Bumper mod

[Mud Dog]

I just bought the Warn stainless spots that BenRich had to offer (same as the standard ones on the LTD), and the idea is to change this .....

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..... to look like this.

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I measured and they should fit in. At the same time I want to tilt the 'nudge bar' section of the bumper forward a bit. It's too straight up and I think it will look better. More importantly the tilt will give more space between the back of the spots and the grille, not only for better airflow after fitting the extra spots, but also for access to the winch change-lever. Basically going from this .....

..... to something like this.

[The Legend]

Andy,
Dit sal baie mooi lyk ,maar ek sal net n bietjie bang wees dat daar nie genoeg lugvloei na die verkoeler toe gaan wees nie.

[ThysdJ]

While you're at it Andy, cut the legs of top loop a little shorter to lower the top bar. That will look lots more streamlined as well.

The 4 spotties will work fine there,and you shouldnt have problems with air-flow too much.

[Family_Dog]

Cool, looks hot! ;)


-F_D

[Thunder02]

Going to look good,keep us updated.

[ROOFER]

Great new look you going for Andy

[Stef]

Andy, I'm curious to see your idea for welding the nudge bar back, or are you just going to cut a slit onto the uprights to tilt it?

The one on my LTD's bumper has cracked around the the welding...was contemplating some form of bracket iside the bumper with a collar on the outside that bolts the nudge bar to the inside bracket.

Something you might wanna consider with 4 spotties on there...but I like your idea, will look awesome

[Stef]

Just another thought....maybe put the clear lensed ones in the middle and the normal ones on the sides, should give better light for normal driving conditions ...and the clear ones maybe on their own seperate switch

[Mud Dog]

No cracks in mine, Stef, but I will have a closer look at everything once I take it off and strip it. Yes, the plan was to just cut a wedge out at the base and re-weld it back at an angle that more or less corresponds to the angle of the bumper next to the winch box. (I think it will look stupid if I tilt it too far like a stinger, unless one modifies the rake of the bumper as well.

Just another thought....maybe put the clear lensed ones in the middle and the normal ones on the sides, should give better light for normal driving conditions ...and the clear ones maybe on their own seperate switch

Mine are clear as well, so all four will be the same. The only thing that I'm apprehensive about, is getting access to the winch control lever ..... Might have to move the spots forward a little more on their brackets, which should give me a further 20mm besides what I should be able to get with the tilt. I'm just not sure that it will be enough.


I'm in no hurry at this point .... don't have a lot of time available at the moment anyway .... so I still have a lot of grace to consider other options.

[Stef]

I suspect the vibration cracked the bumper's top plate all along the welds, hence the idea to reinforce the bumper on the inside.

[Mud Dog]

Another option might be to cut away the cross-bar on the nudge and just mount the spot brackets straight to the bumper .... could get them even further forward that way.

[MOFASA]

Another option might be to cut away the cross-bar on the nudge and just mount the spot brackets straight to the bumper .... could get them even further forward that way.

Now that sounds like a good plan...
So show us what it would look like.....

[Mud Dog]

Another option might be to cut away the cross-bar on the nudge and just mount the spot brackets straight to the bumper .... could get them even further forward that way.

Now that sounds like a good plan...
So show us what it would look like.....

Sumpting like dis ....

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[Hi-Hilux]

Is die 4x spotlights nou al op???

[Mud Dog]

Nee, nog nie Trevor. Die ander twee spots sit nog met my seun in JHB en hy sal hulle eers saam met hom afbring einde Dec waneer hy besoek kom aflê. Dis nie die ergste nie .... ek sal êrens tyd moet kry om die werk te doen en my werk skedule is klaar tot einde Januarie 2014 vol geboek!

[Mud Dog]

Some thing just get put on the back burner and forgotten. This project was one of those.

Anyway, we eventually did it. Tilted the nudge bar forward and mounted the extra spots. No issues with radiator obstruction - needle still stays just below half where it's always been, even under full load.

[JohanM]

Anyway, we eventually did it. Tilted the nudge bar forward and mounted the extra spots. No issues with radiator obstruction - needle still stays just below half where it's always been, even under full load.

Andy,

something to keep in mind is that the automotive industry in general stabilise the heat gauges with a "deadzone" which is usually from 74 °Cto 105 °C, which means that even if the needle still is below half on the gauge the vehicle might actually be working much closer to the 105 range and when it usually goes to 3/4 it is all ready well on its way to 110 °C and by the time it hits the red or you notice it damage could possibly be all ready done to the engine.

Personally, I try to keep all accesories well away from the grille that can cause a air flow disturbance and even a air pocket which could lead to negative cooling issues. The SFA does have a marginal radiator in keeping cool under very high temps. With a winch, replacement bumper with reduced air flow and 4 spots im thinking you might be tempting fate here, but it is only my own opinion.

I did the test once with my 4Y and mounted the spots in front of the radiator flow and could hear the fan and viscous working much more.
Moved them back next to the headlights and redid the test and the fan barely worked even when pushing hard.

[Mud Dog]

The ECU reads temp directly from the gauge and we did a couple of dynos, both before and after fitting the extra lights and the temp remained stable on both scenarios between 87 and 89°

We also set an overheating protection target in the ECU so if it does go up too high the ECU will cut the motor.