Offroad bumper vs stock bumper

[NatersXJ6]

[QUOTE="ChasingOurTrunks, post: 2877850, member: 201456"
Humans tend to be really worried about stuff that rarely happens, and that causes us to miss out on accounting for stuff that happens a lot and can be way more impactful, so this approach helped me evaluate that a bit.
[/QUOTE]

This is very true. For instance you are statistically more likely to destroy or significantly alter your life by creating children (maybe even in an F150) than by a life altering crash.

I know I’ve done the former 3x, but only hit 1 deer. (I chased another across a field, but got stuck!)

I don’t want to count close calls in either category!

This is a classic overthinking topic. Here are the considerations for bumper, in order:

1) Do you want it?
2) Can you afford it?
3) Is it legal for your registered jurisdiction?
4) Are you willing to take the MPG and Aerodynamic penalty?

If 1-4 are answered “yes” than you can move on to another overthought and internet-engineered thread about which aftermarket bumper is best.

Legal Disclaimer: Certain statements in this post are made in jest. If my wife reads this, our kids are the light of my life, I can’t live without them, and I’ve never owned an F150.

Enjoy the decision!

 

[ChasingOurTrunks]

@NatersXJ6 reminds me of a quote from a comedian I can’t recall — “Remember, noisy kids in the back seat can cause accidents. The reverse is also true.”

I’m 100% guilty of overthinking as many of us are, but if us Overlanding types didn’t overthink our kit on our rigs, what would we do with all our spare time and energy? Probably world peace or immortality, and that’s not as fun as a cool looking bumper!

 

[autism family travels]

I have been going back and forth on this issue. I am keeping our stock bumpers on our rigs and modding them to fit our useage. On both rigs they are plastic. Good for us since we live in the snowbelt and every aftermarket steel bumper I have seen around here after a year looks terrible from rust. I am going to add a Maximus 3 grill guard and VDP high clearance bumper end caps on my jeep, and a RRO light mount / grill guard on the wifes patriot. Gives a place to mount some lights, and give some nicer looks to the front ends.

 

[billiebob]

One area after market bumpers fail big time is when hitting a pedestrian. Eventually I am sure aftermarket bumpers will be banned and it will be driven by the insurance industry just like insurance rates forced the disappearance of muscle cars. The more steel bumpers appear, the sooner the insurers will scream at the politicians to ban them.

 

[85_Ranger4x4]

Most trucks in North America have steel bumpers from the factory. Ford actually made a point of it when they launched the new Ranger.

And muscle cars came back and have better performance than ever...

 

[Buddha.]

The bumper on my 2500hd seems to be made out of chrome plated plastic.

 

[Jacobm]

One area after market bumpers fail big time is when hitting a pedestrian. Eventually I am sure aftermarket bumpers will be banned and it will be driven by the insurance industry just like insurance rates forced the disappearance of muscle cars. The more steel bumpers appear, the sooner the insurers will scream at the politicians to ban them.

You can buy almost any vehicle in Dodge's lineup with more than 700hp from the factory, from a 2 door traditional muscle car to a 3 row SUV to a pickup truck. Insurance will gladly take your money to insure you against anything if you can afford it, and clearly plenty of people can afford it. The only 'car' most domestic manufacturers still sell in profitable numbers is a muscle car. I don't think the political capital is available to get rid of aftermarket bumpers wholesale any time soon. If insurance has an issue with it, they'll either include an exemption to your coverage if your vehicle is modified or make aftermarket parts an added cost rider. I don't know that there's enough steel bumpers out there hurting pedestrians for insurance companies to find it worth the trouble.

 

[85_Ranger4x4]

You can buy almost any vehicle in Dodge's lineup with more than 700hp from the factory, from a 2 door traditional muscle car to a 3 row SUV to a pickup truck. Insurance will gladly take your money to insure you against anything if you can afford it, and clearly plenty of people can afford it. The only 'car' most domestic manufacturers still sell in profitable numbers is a muscle car. I don't think the political capital is available to get rid of aftermarket bumpers wholesale any time soon. If insurance has an issue with it, they'll either include an exemption to your coverage if your vehicle is modified or make aftermarket parts an added cost rider. I don't know that there's enough steel bumpers out there hurting pedestrians for insurance companies to find it worth the trouble.

Aftermarket bumpers probably eliminate a lot of deer strike claims too.

I cross 0 crosswalks on my daily drive but I dodge a lot of deer. Hit one 13 years ago, I snagged a Westin grille guard off craigslist shortly after I got it fixed to at least keep the jerks out of my radiator and so far I have avoided them since. The bar across the bottom is nice for breaking over cornstalks so they don't snag on stuff underneath too.