Bumper with swing out or no?

[rsbmg]

I have gone back and forth on this. Looking for opinions either way. If you have a swing out what do you think of it? If not why not? 2011 Toyota Tacoma Doublecab Shortbed

I have dug up what I can on the various forums this is more of an opinion poll so to speak. I specifically interested in how you think it improved(departure angel) or hindered (raised COG) your offroading ability, and any others issues you may have had or that it solved.

Thanks!

 

[theicecreampeople]

what ya driving? i plan on having one so i can put water ,gas,etc on the bumper ,feel will be kinda of a pain to get to the rear door of a fj ,so i have the same question ..

 

[RR1]

I could go either way, bumper swing out is a heck of a lot easier to get to, but it also screams steal me...and hey come look at all the other groovy stuff to swipe.

Now that I have some age on me I try to be as stealth as possible...my spare is between the frame rails.

I have had vehicles broken into before, so that is my reasoning. I hide everything I can.

 

[rsbmg]

Not worried about theft. More thinking departure angle and freeing up that space for an airtank and some other goodies.

 

[NothingClever]

I'm currently in the same decision-making point as you.

As soon as I start pondering the benefits of a swing-out bumper and what I can add (air tank / aux fuel tank / other) to the cavity it will produce between the frame rails, I likewise think as soon as I've got the swing-out bumper installed, I'll also ponder, "Gee, wouldn't it be cool to stow the spare tire underneath the bed?".

For me, the swing-out bumper is somewhat of a marginal-win situation. My requirements are probably a little more restrictive than yours but my dilemma is the following.

I have a FWC camper on the back of my lifted Toyota. I use a hitch basket which helps out with the limited space of the camper and the truck. If I put a swing-out bumper on the truck, I'll gain valuable space underneath the truck but I'll also make things more difficult on myself. As it stands, I can move a few things off the hitch basket and open the camper door to stow some food in the refrigerator. If I install a swing-out bumper, I'll have to remove everything from the hitch basket to move the tire out of the way to open the camper door.

 

[bat]

I hear people say the need for a new bumper to get better departure angle, I understand what it means but is it something you should worry about.

 

[Ric]

I say do the swing out carrier. I have a 4runner and want to do the tire carrier, so that I can put an air tank (possibley two) and some storage where the spare is now.

 

[Frankspinz]

Thats right NothingClever ! That is the tradeoff ! Each time I need to access the rear hatch of my Xterra, I have to swing out my tire ... I've rearranged much of my gear to minimise my need to acces the rear hatch but I still have to - once or twice a day when traveling .... The benefits however, are tremendous ! Ground clearance gain is huge ! My rear steel bumper has seriously saved my truck in a recent colision... I changed a flat tire in less than 5 minutes on the highway not having to fiddle with the undercarriagetireloweringinfurriatingbuggerthingy ... Pricelesss !

 

[rsbmg]

With the open bed tacoma I dont think access is an issue really. I think my biggest concern is advantages/disadvantages offroad.

 

[RR1]

Not worried about theft. More thinking departure angle and freeing up that space for an airtank and some other goodies.

The gain is marginal, use a straight edge and see if it is worth it to you. I never had a problem with departure angels on my rig, with the spare underneath.

 

[Mattm94]

Departure angle, etc... ain't exactly a real reason to move your spare. Swing-outs, imho, SUCK, and swing outs with 10 or 12 gallons of gas you have to get out to pour AND a spare, SUCK MORE. If you want to move your spare, do it for a REAL reason. 'Lookin' expo' ain't a real reason.

Not having to roll around on hot asphalt, in the snow, in the mud, or being stuck with a tire off the bead and the rear bumper on the ground to figure out how in the heck you're ever going to get to your spare... well, now you're talking. My spare is IN the bed, vertical against one side, on a solid mount. The stock spare location is taken up with 22 gallons of extra fuel, accessible by the push of a button from the comfort of my cab... but my truck surely doesn't 'look the part'...

 

[keezer37]

...use a straight edge and see if it is worth it to you.

Exactly. What are you gaining versus the cost of the steel w/swing-out. More weight on the back end.

Also, the OE bumper can be cheap and easy to replace as needed. The primed steel is only $220 and all the plastic pieces come off and on easily.

 

[bat]

In my case I thought about this for awhile and decided to build this and if I did have problems go the next step. I just did not want to spend $700 on a bumper and in my driving never really need it.

 

[RR1]

Exactly. What are you gaining versus the cost of the steel w/swing-out. More weight on the back end.

Also, the OE bumper can be cheap and easy to replace as needed. The primed steel is only $220 and all the plastic pieces come off and on easily.

Best way to achieve a better departure angle is bobbing the bed, then I could see a swing out spare. Makes sense on a FJ40, not so much on a stock or slightly modded pickup.

 

[CYi5]

I made a steel bumper with provisions for a future bolt-on swing out. DD and short trips I just rock the bumper, on longer camping trips I bolt the swing out portion on.