Southern Style Offroad Bumper Experience

[Speedsurfer]

I just wanted to share my SSO slimline bumper experience with others who may be contemplating getting a new bumper. I went with SSO for my 2018 Pro based on some reviews and youtube videos, plus I like the appearance. I was deciding between SSO and C4. I ordered a slimline hybrid with Baja light bar 20 inch back in Jan 2021. I received it in April which was expected. Unfortunately despite excellent packing there was damage to the corner where it looked like it was dropped and poked through the box. The lightbar does not come with the bumper, it gets drop shipped when the bumper is shipped and takes a couple more weeks- something they don't tell you. It would make way more sense to just buy the light bar from Amazon. I spoke with SSO and they were prompt and said I would be sent a new bumper in a few weeks. It's 2 months later now and there is no bumper. I tried emailing and calling multiple times. I finally got a hold of them and they said they are waiting on their Fedex claim to see if they cover the damage. So it seems I won't be getting a new bumper unless Fedex covers the damage claim. I know these guys are super busy, but it's been 6 months and I'm stuck in limbo. I'm now regretting my decision with SSO and think I should have just gone with C4 or Body Armor. It's no fun having a damaged bumper, light bar and winch just sitting in your garage for months.

 

[LeekT4R]

Post a pic of the damage.

Sucks it was damaged, but its steel. You can easily fix it with minimal tools and go on with your life.

SSO has a well known reputation, and this story should not be how someone decides to do business with SSO in the future.

 

[NB17Limited]

Post a pic of the damage.

Sucks it was damaged, but its steel. You can easily fix it with minimal tools and go on with your life.

SSO has a well known reputation, and this story should not be how someone decides to do business with SSO in the future.

Agreed on all counts. This is more a story of how FedEx doesn’t handle packages well. None of the carriers do and there’s not a whole lot you can do about it. It’s not like there’s a plethora of carriers to choose from

 

[YellowSnow]

Getting bumpers, sliders, skids etc. shipped is the equivalent of getting your ass violated by Bubba in the county jail. It’s ridiculously expensive and seems to alway arrive damaged.

 

[honda250xtitan]

how broken can it be? its an offroad steel bumper...paint it, install it.

 

[Signal]

I talk to the guys at SSO all the time. I ordered a bumper a few weeks ago and I was told mid Aug for delivery. They respond same day . I ordered a slimline, bare metal, with 30inch light bar cutout, I have a Extreme LED 30 inch X6S and a Warn sitting in the garage. Have you tried calling them or reaching out to them on facebook. They seem like really good people.

 

[SouthernSS]

I just wanted to share my SSO slimline bumper experience with others who may be contemplating getting a new bumper. I went with SSO for my 2018 Pro based on some reviews and youtube videos, plus I like the appearance. I was deciding between SSO and C4. I ordered a slimline hybrid with Baja light bar 20 inch back in Jan 2021. I received it in April which was expected. Unfortunately despite excellent packing there was damage to the corner where it looked like it was dropped and poked through the box. The lightbar does not come with the bumper, it gets drop shipped when the bumper is shipped and takes a couple more weeks- something they don't tell you. It would make way more sense to just buy the light bar from Amazon. I spoke with SSO and they were prompt and said I would be sent a new bumper in a few weeks. It's 2 months later now and there is no bumper. I tried emailing and calling multiple times. I finally got a hold of them and they said they are waiting on their Fedex claim to see if they cover the damage. So it seems I won't be getting a new bumper unless Fedex covers the damage claim. I know these guys are super busy, but it's been 6 months and I'm stuck in limbo. I'm now regretting my decision with SSO and think I should have just gone with C4 or Body Armor. It's no fun having a damaged bumper, light bar and winch just sitting in your garage for months.

Dear Speedsurfer,

This is Lee with Southern Style Offroad! We talked on the phone a few weeks back when the damage first happen. I let you know that we would be building you a new bumper ready to go, but that is solely based upon how Fedex handles the claim.

We are fabricators, not shippers and that creates sort of a disconnect with customers some times. As long as we fabricate, package the product correctly and ship it we have relieved our duties as fabricators (This is actually stated in the TOS). I know it's crappy to be in the situation you are in as a customer, but it's equally crappy to be in the situation as a business.

We're into the bumper you received as follows:
-We paid a guy to order the metal
-We paid the metal distributor to receive and bend the metal
-We paid a laborer to get the metal
-We paid a welder to weld the bumper
-We paid a grinder to grind the metal
-We paid another welder to do quality control check/and final fab welds(shackles/hoops)
-We paid a laborer to bring that bumper to powder coat
-We paid the powder coater to powder coat the bumper
-We paid a laborer to pick up the bumper
-We paid the shipping team to pack it up and ship it
-We paid for the box it's in
-We paid for the foam around the hoop
-We paid for the custom expanding mold inside the box
-We paid for the insurance on that bumper

Now, I understand that this bumper was indeed paid for by YOU, the customer. So everything above was covered by you thus far, but when we fabricate another bumper and just ship it out to you without waiting on Fedex to finish the claim, now we're 100% inheriting the cost of all of that + more shipping on the product, + shipping on the return. Our profits (nor any companies') profits are high enough to just ship out a brand new product everytime a shipper messes up a product, we would simply collapse as a business.

This unfortunately is the hands of the carrier. We 100% fulfilled our part of the purchase agreement, it was Fedex who failed you NOT us.

They're other solutions in this case if Fedex just denies you completely where we can meet in the middle, so neither party loses entirely but we're not at that step.

I understand reading this can be "eh" but it's honestly just business. I don't want to provide you bad customer service, but part of running a business is understanding financials and responsibility.

A link to our TOS Terms and Conditions, Company Policies and Returns/Cancellations – Southern Style OffRoad

TOS Paragraph on shipping

"Shipping & Delivery
All packages are shipped from Southern Style OffRoad will require a direct signature upon delivery. You will be emailed with tracking information when the package leaves our warehouse and it is the responsibility of the customer to arrange for receipt of package. All Slimline bumpers, Stage 2, Roof Racks and Sliders are shipped via Fedex with required signature at time of delivery. Changes to the shipping address need to be made before your package leaves the warehouse. Please allow up to 9 business days for your package to arrive since there could be potential delays in shipping once the package has left our facility. We cannot guarantee any delivery dates but if provided with notice will do our best to meet your deadlines.
Southern Style OffRoad, LLC’s responsibility for damage terminates upon transfer to carrier. It is the responsibility of the customer to note any obvious damage to shipping container or pallet with the carrier at time of delivery. If you are sending your product to a third party (ie body shop) it is imperative that you or your agent inspect the package/pallet contents for damages prior to accepting the shipment. Freight companies will not pay for visible damages not noted at time of delivery.
Damage can occur during shipping which is why you must open and inspect your package/order. If a package appears to be damaged during shipping, the customer must notify the shipping driver or shipping facility immediately before opening to start a claim. Product damage whether visible or concealed must be reported to SSO within 48 hours of receipt of the package. A claim will be filed on your behalf by SSO and the customer must provide pictures of the damage to the package, packing material, and products. Pictures should include all sides of box/pallet and multiple views of product damage clearly marked with a description of the damaged area.
Full bumpers are shipped via flat-rate freight. This flat rate will send the bumper to the hub closest to the customer’s zip code. This flat rate fee does not cover the cost of shipping the bumper to an installation shop or customer’s house. "

Pictures of the damage, which I do agree is worth replacing over. This is why we're waiting on Fedex to answer.

 

[somenoise]

Our profits (nor any companies') profits are high enough to just ship out a brand new product everytime a shipper messes up a product, we would simply collapse as a business.

Overall very detailed and honest email, especially compared to some fabricators who don't even respond, but while this part may be true to them, it's definitely not true of "any company". My experience is more 50/50 on companies not waiting for the claim to process, and when they do wait, the shipping companies typically drag their feet forever, which really puts small or growing businesses under financial strain if they don't wait. Sucks but one of the very few downsides of buying from high material cost/low production volume businesses.

 

[YellowSnow]

Well, remind me to never purchase anything from SSO. Hay, we’re just fabricators, once it’s shipped you’re essentially on your own. SSO Christmas parties must be fire!

 

[honda250xtitan]

Well, remind me to never purchase anything from SSO. Hay, we’re just fabricators, once it’s shipped you’re essentially on your own. SSO Christmas parties must be fire!

meh. they have justification. :shrug: people forget what it takes to run a business.

 

[SouthernSS]

Overall very detailed and honest email, especially compared to some fabricators who don't even respond, but while this part may be true to them, it's definitely not true of "any company". My experience is more 50/50 on companies not waiting for the claim to process, and when they do wait, the shipping companies typically drag their feet forever, which really puts small or growing businesses under financial strain if they don't wait. Sucks but one of the very few downsides of buying from high material cost/low production volume businesses.

I can see this being true, but I have yet to experience it in my own personal life. Most people wait for claims from my PC parts, to my motorcycle parts. The only company I have seen aside from Amazon do this was Partzilla and I will say I appreciate it, but I def did not understand it from a economical POV.

We do wish that we had the extra capital to just send out $1,000 products every time Fedex damages something, but we honestly just don't. We ship anywhere from 100 to 350 products out a week, Fedex messes up a good 1-4 a week on average easily. Some are easy fixes and some are not, and some weeks are much worse than others. If we were to payout and cross our fingers every time Fedex made a mistake, you're talking about a good $10,000-$15,000 swing every month praying with get positive claims back. On the year we're easily talking about $100,000 and to small companies, that's kind of a big deal especially if let's say only 30-50% payout.

Well, remind me to never purchase anything from SSO. Hay, we’re just fabricators, once it’s shipped you’re essentially on your own. SSO Christmas parties must be fire!

I'm going to have to assume that you can't read or decided to cherry pick your response. We filed the damage claim. We submitted the photos. We're tracking the claim. So it's not like we just ignored the customer, everything is going through the proper channels to get this handled. They're alternatives to IF Fedex doesn't pay out that we offer as a company, but in terms of the process we're not there yet. Fedex has yet to offer their solution on the damage and even when they deny the claim, we resubmit it and get the regional manager involved if the damage truly warrants it.

What would you suggest we do? If Fedex lost the bumper completely, is that somehow SSO's fault? I'm curious on where the production ends and the shipper's responsibility begins or if it even does in your mind.

 

[SouthernSS]

meh. they have justification. :shrug: people forget what it takes to run a business.

Indeed. I think in America people forget that businesses take capital to run and if you are not careful with your capital, then you longer have a business. At the end of the day, I am equally as unhappy about the shipping damage as the customer. I just understand, we need to wait for the resolution so I'm not gambling money away.

Thank you for being understanding.

 

[jp.vegas]

TOS or not, my girl runs a small business that relies on various shippers (UPS, USPS) to get her goods to the customer. She does most of her business on eBay and Amazon and they're both explicit in that the seller is responsible for the item being successfully delivered to the client, regardless of shipper involvement. They will issue refunds even for packages that have *been signed for* but the customer claims they never received and that comes right out of her pocket. It is, unfortunately, the cost of doing business. You either accept those costs, or you don't. Holding a customer responsible just because you have some TOS doesn't absolve you of responsibility any more than a gravel truck having a "Keep back 200 feet, we're not responsible for damaged windshields" sign absolves them of the responsibility to secure their load.

The damage looks easy enough to fix, but if you don't want to get into that, send it back and get a refund from your CC company. Done.

 

[Raptor008v2]

I realize photos sometimes don't do things justice, but honestly, it doesn't look bad at all. I would just hit it with some black spray paint and install it. It's a steel bumper. Even if you don't wheel it, make up some cool trail damage story.

I say this as someone who is pretty anal myself. I get the principle of the matter, but the reality is that it's just too much of a hassle to get a new one. I see it from both sides. Like I said, I'd just install and wheel it. Eventually it won't matter.

 

[YellowSnow]

TOS or not, my girl runs a small business that relies on various shippers (UPS, USPS) to get her goods to the customer. She does most of her business on eBay and Amazon and they're both explicit in that the seller is responsible for the item being successfully delivered to the client, regardless of shipper involvement. They will issue refunds even for packages that have *been signed for* but the customer claims they never received and that comes right out of her pocket. It is, unfortunately, the cost of doing business. You either accept those costs, or you don't. Holding a customer responsible just because you have some TOS doesn't absolve you of responsibility any more than a gravel truck having a "Keep back 200 feet, we're not responsible for damaged windshields" sign absolves them of the responsibility to secure their load.

The damage looks easy enough to fix, but if you don't want to get into that, send it back and get a refund from your CC company. Done.

But margins, overheads, they’re just a small fabrication shop (insert eye roll). I remember LFD shipping me brand new crossbars no charge when my roof rack had some rust issues from a bad powder coater. I didn’t file a claim, they didn’t need to see it or shipped back to them. They took care of the customer and made it right. Sounds like SSO needs to have a sales meeting with their own management and come up with a better game plan on taking care of their loyal customer base. Tread lightly SSO, this is not the ideal forum for you to back pedal and piss off thousands of potential customers over one fed ex damage claim.

 

[jp.vegas]

But margins, overheads, they’re just a small fabrication shop (insert eye roll). I remember LFD shipping me brand new crossbars no charge when my roof rack had some rust issues from a bad powder coater. I didn’t file a claim, they didn’t need to see it or shipped back to them. They took care of the customer and made it right. Sounds like SSO needs to have a sales meeting with their own management and come up with a better game plan on taking care of their loyal customer base. Tread lightly SSO, this is not the ideal forum for you to back pedal and piss off thousands of potential customers over one fed ex damage claim.

I'm sure it's not pleasant for them to eat the cost, but that is the cost of customer service. I've had countless vendors do as you've described, and replace a damaged or defective item at their cost. Some have asked for the original item back, some not, but either way their primary concern was the happiness of the customer. Those are companies that I would seek out to do business with in the future.

 

[SouthernSS]

But margins, overheads, they’re just a small fabrication shop (insert eye roll). I remember LFD shipping me brand new crossbars no charge when my roof rack had some rust issues from a bad powder coater. I didn’t file a claim, they didn’t need to see it or shipped back to them. They took care of the customer and made it right. Sounds like SSO needs to have a sales meeting with their own management and come up with a better game plan on taking care of their loyal customer base. Tread lightly SSO, this is not the ideal forum for you to back pedal and piss off thousands of potential customers over one fed ex damage claim.

You're comparing apples to oranges Yellow. You're talking about 1x crossbar which LFD nor any other shipping company fabricates, Tnutz does worth roughly $30 to a bumper which cost hundreds to make and ship. It cost more to ship a bumper then it does to buy a new crossbar and ship it. Look YellowSnow, I get it, you don't like SSO. I looked at your profile, for some reason you really took a disliking to us it seems when we made Stage 2 bumper attachments. I can't tell you why this tilted you so hard, that you had to post pictures of your "viper cut" multiple times and call the Stage 2 a waste, but hey.. it did. So I get it, SSO bad, Lemonsnow and his company list good. It's noted!

 

[SouthernSS]

TOS or not, my girl runs a small business that relies on various shippers (UPS, USPS) to get her goods to the customer. She does most of her business on eBay and Amazon and they're both explicit in that the seller is responsible for the item being successfully delivered to the client, regardless of shipper involvement. They will issue refunds even for packages that have *been signed for* but the customer claims they never received and that comes right out of her pocket. It is, unfortunately, the cost of doing business. You either accept those costs, or you don't. Holding a customer responsible just because you have some TOS doesn't absolve you of responsibility any more than a gravel truck having a "Keep back 200 feet, we're not responsible for damaged windshields" sign absolves them of the responsibility to secure their load.

The damage looks easy enough to fix, but if you don't want to get into that, send it back and get a refund from your CC company. Done.

We don't sell on Ebay/Amazon. We don't adhere to their rules and profit margins. What is your girl fabricating? What is she selling? Can we see some examples so we can compare apples to apples? If we're talking about reselling some cheap products for minimal margins multiple times a day, that's one thing, but comparing it to a very expensive fabricated product is another.

IE: We sell light switches, they sometimes go out. We send out replacements. You're talking about a couple dollars in a switch, not over a grand in metal. So please post up your girls shop so we can compare.

Funny, because my SSO bumper that I ordered back in November arrived about 2 months ago and came damaged in the SAME area. I didn't care because it didn't deform the metal in any way it just merely chipped off some of the powdercoat.

The box and shipping foam were both intact though so it leads me to believe someone just miscarried it trying to box it all up or take it off the truck from powercoating(they send all the bumpers out to a 3rd party)

Lee from SSO has always been pretty helpful throughout my order process but just like you I wasn't informed that the 30" Baja bar was going to be drop shipped to me so I had to push back my install appointment because I assumed the bar would be included in the box w/ the bumper. THAT was frustrating because I only get one Monday off a month due to work. Not only that, Baja was backordered on amber LENSES so it would've been another 3-4 week delay so I said screw it. Got my refund back and found a retailer here in LA 30 mins away that had a 30" Baja with amber lenses.

But hey, I love the way it looks now but it definitely wasn't fun waiting for it all to finally come together..six months after I clicked CONFIRM TO ORDER.

The idea that we ship out damaged products has always fascinated me. Customers some how get the idea that instead of FIX a problem that we see, we would rather box it off and ship it to the customer. Who will then see the damage and contact us to fix it, or post on forums about it. So instead we're taking up the time to respond to angry customer's emails/forum post. It's much easier to fix it, it's also why we take pictures of our products before we ship them so we can verify this with the customer whenever this accusation happens.

The real answer is this, shipping our products is expensive. If the box is a inch bigger at ALL on any dimension the product would go from roughly $60-90 to ship to roughly $180-220 to ship per a bumper due to the oversize chare from shippers after normal DIM. The damage we see on each bumper is usually consistent due to they're the spots most vulnerable for damage. On the Tacoma this would be the side wings, on the 4runner it would be the mounting feet with occasional wing damage. This is why on high damage areas we usually double foam and insert pool noodle type foam on the edges to prevent this damage to the best of our ability WITHOUT passing on an additional 100-200 in shipping cost off to the customer.

I'm sure it's not pleasant for them to eat the cost, but that is the cost of customer service. I've had countless vendors do as you've described, and replace a damaged or defective item at their cost. Some have asked for the original item back, some not, but either way their primary concern was the happiness of the customer. Those are companies that I would seek out to do business with in the future.

Once again, each item and each issue is going to have a different scenario. We're not talking about eating damage on the crossbar, or a switch, or some small item. I broke the cost down, you're saying the cost of a customer service is $1000s in damage, and paying a rep to also handle all these complaints, and Fedex claims. This isn't a proper way to do business. Giving away one free bumper, sucks up the profits of multiple bumpers. You would go down fast with this logic.

 

[CajunMikeR]

After seeing the pics, I'd have probably filled a claim with the shipper for damages, asked for a small amount to "make it better", then hit it with some touch up and installed it. I'll beat it up worse than that offroad.

None of this changes my mind about SSO or their products, one way or the other. Sometimes, shit happens and they're trying to work with the buyer and shipper to make it right. Custom parts take time and require patience, especially if you're looking for complete replacement on something that already has a decent lead time.

 

[honda250xtitan]

You're comparing apples to oranges Yellow. You're talking about 1x crossbar which LFD nor any other shipping company fabricates, Tnutz does worth roughly $30 to a bumper which cost hundreds to make and ship. It cost more to ship a bumper then it does to buy a new crossbar and ship it. Look YellowSnow, I get it, you don't like SSO. I looked at your profile, for some reason you really took a disliking to us it seems when we made Stage 2 bumper attachments. I can't tell you why this tilted you so hard, that you had to post pictures of your "viper cut" multiple times and call the Stage 2 a waste, but hey.. it did. So I get it, SSO bad, Lemonsnow and his company list good. It's noted!

he does this. Heck i do the same thing he does on here too. its fun to troll minivan owners. I digress. IDK why OP even bothered to create a thread much less complain to you guys; rattle can, install, enjoy....