2nd Gen Bumper Cut and Fuel Economy

[Cold Iron]

Before I cut the bumper on my 19 Lux did some searching on the impact that it has on gas mileage and found lots of others asking the same thing. No one had ever answered the question on any of the posts, at any website. To me the answer isn't critical as it had to go anyhow, I'm keeping the Lux suspension with no lift so chop chop it had to go. Which it did Friday along with a new blackline knockoff grille and Attica headlights. Running Wildpeak AT3W 265/70r17 tires on TRD Pro alloy wheels.

Changing the grille does add another variable into the equation, but guess and that is all it is, not by much. Shooting a winter heated 5 stand league again this year and drive 75.5 miles each way on Saturdays. Varied speeds through towns with limits of 25, 30, 40, etc. some stop lights as well as stop signs. Roads mainly 2 lane 55, 60 and short stint on a highway at 65. I use cruise control and doing 5 trips so far with 10 legs each of 75 miles have been rock solid at 19.1 mpg for each prior to bumper surgery.

Yesterday after doing the cut and driving to the club a friend walked over to talk to me as I pulled in and I left the engine running before I took a picture. Pulled in at 19.1 mpg and after a minute it dropped to 19.0. Doesn't take long to change trip mpg when you are running the engine and going nowhere fast.

Not enough data points to say with certainty and the overall trip was 19.0 so it is what it is. But I'm pretty confident in saying no, trimming the bumper does not affect fuel economy.

Coming back home on one of the 2 lanes someone up ahead was doing 55 and had a line of vehicles behind him and in front of me. Must have been stuck in the 70's and 80's when we had the Nationwide 55 MPH speed limit mandate. I and apparently everyone else runs at 62 for the most part in a 55.

Gawd I love the radar assisted cruise control. But was pissed thinking come on man I am trying to do an experiment here you are messing me up. I had to slow down to 55 for somewhere around 10-15 minutes. When I got home was at 19.5 mpg.

I currently pay $3.84 gal for 91 Oct. Ethanol Free. That 10-15 minute slowdown cost me an extra ~2 minutes but also saved me $1.09 in fuel. But I'm with Sammy Hagar, I can't drive 55. Unless I have to.

So no the bumper cut doesn't appear to have an effect on gas mileage. And if you are really worried about gas mileage slow down. No new news there.

 

[SlothSquatch]

Great job on the cut! Any tips/details? I too have a Lux pkg, with the additional Sport lip, starting to really consider chop chop. Our GXs are like Crimson Chin

 

[Cold Iron]

Great job on the cut! Any tips/details? I too have a Lux pkg, with the additional Sport lip, starting to really consider chop chop. Our GXs are like Crimson Chin

View attachment 3550054

I couldn't bring myself to do it LOL so paid a 4x4 shop to do it near me. One advantage of getting old is knowing my limitations and I failed arts and farts in the park a long time ago. I wanted to have the sides a bit longer than most do it to retain a little bit of a OEM look but the guy that specializes in it told me no, I don't. He went into a lengthy explanation on why, I just went with what he said. And he did do a great job. He has installed different aftermarket bumpers on GX's but this was his first GX pure bumper cut.

Little shop out in the middle of nowhere Mn. but near me. They also built this 470

He didn't like the idea of leaving the plastic unsupported after the cut and built a brace for it which I haven't heard of anyone else doing. He brought up a good point that if I end in a snowbank it would rip the unsupported plastic off without bracing. I need to take advantage of this record heat wave for February and climb under there later today and try to get some pictures.

 

[xychromosome]

Looking good @Cold Iron ! I've been considering this front bumper chop as well, before I commit to a stealth bumper, e.g. from Victory or CBI.

Can't wait to see you rig after you finally get those expedition 1 sliders installed

 

[Cold Iron]

Looking good @Cold Iron ! I've been considering this front bumper chop as well, before I commit to a stealth bumper, e.g. from Victory or CBI.

Can't wait to see you rig after you finally get those expedition 1 sliders installed

I drop it off in the morning for the install they came in Friday, excited. The shop did talk to me about the CBI bumper as they have installed them before but I would have to beef up the front suspension for that extra 140 pounds. He did say with the takeoffs it wouldn't be that heavy net weight but would still nosedive and change handling without some support over the factory suspension. I'm very familiar with that and didn't want to ride that pony again.

Contacted Andy at Expo One to ask him about those top plate bolts and he said they were button head 1/4x20 3/4". So I picked up some black oxide Stainless Steel ones. I think the Expo One nylock zinc nuts will be OK with them as they sit underneath and shouldn't be visible. And like the idea of nylon as an isolator between the dissimilar metals. Steel, aluminum, and stainless, oh my! LOL. There is a marine military grade anti seize for that use, we used to use it on the reactors but is very spendy and in short supply around these parts, but I should be OK using isolation materials between them.

And thanks once again for the heads up on the powder coat for the plates! Should be perfect for the black and white look I'm trying to achieve without doing a full out chrome delete.

 

[xychromosome]

The victory version is only 70lbs, I assumed the CBI was similar.

 

[URJ150L]

It is

 

[SlothSquatch]

The victory version is only 70lbs, I assumed the CBI was similar.

The Victory Blitz bumpers are so so good

 

[Jstawgn]

Little shop out in the middle of nowhere Mn. but near me. They also built this 470

That GX is owned by Jill. One of the moderator of GXOR Facebook group.

She build almost everything herself. The shop did not built it. They only weld BMC plate after she cut it to make more clearance. That is not cool for the shop to take credit for what they did not do.

 

[GXDaisy]

I couldn't bring myself to do it LOL so paid a 4x4 shop to do it near me. One advantage of getting old is knowing my limitations and I failed arts and farts in the park a long time ago. I wanted to have the sides a bit longer than most do it to retain a little bit of a OEM look but the guy that specializes in it told me no, I don't. He went into a lengthy explanation on why, I just went with what he said. And he did do a great job. He has installed different aftermarket bumpers on GX's but this was his first GX pure bumper cut.

Little shop out in the middle of nowhere Mn. but near me. They also built this 470

He didn't like the idea of leaving the plastic unsupported after the cut and built a brace for it which I haven't heard of anyone else doing. He brought up a good point that if I end in a snowbank it would rip the unsupported plastic off without bracing. I need to take advantage of this record heat wave for February and climb under there later today and try to get some pictures.

 

[GXDaisy]

What shop did you take this to? Curious, because this GX shown in photo with camper was 100% built in my garage. No mechanic/shop involvement.

 

[Cold Iron]

What shop did you take this to? Curious, because this GX shown in photo with camper was 100% built in my garage. No mechanic/shop involvement.

I'm guessing this is Jill. Jim Hoeft at 4x4 Unlimited in Elgin. When I asked him about experience with GX's he mentioned you, as well as some docs at the Clinic, and gave me your phone number and email address out of his phone. Said you did most of the work yourself in fact seemed to be proud of the fact. I've been running solo off road for 50 years hunting, the days of me going off road just to go have long since passed in the rear view mirror so I threw your contact info away. He did say you work at FedEx in town as a manager.

I spend 2 months every year in Northern Mn. and the Sunset Country of Canada running the dogs chasing after birds, going into places where hopefully no one else has been or goes. If I see tracks of others it is time to find a new spot to put the dogs on the ground. Birds don't like pressure.

Called Jim 2 weeks ago on his cell phone and he never called back. So next day sent a text in the morning and he didn't reply. He was 2 years older than me and at our age that is never a good sign. Did a google search later in the day and right away confirmed what I was afraid of

James Hoeft Obituary

He had at least 3 young bucks that worked for him and Connie is letting them keep the shop open for now across from the house. One reason I had them do the work on mine, hopefully they can keep the lights on. I'm in NE Roch just outside of town.

 

[GXDaisy]

I couldn't bring myself to do it LOL so paid a 4x4 shop to do it near me. One advantage of getting old is knowing my limitations and I failed arts and farts in the park a long time ago. I wanted to have the sides a bit longer than most do it to retain a little bit of a OEM look but the guy that specializes in it told me no, I don't. He went into a lengthy explanation on why, I just went with what he said. And he did do a great job. He has installed different aftermarket bumpers on GX's but this was his first GX pure bumper cut.

Little shop out in the middle of nowhere Mn. but near me. They also built this 470

He didn't like the idea of leaving the plastic unsupported after the cut and built a brace for it which I haven't heard of anyone else doing. He brought up a good point that if I end in a snowbank it would rip the unsupported plastic off without bracing. I need to take advantage of this record heat wave for February and climb under there later today and try to get some pictures.

 

[GXDaisy]

What shop did you take this to? Curious, because this GX shown in photo with camper was 100% built in my garage. No mechanic/shop involvement.

I'm guessing this is Jill. Jim Hoeft at 4x4 Unlimited in Elgin. When I asked him about experience with GX's he mentioned you, as well as some docs at the Clinic, and gave me your phone number and email address out of his phone. Said you did most of the work yourself in fact seemed to be proud of the fact. I've been running solo off road for 50 years hunting, the days of me going off road just to go have long since passed in the rear view mirror so I threw your contact info away. He did say you work at FedEx in town as a manager.

I spend 2 months every year in Northern Mn. and the Sunset Country of Canada running the dogs chasing after birds, going into places where hopefully no one else has been or goes. If I see tracks of others it is time to find a new spot to put the dogs on the ground. Birds don't like pressure.

Called Jim 2 weeks ago on his cell phone and he never called back. So next day sent a text in the morning and he didn't reply. He was 2 years older than me and at our age that is never a good sign. Did a google search later in the day and right away confirmed what I was afraid of

James Hoeft Obituary

He had at least 3 young bucks that worked for him and Connie is letting them keep the shop open for now across from the house. One reason I had them do the work on mine, hopefully they can keep the lights on. I'm in NE Roch just outside of town.

Yes, it was definitely a sad day when Jim passed. I've known him for close to 30 years. When I bought my GX 11+ years ago and I told him what I wanted to do he kind of scoffed and laughed at me. He was into building big Jeeps so out of the loop on the Lexus platform. All work on Daisy was done in our garage except for the BMC. I had asked Jim to do it and he said we could use his lift but did not want to make the cut but did weld the new filler plate on. Just in the last couple years he realized the market he was missing out on and taking in GX's for mods. Jim's nephew Kenny is now running the shop. Just wanted to clarify in that post that they didn't do anything to mine. Not big on giving credit where non is due. Looks like your GX is coming along great! I'm NW Rock so if ya see me honk!

 

[Cold Iron]

Yes, it was definitely a sad day when Jim passed. I've known him for close to 30 years. When I bought my GX 11+ years ago and I told him what I wanted to do he kind of scoffed and laughed at me. He was into building big Jeeps so out of the loop on the Lexus platform. All work on Daisy was done in our garage except for the BMC. I had asked Jim to do it and he said we could use his lift but did not want to make the cut but did weld the new filler plate on. Just in the last couple years he realized the market he was missing out on and taking in GX's for mods. Jim's nephew Kenny is now running the shop. Just wanted to clarify in that post that they didn't do anything to mine. Not big on giving credit where non is due. Looks like your GX is coming along great! I'm NW Rock so if ya see me honk!

So you are the reason for the flood of lifted GX's I've seen in town! Well OK it was exactly one and it happened a couple of months ago as I was headed to Roch Toyota to check out a used 2023 4Runner OR Pro and a Green 470 pulled up alongside me and I was looking up at it from my Baja Taco. And thought damn that is nice... Jim had worked on the suspension on my Tacoma a couple of years ago, that is when I first met him. Use to do everything myself and spent 20 years in Engineering plants on Navy ships but am done wrenching if I don't have to at this point in my life.

I'm #2 on the list for the new Land Cruiser at Roch Toyota got on it back in August. My first real 4x4 was a 1977 FJ55 Iron Pig bought in Wa. State back in 79

So figured what would likely be my last vehicle should be a Land Cruiser as well. Started to have second thoughts about the new power plant and wanted to check out the current gen 4Runner and see if they could get out their own way yet. Nope, about the same as the Taco, just newer. They had a 19 GX460 that spent winters in Texas the salesman had to almost twist my arm to test drive it. Well maybe not that hard. As soon as I pulled out of the lot it was all over and knew it was coming home with me. Don't see a lot of GX's in these parts.

When Jim told me about you and that you had done the work yourself he had admiration in his eyes. And voice. Says a lot coming from Jim. Lot of people thought he was a grumpy old man but we got along just fine and always knew where each other was coming from.

Seen Kenny this morning when I dropped the GX off to have the sliders installed I had them shipped to the shop and saved a lot of money because of the commercial address. I'll keep my eye out for you and likewise!

 

[BigRed150]

Thanks for posting this. Can you notice a difference in any wind/road noise after the cut?

 

[r2m]

Before I cut the bumper on my 19 Lux did some searching on the impact that it has on gas mileage and found lots of others asking the same thing. No one had ever answered the question on any of the posts, at any website. To me the answer isn't critical as it had to go anyhow, I'm keeping the Lux suspension with no lift so chop chop it had to go. Which it did Friday along with a new blackline knockoff grille and Attica headlights. Running Wildpeak AT3W 265/70r17 tires on TRD Pro alloy wheels.

Changing the grille does add another variable into the equation, but guess and that is all it is, not by much. Shooting a winter heated 5 stand league again this year and drive 75.5 miles each way on Saturdays. Varied speeds through towns with limits of 25, 30, 40, etc. some stop lights as well as stop signs. Roads mainly 2 lane 55, 60 and short stint on a highway at 65. I use cruise control and doing 5 trips so far with 10 legs each of 75 miles have been rock solid at 19.1 mpg for each prior to bumper surgery.

Yesterday after doing the cut and driving to the club a friend walked over to talk to me as I pulled in and I left the engine running before I took a picture. Pulled in at 19.1 mpg and after a minute it dropped to 19.0. Doesn't take long to change trip mpg when you are running the engine and going nowhere fast.

Not enough data points to say with certainty and the overall trip was 19.0 so it is what it is. But I'm pretty confident in saying no, trimming the bumper does not affect fuel economy.

Coming back home on one of the 2 lanes someone up ahead was doing 55 and had a line of vehicles behind him and in front of me. Must have been stuck in the 70's and 80's when we had the Nationwide 55 MPH speed limit mandate. I and apparently everyone else runs at 62 for the most part in a 55.

Gawd I love the radar assisted cruise control. But was pissed thinking come on man I am trying to do an experiment here you are messing me up. I had to slow down to 55 for somewhere around 10-15 minutes. When I got home was at 19.5 mpg.

I currently pay $3.84 gal for 91 Oct. Ethanol Free. That 10-15 minute slowdown cost me an extra ~2 minutes but also saved me $1.09 in fuel. But I'm with Sammy Hagar, I can't drive 55. Unless I have to.

So no the bumper cut doesn't appear to have an effect on gas mileage. And if you are really worried about gas mileage slow down. No new news there.

Are you going to add a trim to the bottom edge of the bumper to give it a more finished look?
Amazon has it in white:

Amazon.com : edge trim

 

[Cold Iron]

Thanks for posting this. Can you notice a difference in any wind/road noise after the cut?

None at all, even when I remember to put my hearing aids in

Are you going to add a trim to the bottom edge of the bumper to give it a more finished look?
Amazon has it in white:

Amazon.com : edge trim

Trim is to cover and hide uneven cuts, done correctly and smooth you don't need trim it looks 100% factory without it. Add trim and you draw attention to it. And it is just something for vegetation to rip off in the bush.

 

[dcs111]

Hey just curious how much clearance you gained with the front bumper cut?

 

[r2m]

Trim is to cover and hide uneven cuts, done correctly and smooth you don't need trim it looks 100% factory without it. Add trim and you draw attention to it. And it is just something for vegetation to rip off in the bush.

Agreed, trim on the front would just catch anything you drove over.
I have it on the sides and with rock sliders. With the sliders being black and the trim black, you don't notice it on the sides.

Hey just curious how much clearance you gained with the front bumper cut?

Do you mean "clearance" or "approach angle"?
Approach (and departure) angle is usually the number you want to be as high as possible.
Or is that what you meant?