Aftermarket Chrome Bumper?

Figured I'd check if anyone on here has a really good reason not to buy one of these before I do.

I'm well aware Ebay parts usually aren't worth their weight in rust, but I've been keeping an eye out for used OEM's for a long time, and up here in the northeast they all seem to be in bad shape, overpriced, or frozen solid onto some parts truck in the middle of a field - sometimes all three.

I expect the impact absorption would be worse/different from stock, but my current bumper is gonzo, nothing left at all, so anything seems like an improvement. I figure those cool welded setups some of the off-road guys run also aren't ideal for whatever crumple zones Toyota had in mind, so that shouldn't be a huge deal.

Whenever I need to tow I use the frame hitch, so it's mostly cosmetic. The only real functionality I need is being able to step up on it without it falling apart.

RockAuto also has one that's a fair bit more expensive from 'various manufacturers' that seems very likely to be from one of the same factories as the ones all over ebay.

 

The bumper you see is not actually part of the impact protection for the truck. The crash bar behind it handles those duties. The bumper is merely a veneer to look pretty. Carparts.com has these bumpers in chrome or paintable, with or without all of the hardware.

 

I bought a chrome bumper on eBay. Had small issues but the company took care of it. It was more of a FedEx issue. The bag of screws and accessories opened up and the clips on the license plate lights got damaged. Company refunded me like $150. They were going to send me out a new one for free but it was sold out. I bought a set of light on Amazon for under $12. Then I bought the little bumper cones that go in front of the license plate from Amazon also. Plastics don’t match but it doesn’t matter

I would buy it again

 

I had great luck ordering mine off Summit Racing. I think the manuf'er was Coast 2 Coast. I've linked it up on here before on one of the many questions asking for the same info. I've also had great luck with Sherman brand.

 

I put one on my 2001 earlier this summer. The steel of the bumper is just a wee bit thinner than the original but they fit perfectly. However, I would make one recommendation, reuse your original mounting arms if possible, they are a bit thicker and heavier than those that come with the new bumper. Other than that I'm pleased with it.

 

Kind of off-topic [sorry Green00sr5] but curious if anyone looking for new bumper has found any with the 'step pockets' at either end like newer trucks have? I'd almost rather keep my dented OEM if no such aftermarket w/step pockets exist.
i know there are 'flip-down' steps available, but for their cost and time, I'd rather look for a new product w/step pockets built-in...
If nothing..., carry on...sorry for the interruption.

 

Thanks for the info guys! I'll take a look at those options. Good to know the faceplate itself isn't much of a safety feature.

@ps8820 that would be pretty handy, In the bit of searching I've done I haven't seen any. I think part of the problem is that most of the custom replacements are intended to be higher clearance. It would be interesting to see if any other trucks out there have one that's close enough in size, then it would just be a matter of custom mounting brackets. Maybe more trouble than it's worth at that point though.

 

If you were anywhere near me, I'd hook you up with mine. I want to go back to a painted bumper, and I found a good deal on one pre-painted. I have a chrome one that's less than 5 years old and in mint shape. But I don't want to make the transition unless I have a home and a few $$ to offset the cost of the painted one. It doesn't make sense to ship them, else I'd list it up on here after. I just hate getting stuck with big parts!

 

I purchased an eBay bumper (primed, not chrome) and it worked out great. No issues in about 6 mos fits up fine.
post 107 in this thread
https://www.tundras.com/threads/dri...ecial-05dc-refresh.133376/page-4#post-3526950

 

Two things I found on the aftermarket rear bumpers...they are sloppy stamped so when you put the top plastic steps back on, you will have to put a few gobs of silicone under them and clamp them in place overnight because they don't quite click into place. Also, if you have the factory towing package you will have to use a carbide burr and enlarge a couple bolt holes to make it fit right. "Minor fitting required"...but they don't tell you that. No big deal though, and worth the price I paid.

 

Did not have any of those problems with the one I got off Ebay.

 

Maybe you bought yours from a different ebay seller than the 2 I bought.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/175117020902

 

This is the one I bought from Summit Racing: https://www.summitracing.com/parts/BDY-TO1102229V

I paid $196.99, and they charged me $9.99 to ship because it's oversized (otherwise would've been free).

I didn't need to enlarge any holes. Factory tow stuff bolted right up. All plastics snapped into place. Looks like the price has gone up since 2019, though. Hard to believe that was 5 years ago! Maybe you can find someone who has this brand cheaper. I think you can get OEM from Toyota in chrome cheaper than the current price at Summit with Coast to Coast.

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good to know nobody's had any really serious fitment issues. I went ahead and ordered that Ebay one, I'll update this thread on the install assuming I can find a way to get those old bolts out. Looked like summit had good deals on the chrome faceplate alone, but since I need the whole assembly, this one was a lot cheaper.

woulda been nice, I hear ya with the shipping not being worth it though. A while back I got rear-ended in an old BMW I used to have and had to spend $300 to freight ship a $300 bumper from a junkyard. Still came in at about half the body shop quote. I'm sure you'd find someone nearby to buy it eventually, maybe FB marketplace.

 

I used an impact wrench after soaking a bit with Superzilla.

 

Whelp.. as expected a few bolts came out and a few rounded right off. Specifically, one on each side where the brackets connect to the frame, and the two in front of the license plate which have a very shallow head. I even bought a can of Kroil for this lol

I guess I'll pick up some of those hammer-on extractors and see where that gets me. I've heard a lot about going to muffler shops to get nuts welded on too, but never actually tried it. Not sure how common that is, but maybe worth some calling around. I wouldn't really argue about an hour of shop-rate for something like that.

 

Bolt biters worked well, so well, in fact that they got every bolt out except the last one on the step which got sheared right in half. Luckily I was then able to get the bumper off and had plenty of space to try every trick in the book for removing that stud. After an hour of drilling, chiseling, etc. I just cut the welded nut right off the bottom.

Replaced both sides with some hardware store 10.9's (M12X70 + big ol fender washers), and that side got a new nut on the bottom which snugged up just fine.

As far as the eBay kit itself, it was short a couple bolts for the side brackets, so I reused some that hadn't rounded. Also, like @Dook55 mentioned, the center plastic had a couple tabs broken off and was a bit floppy. The silicone is a good idea, and I agree for the price it was nothing too major.






^I thought the lowpro flange bolts were a bit of an odd choice from Toyota. Not to get too controversial, but I don't think shallow 12mm heads have any business on top of an M12 bolt lol. Granted it probably works fine 90% of the time when its not totally corroded out.

 

The new bumper will rust almost immediately on the inside from rock chips and moisture. I would recommend spraying it with strong 2k paint or maybe 2k raptor liner. You could also powdercoat the whole thing.

 

noted, thanks for the heads up. I was planning on dousing the inside with fluid film next time I do my frame, but a nice 2K clear or something like that all around isn’t a bad idea.

 

OP: Which one did you end up going with? The eBay full assembly that you linked in the first post? How is the quality of the bumper and replacement plastic trim? Looking to replace my bumper as well.

 

Yep, I went with this original one I linked. Feels sturdy and overall I was pretty impressed with what showed up for the money. The plastics themselves were probably the lowest quality part of it. Mine came with a couple tabs broken off of the middle piece which makes it not lock in place perfectly, but it wasn't worth a return for me. Otherwise, there are some very slight stamping creases around the edges of the chrome which might not be there on OEM but I'm not sure.

Paying more for just the faceplate from somewhere like Summit might get you better results if the rest of your assembly is good, but I expect most of the eBay full assemblies in this price range are of pretty similar quality.