate concerns on a prototype.

Maybe I'll switch from a CBI to a SSS (I can't say I'm a big fan of the front ends, but whatever), but either solicit comments/concerns which is the point of a prototype, or just issue a press release if you don't.

Done. Full stop.

All we can do is work on the design and try to provide everyone as much proof, photographic evidence etc to answer their questions.

The phrase "we let you all in" to everyone else simply implies that we were hiding this big secret and were finally comfortable enough to show you all what we have been up to, because we are excited to get the feedback we need to improve the product... and what better place than in this community? A ton of ideas and a ton of experience.

Us testing out his new product for him (that we paid them to make for us and hopefully the 4runner community as a whole) is supposed to be a negative your saying? Our Instagram openly admits we are trying to ambassador their product... and it always has... soo if thats something that is bothering you I am sorry but it is what is... Its not like we are telling anyone this bumper is the best we just simply helped SSS unveil it... lol so i dunno what the root of your issue is but like you said "done full stop"

Clean Slate

 

[momo.75]

Just don't forget about us 4th Gen guys......:banana:

 

[fargo4x4]

without tearing the back door off Im willing to bet that camera relocation will be very similar to the GX which starts on page 26 of the rear bumper intallation instructions. Have a look see here:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B2KCenD4KnMSVUxYWng1bUNKblk/view

Check out what we did last night =p

A little late night innovation as we relocate the rear view camera to the spare tire swing arm... the black plastic piece is actually a sheet of kydex we cut to size and bolted the stock rear view camera to it =p

But of course on the production models you mentioned you will have a built in rear view camera holder that you can relocate your stock camera to right?

But for now our prototype will have to make do with this =p when i finish the wiring ill post more pics from the actual head units perspective

 

[SouthernSS]

Check out what we did last night =p

A little late night innovation as we relocate the rear view camera to the spare tire swing arm... the black plastic piece is actually a sheet of kydex we cut to size and bolted the stock rear view camera to it =p

But of course on the production models you mentioned you will have a built in rear view camera holder that you can relocate your stock camera to right?

But for now our prototype will have to make do with this =p when i finish the wiring ill post more pics from the actual head units perspective

Yes, production models will have a bolt on mount that will allow you to adjust the angle of the camera for maximum visibility. We use this on the GX models and it works great no matter the wheel/tire setup.

 

[LawnDart]

Yes, production models will have a bolt on mount that will allow you to adjust the angle of the camera for maximum visibility. We use this on the GX models and it works great no matter the wheel/tire setup.

Have you considered building/machining a housing for the OEM camera, and harness, that allows more than just owners of the SSS products to relocate the camera? I could see this being nice to have for CBI/Shrockworx bumpers.

 

[Saker]

Have you considered building/machining a housing for the OEM camera, and harness, that allows more than just owners of the SSS products to relocate the camera? I could see this being nice to have for CBI/Shrockworx bumpers.

[MENTION=123371]fargo4x4[/MENTION]
[MENTION=124732]LawnDart[/MENTION]
[MENTION=110183]SouthernSS[/MENTION] = Kevin,

I was thinking the same thing when looking at the previous post.
When I had my FJ, I expanded on the camera area by making a cover/shield to protect the camera as well as deflecting some of the water that gets on the lens.
Something like this would/could be an asset to the builds.

 

[LawnDart]

[MENTION=124732]LawnDart[/MENTION]
[MENTION=110183]SouthernSS[/MENTION] = Kevin,

I was thinking the same thing when looking at the previous post.
When I had my FJ, I expanded on the camera area by making a cover/shield to protect the camera as well as deflecting some of the water that gets on the lens.
Something like this would/could be an asset to the builds.

Honestly I was thinking something ABS, hell you can 3D Print ABS well enough that a nice looking enclosure with rubber seals would keep it clean, especially when being mounted on a swing arm.

 

[fargo4x4]

[MENTION=123371]fargo4x4[/MENTION]
[MENTION=124732]LawnDart[/MENTION]
[MENTION=110183]SouthernSS[/MENTION] = Kevin,

I was thinking the same thing when looking at the previous post.
When I had my FJ, I expanded on the camera area by making a cover/shield to protect the camera as well as deflecting some of the water that gets on the lens.
Something like this would/could be an asset to the builds.

Wow that does look pretty clean, and hear i thought our solution was clever SMH hahaha do you have a install thread on how you did this because CHALLENGE ACCEPTED! Thanks for the pic!

 

[Saker]

Wow that does look pretty clean, and hear i thought our solution was clever SMH hahaha do you have a install thread on how you did this because CHALLENGE ACCEPTED! Thanks for the pic!

The only part I made is what is pictured.
I just started with a piece of cardboard, made the opening size for the camera, folded and marked the cardboard where needed, marked my bolt holes, transferred these measurements to the mild steel & started cutting.
Trimmed, buffed everything, checked fit again...painted & installed with stainless button head socket screws.

 

[fargo4x4]

The only part I made is what is pictured.
I just started with a piece of cardboard, made the opening size for the camera, folded and marked the cardboard where needed, marked my bolt holes, transferred these measurements to the mild steel & started cutting.
Trimmed, buffed everything, checked fit again...painted & installed with stainless button head socket screws.

Well all i can say is well done! I love DIY solutions, now do it 200 more times and start selling them! haha

 

[fargo4x4]

So new pics finally

I relocated the license plate too

Ill take close ups of that later after i finish a few things on it but here is a 360 view

 

[RedMagik]

Thanks for pics!