LR3 Front bumper options

[justaddmtns]

If anyone has any questions about our products, don't hesitate to reach out here or via PM. And Ray_G -- have your friend call our Customer Service team at 800-543-9276 if he needs help troubleshooting his winch.

-Andy

I had an issue with my VR10000 years ago when they first came out. I totally vouch for Andy and Warn. They talked me through various fine points over the phone and we spoke multiple times via PM also to resolve it. They set the bar for customer service and follow through.

 

[krick3tt]

Haven't ever had to have the techies troubleshoot anything but I have had Warn winches on three of my vehicles and all performed well.

 

[JoeMcD]

I have the rte, it's bashed many rocks, and is very stout. You can remove the headlight through the bull bar no problem, and you can also get it without the bull bar. Washer fluid bottle had to be swapped for a smaller one and relocated

Headlight easily fits out

 

[perkj]

If I did it again I would also do ARB. I liked it very much. However I am amazed you could get the headlights out with the bumper on, it just did not seem possible with mine!

@perkj, did you remove the plastic grill piece, to make space to remove the headlights?

Yes, I removed the center grill...its just two clips and about 10 seconds to do.

 

[perkj]

I'm running Superwinch all around; my 3 and my D1 both have the Tiger Shark 9500 synthetics. I just rebuilt my old EP9 that had been on my D1 for years.

Warn gets a lot of brand recognition for the red W...but to put a fine point on it, my best friend was staff at the 36hrs of Uwharrie...the only winches that failed during the event were Warn's...and he has two broken Warns sitting on a shelf right now waiting for me to rebuild them. That is anecdotal observation of course, but is meant to highlight that don't mistake good marketing necessarily for good value for your dollar.
r-
Ray

Given that Warn makes different model lines of their winches (M, VR, XP, Zeon, XD, etc) which have different internals, it would be good to understand what models of the Warn failed on that trip. Its also good to understand the age of the ones that failed, amount of "pull time" on them, whether they were the right load type for the vehicle being winched out, etc, etc. I would also venture to guess most of the vehicles there were running Warns thus skewing any results one could take away from this instance.

I can say I have complete confidence in my 9.5 XP... it also doesn't hurt that the XPs are one of their high end lines of winches either.

 

[Ray_G]

Given that Warn makes different model lines of their winches (M, VR, XP, Zeon, XD, etc) which have different internals, it would be good to understand what models of the Warn failed on that trip. Its also good to understand the age of the ones that failed, amount of "pull time" on them, whether they were the right load type for the vehicle being winched out, etc, etc. I would also venture to guess most of the vehicles there were running Warns thus skewing any results one could take away from this instance.

I can say I have complete confidence in my 9.5 XP... it also doesn't hurt that the XPs are one of their high end lines of winches either.

Hence why I noted it was anecdotal and not definitive.
I will ask my buddy if he took the time to notice which type/model/series and under what conditions they failed both at Uwharrie and then obviously take stock of what is sitting on the shelf down right now (and why).

I would note that it is great that Warn is on the board and so proactive with customer engagement here, that speaks volumes.

I still return back to my point-Warn isn't the only option but it is well recognized both for a well deserved reputation for many years, and for great marketing.

I have high confidence in my Tiger Shark's given all the variables you mentioned and knowing my capabilities and that of my gear; I would also add that my EP 9, essentially the mid range of Superwinch's line when they were offered, withstood tremendous abuse and it only failed b/c of my lack of care for it (i.e. not its fault, I should have paid more attention to the posts where the cabling connects to the motor)

On that note, and relatedly, Comeup winches actually were the EP manufacturer for Superwinch back in the day-and still make an EP series equivalent (the DV-9); their customer service is superb to the point that when I hit them up to see if their DV motor was compatible with my SW branded EP they helped me with the process of ensuring compatiablity and also saved me alot of $. The actual rebuild took all of 5min.

My overarching point with my initial comment and these is that I think folks should examine their requirement, their budget, and their requirement (again) and look across the spectrum of winches and make an investment in what works for them. Oh, and get synthetic...regardless of which winch.
r-
Ray

 

[zelatore]

I don't read this forum that much these days but bumpers are a pet peeve of mine

I have an ARB and would NOT recommend it for a few reasons:

First - TERRIBLE winch access. The winch is completely hidden and can't be seen except by looking through the fairlead - if you have an sort of issue the bumper is coming off. I run a Smittybuilt 10K and it fits fine but the little hole you have to reach through to access the clutch lever is awful. It only gets worse if you mount lights as they intrude further onto the small access hole.

Second - approach angle is bad. This thing sticks out more than Dave Letterman's front teeth! Not a good thing.

Third - strength. It's OK, but I'd call it more of an 'overland' or 'touring' bumper than a rock crawling unit.

Fourth - headlight access. Somebody said they can get the headlights out but I'd have to see it to believe it!

Lastly, installation was a PITA. Mine simply did not fit. I invited friends who had installed and made multiple bumpers over to see if they could figure it out (I must be doing something wrong...) but no, it just didn't fit. I contacted ARB and sent them pics and was more or less blown off. The response came to 'uh...we don't really do much Land Rover stuff. Sorry'. So my 'bolt on' bumper involved a sawzall, cutting disc, and welder. But other than that....

I don't hate it enough to run out and spend the money on another when this one is already on, but if I were doing it again my first thought is Tactical, followed by RTE. ARB would be my last choice.

 

[perkj]

I don't read this forum that much these days but bumpers are a pet peeve of mine

I have an ARB and would NOT recommend it for a few reasons:

First - TERRIBLE winch access. The winch is completely hidden and can't be seen except by looking through the fairlead - if you have an sort of issue the bumper is coming off. I run a Smittybuilt 10K and it fits fine but the little hole you have to reach through to access the clutch lever is awful. It only gets worse if you mount lights as they intrude further onto the small access hole.

Second - approach angle is bad. This thing sticks out more than Dave Letterman's front teeth! Not a good thing.

Third - strength. It's OK, but I'd call it more of an 'overland' or 'touring' bumper than a rock crawling unit.

Fourth - headlight access. Somebody said they can get the headlights out but I'd have to see it to believe it!

Lastly, installation was a PITA. Mine simply did not fit. I invited friends who had installed and made multiple bumpers over to see if they could figure it out (I must be doing something wrong...) but no, it just didn't fit. I contacted ARB and sent them pics and was more or less blown off. The response came to 'uh...we don't really do much Land Rover stuff. Sorry'. So my 'bolt on' bumper involved a sawzall, cutting disc, and welder. But other than that....

I don't hate it enough to run out and spend the money on another when this one is already on, but if I were doing it again my first thought is Tactical, followed by RTE. ARB would be my last choice.

Your first point is simply not true. The bumper does not need to be removed to remove the winch. I've removed mine 3 time with no issue and the only thing you need to do is remove the skid plate.

On your 4th point I can absolutely guarantee the headlight housing is removable without having to take the bumper off...you just need to remove the center grill (a 10 second task).

For both of these it may be that the poor fitment you experienced is causing those issues. I didn't experience any fitment issues and installed without a hitch. I'd blame any fitment issue on either (1) poor Land Rover quaility control or (2) front end damage you aren't aware of. In either case I'd suspect any bumper on your vehicle likely would have run into fitment issues.

On the strength point, ARB does not market or state that it's a rock crawling bumper. Not sure why one would think it is, especially given that the LR3 isn't a rock crawling vehicle by design. That said I know many Tacoma owners who run ARBs and wheel the **** out of them crawling rock and the ARB holds up just fine.

 

[A.J.M]

I have none of the bumpers in question, i have considered one for the future.

My biggest issue would be weight. It's a fair bit of extra weight to hang off the front and in front of the wheels.

Also, do the bars work with the airbag systems in the car? I know the ARB one does and has been designed to work with the air bags should a crash happen and they need to be deployed. Do the others have that design build in?

 

[DiscoDavis]

.

For both of these it may be that the poor fitment you experienced is causing those issues. I didn't experience any fitment issues and installed without a hitch. I'd blame any fitment issue on either (1) poor Land Rover quaility control or (2) front end damage you aren't aware of. In either case I'd suspect any bumper on your vehicle likely would have run into fitment issues.

I had the exact same issue Don did with fitment. I still suspect to this day that it was a LR QC issue... Even eyeballing the front 'bumper' under the plastic fascia when we removed it, it was pretty clearly misaligned.

 

[perkj]

I had the exact same issue Don did with fitment. I still suspect to this day that it was a LR QC issue... Even eyeballing the front 'bumper' under the plastic fascia when we removed it, it was pretty clearly misaligned.

Wow interesting to hear. Hard to imagine a frame built this day in age could be misaligned so bad that you could see it with the naked eye....maybe the LR3/4 frames had some aspects that were hand built vs completely automated by robots as this is the only reason I could think of to where you'd get such poor variances. My other thought (though doesn't explain misalignment you can see with the naked eye) is that maybe there were some frame adjustments made at some point in the LR3s model life span....mine is a 2008 and I see yours is a 2007 and Don's is an 2006. It could be possible the LR made some changes to the frame in say 2008 for the frames built 2008 and onward and then maybe ARB build the jig for the bumper based on say a post 2007 MY not knowing LR made a changes.

In any case and based on your comment of seeing misalignment of the frame itself, its doesn't seem right to fault the bumper maker (in this case ARB) for fitment issues.

 

[rlynch356]

does anyone have a Proud Rhino front bumper?
i am wondering about the install and the general fit as well as headlight access etc.


https://www.lucky8llc.com/collections/armor-3/products/proud-rhino-lr3-front-bumper

 

[morrisdl]

Checkout: http://www.landroverworld.org/threads/lr3-bumper-and-sliders.27181/

 

[Victory_Overland]

TR front and Rear installed

I have both TR Front and Rear bumpers and love them. My install was simple and I did it alone with my cheap motorcycle jack. I have a pretty good write up on my build thread below for install of the front and rears. Again, my install was simple, straight to the point and ZERO fitment issues. As a matter of fact, I can take my entire front bumper on and off (Winch plate stays on the truck) in about 20 minutes if needed. The back takes about 30 minutes. The washer bottle was a simple $30 amazon order and bracket install......not even a factor for choice of bumpers IMO.

I too decided against parking sensors and do not want or need them. I do not have a winch installed at this time because at one point I thought about doing back to a hidden winch mount up front. Here in Hawaii I do not need a bull-bar but went with it because of a front end accident and pulled the trigger then. On the mainland I am thinking I might want it, maybe even need it. When I was in Africa, I realized why 95% of vehicles have bull-bars..........nuff said on that and they are completely a necessity there.

I am building a custom rear dual swing out but Eric made me the mounts and bearing housings for my rear bumper to build from. Everything fits super snug, great quality and zero fitment issues........no grinding, drilling, of any sort.

Good info from you all on winch options and issues. If anyone has any questions on TR bumpers, call Eric direct and he will take care of you. I can't say enough good things on the customer service and support.

 

[perkj]

The washer bottle was a simple $30 amazon order and bracket install......not even a factor for choice of bumpers IMO.

What washer bottle and bracket did you use?