Slee Short Bus Bumper Install on FZJ80 - 5/20/2012

[LongDuck]

I installed a Slee Short Bus bumper on my '96 FZJ80 today, and figured while I had the time, I'd take some pictures and spell this out for anyone who may be considering an install. This is my first write-up on a tech article (except for my wiring short story a few months back), so have patience.

Solo Wrench - as I was on my own for this one - but still rates 'Easy' on the hard work and difficulty meter, and working alone and taking pictures I finished this in about 3 hours. Adding friends would shave about an hour or more if you're trying to beat my qualifying time.

Cuss-Factor of 'Zero' (*and I spent some time on the USS Tripoli - LPH10!), , as everything is straight forward and well-built to fit as designed.

Here was my starting point;

The Slee Short Bus (SB) bumper comes well-protected with both foam sheet and heavy plastic bag inside of a cardboard box. I dragged this home from Overland Expo in the back of my Mazda6s Hatch minus the cardboard, so while a bit unwieldy, it's not very bulky to transport. Included were the full hardware set containing the upgraded fasteners, but no instruction sheet - but installation is so simple, you don't really need them except for the torque specs.

Tools you will want to have available include the following;

* Hammer!
* Multi-driver for tightening the fairing fittings and such
* 14mm Box-End for removal of the stock bumper
* (optional) bristle brush for cleaning off 15+ years of grime/dust/bugs
* 17mm Socket for stock recover point removal
* 19mm Socket for installation of Slee hardware
* (not shown) 19mm Box-End for installation of Slee hardware
* (not shown) Torque wrench to fit 19mm and 17mm sockets to install Slee hardware
* (not shown) Wheaties and milk

After removal of the stock bumper, I decided to do some general cleaning and make sure everything was tightened up, brushed out the A/C evaporator and Trans Cooler of years of dead bugs, and used a sheet of cardboard as a mask while I sprayed a quick coat of black to cover up the now-visible front end components which the stock bumper hid nicely and the Slee SB exposes;

In the photo above, you can see that the stock shipping tie-downs are still attached, and they need to come off to install the SB. You could probably bolt through them and keep them, but after considering this for a bit, I decided to leave them off, as the Slee designed recovery points are plenty for the kind of driving I tend to do.

The SB bumper weighed in at 92.8lbs, and I was able to muscle it into position (*twice, including the weigh in) through my novice 'power-lifter' stance and a breakfast of Wheaties. Slee advertises this at "slightly less than 90lbs", and it probably varies a bit due to welds, material weight, etc. Compared to the stock bumper, this thing is hell-for-stout, for only about 3x the weight.

Slee-provided fasteners are good quality bolts matching the factory bolt points and thread pitch - no nuts are needed throughout, making for a very straightforward installation. The bolts shown here are roughly in position per side, as I like to lay them out, ensuring all the parts are there and in order before I start bolting things together. It sucks to find out that bolt you just spent 30 minutes turning in 1/16 turn increments is missing it's lockwasher!

(*the collection of bolts/washers at the top are for the front license plate frame, which I didn't need and were added to the spares box)

I sprayed each bolt down liberally with a penetrating lubricant along with the threaded frame points, and it all went together easily.

Keep reading Part 2, below if you're still interested and want my impressions after installation...

 

[LongDuck]

After getting it all bolted up loosely and then gradually tightening down each fastener, the only difficulty is in getting to some of the innermost bolts to get them fully tight. Slee specs these at 100ft/lbs for the 19mm, and slightly less for the 17mm side bolts. Personally, I recommend tightening down the side-bolts first, as this pulls the frame rails into their closest position to the bumper mounts, and then the heavy top and bottom 19mm bolts can be tightened and torqued. My arms still ache from this exercise, and I was using a full-size torque wrench for the final go.

I noticed a lot of posts on the 80 Toyota Tech forum with concerns about the SB bumper and the A/C Filter/Dryer location. Here's how it sits after;

While it may look like it protrudes downward considerably, it's really not that far, and if you compare it to the center section of the SB bumper, it's definitely less than that lower edge. It would take an unfortunately placement of the Filter/Dryer and a rock or other obstacle to cause damage, and I'm not putting extra effort into relocating it. Plus, the A/C system on my rig hasn't been touched and is still working 100%, which is a Godsend in the AZ desert heat - '... if it ain't broke, don't fix it!'

The final result at bumper height;

Here, you can see all the crap in my garage... I mean, you can see the placement of the bumper to the body lines and what's exposed, as well as the height of this bumper compared to stock. Much more of the front tires are exposed to the air flow, so I'm not expecting any gains in MPG. You'll also notice that I haven't installed a winch at this point, and don't plan to in the foreseeable future. Another photo at standing height gives you some more perspective on all the crap in my garage;

If you were to install a winch on the bumper, you'd definitely need two guys. The whole assembly would be too heavy for one person to handle, unless you're built like Hulk Hogan.

In all, easy modification and I'm very pleased with the improvement. Can't wait to get out on the trails again once the weather cools off.

 

[Otter]

Duck, that's pretty sweet! I'm a big fan of that bumper. I've been considering it for my rig.

Good job!

 

[Chuy]

Nice install, are you going to do the LandCruiserPhil mod?

 

[Sumitso]

Wouldn't be too hard to fab up something that bolts on or is welded on to protect it. That is if symmetry isn't a big deal. Stuff like this has me thinking to get a CNC plasma table still this year

 

[LongDuck]

Actually, I like the side bars for the wings, as they help to cover a bit of the front corners. One of the things I liked about this design was that it's low-profile and doesn't detract from the lines of the rig, which is what I like.

Plus, it matches the rear bumper and tire carrier, and I'm kinda odd that way about having stuff match!

 

[murf]

coming together LD...looks good

I believe the rec/dryer danger is much slimmer than the 80's forum has made it out to be. Sure if you were aggresively banging the front over your bumper repeatedly over and over, it might create an exact hit.

If it ever indeed happens, deal with it then IMO. Otherwise paint it black like some of the others in CSC have done to "hide" it.

Unless...you want another project to play with and move it. New truck (ownership) seem to have that effect on people

 

[fumann]

Nice job Donger!

 

[bwesty]

Nice bumper choice, looks great.

 

[Saddletramp]

Brought a little tear to my eye, seeing the old girl all fancied up. Nice work Duckie.

 

[Jack Frost]

Thanks for posting this. I'm about to purchase a shortbus. Love that look!

 

[Jack Frost]

Curious, did you add any lights? If so, did you take pictures of that install, too? Thanks in advance.

 

[LongDuck]

Actually, I do have some pictures of how they look, but none of the install. Here's a photo from a run earlier this year, and yeah - those are snowflakes (in AZ!);

I went with Hella 55w euro-driving (pencil) beams, as these have a more focused lens along with an internal socket for a pair of 15w parking light bulbs in white (euro spec is amber, I think) that make for a great set of daytime running lights when the parking lights are on. In the photo above, you can see the daytime running lights on independent of the mains. There are 4 mounting tabs on a Slee SB bumper, and the 2 between the valleys formed by the tubes seemed to be the best location to keep the light housings out of view looking down the hood, while still providing good height for projection. Once you pick a set of tabs, the other tabs are about useless, since the housings are pretty big in diameter and would block installation of 4 in total - so pick your best 2.

The lights are wired for simplicity with no internal switching required. Pigtails were pulled behind the grill to keep it clean, and there's a single relay tied into the brights, so only when you engage the high beams do the Hella's come on. With the whole front of the truck lit up, it's pretty impressive (I swear I hear the singing of angels at night when I turn them on), and I'm of the belief that during nighttime driving on lonely stretches of road you can't ever have too much candlepower working for you. The mains are Sylvania Silverstars installed by the PO, and work great for main headlights and high-beams.

Installation of any lights is pretty straightforward with the right wiring hardware, but I can make another full write-up on lighting install if you're that interested. Let me know,

 

[Saddletramp]

The mains and high beams are HIR bulbs, maybe Toshiba

 

[GunFuFighter]

What lift you running and tire size?

 

[LongDuck]

The mains and high beams are HIR bulbs, maybe Toshiba

Thanks for clarifying, Saddletramp. They're certainly bright and white for incandescent bulbs. I was just admiring the LED backup lights tonight while the wife was backing it out, and man that thing is bright!

The lift is 2.5" OME, and if I got that wrong, Saddletramp can correct me, as I bought the LandCruiser from him,...

 

[Saddletramp]

OME 850/863 with the "ToolsRUs" front spacers.

 

[GunFuFighter]

Actually, I like the side bars for the wings, as they help to cover a bit of the front corners. One of the things I liked about this design was that it's low-profile and doesn't detract from the lines of the rig, which is what I like.

Plus, it matches the rear bumper and tire carrier, and I'm kinda odd that way about having stuff match!

What size tires you running?

 

[LongDuck]

35's on factory wheels.