Slee rear bumper stress test

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Joined
Sep 20, 2011
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Location
Northern Virginia
TIA, you can never underestimate the crazy/stupid things people will do.

My shipping agent in Angola sent pictures of the 100 being loaded into its shipping container today. The bozos at the port decided to strap the truck in using the Slee rear bumper swing-outs as tie down points. The container with my truck is going to be at sea for 35 days around the cape of Africa to Kenya, then will go overland (in the same container) on the back of a semi-truck for 3 weeks to get to me. The roads are mostly paved, but generally with dirt sections and lots of fairly serious potholes. That is a lot of swaying, bouncing, and jolts. With stops on the way and various customs clearances I expect to be reunited with the 100 in late October. Since I am already in another African country, there was nothing I could do except cringe when I saw these photos.

Anyone want to speculate on how the bumper swing-outs are going to fare?

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The transporter is insured right?




Looks like the tie downs are at least close to the pivots, not how I would do it but I bet it's going to be fine. If the swing-outs are damaged you will likely have bigger problems as well (like the container being laid over on it's side or such). I would not worry.


Edit: Out of curiosity what does a haul like that cost over there with crating, loading, shipping, and trucking?
 
Looks like the main ratcheted down portion is hooked to the eyelets instead of the swing arms so that's an upside. They then tied off to the swingarms as a backup and used up the extra webbing so hopefully the eyelets will see the majority of the tension. Be sure to update the thread when you get her back!!!
 
The transporter is insured right?

Looks like the tie downs are at least close to the pivots, not how I would do it but I bet it's going to be fine. If the swing-outs are damaged you will likely have bigger problems as well (like the container being laid over on it's side or such). I would not worry.

Edit: Out of curiosity what does a haul like that cost over there with crating, loading, shipping, and trucking?

The transporter is only insured in case of total loss. I have private insurance that should cover the rest. Not sure how they'd value all my mods tho...
I was quoted USD $11k for the shipment. Won't know the actual until its weighed, loaded on the ship, etc. Thankfully my employer will pay for most if not all of it.
 
Don't worry, everything is gonna be fine...it is inside the container, even if things get little bumpy.

From what I can see, they have tied it really good on the back. Any pictures of the front, I hope they have.
 
doesn't look that strong of a tiedown to me
 
doesn't look that strong of a tiedown to me

I'm thinking the same thing - those look like 500 pound tie downs you can buy at walmart. Our cargo tie downs we use on our C-17's are twice as big and only rated for 5,000 lbs
 
My biggest concern is the hook attached to the bumper tow point. Any movement on the truck's suspension and that strap can loose it't tension and then the hook will fall out.

Looks like the strap surplus is what was used to tie to the arms. Probably ok, but that is not how I would have secured the truck. Not sure what you can do about it now.
 
I predict that the bumper will fare just fine and the trucks frame will be bent. Just a thought.
 
I predict that the bumper will fare just fine and the trucks frame will be bent. Just a thought.

Predictions based on personal experience are generally very reliable.
 
My biggest concern is the hook attached to the bumper tow point. Any movement on the truck's suspension and that strap can loose it't tension and then the hook will fall out.

Looks like the strap surplus is what was used to tie to the arms. Probably ok, but that is not how I would have secured the truck. Not sure what you can do about it now.

True. Tie down at a fixed point like axles would be more secure. Bumpers and suspension bounce and move a lot during transit.

Towing my FJ40 taught me this lesson.
 
Interesting.

From which port did you ship to/from in Scandinavia? Copenhagen? Malmo? Goteborg?

The lesson here is it might be advisable to tape pictures to the vehicle window that include instructions and photos of how to tie down the vehicle. Maybe even pad the sides of the vehicle to protect the paint.

I was just asking about this the other day...have some friends that shipped a vehicle from Texas to Amsterdam...really not a bad price all things considering..Of course, they shipped a passat, but hey..
 
I know for a fact that the Slee bumper can take a BEATING. Video courtesy of jonharis..... his Slee bumper(s) may have taken a hit or two as well. ;)


This also happens to be the same spot that bluecruiser candy striped his driveshaft. Somewhere out Moab, UT.
 
It will be absolutely fine. The hook isn't going to fall out. You'd be surprised how little stress actually goes into those straps. A 7k lb truck in park and probably with the e brake on usually keeps put. If not you have much bigger issues
 
Update: LC arrived and was unloaded last week.
Zero damage. Slee's rear bumper held up like a champ.
Excellent quality!

It is now sharing space in the driveway with the Prado (too bad the steering wheel is on the wrong side...)

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