AEV Front Bumper Released For JT Gladiator!

[Nate]

much appreciated and really looking forward to your feedback on the quality of it.

you opted for the stubby, correct?

Yes.

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[Captn_Obvious]

That price is insane.

I like the bumper.. but seriously, it's as if they have zero intention of selling them. That price is full on f^cktarded.

 

[Nate]

Finally!
A few notes. The Warn 12S does fit, and even with all the lights it still gets plenty of air. The 2.5DS lift is what these trucks should come with from the factory. Rides and drives like a dream.

 

[JK4AER]

Finally!
A few notes. The Warn 12S does fit, and even with all the lights it still gets plenty of air. The 2.5DS lift is what these trucks should come with from the factory. Rides and drives like a dream.

Looks great!!

 

[2020 SCRAMBLER]

Save 20#s (vs AEV JK bumper) and cost 2x as much??? And 2x = $2,500+???

Ummm...no.

And I bet 10# of the 20# total weight difference is the fact that it’s a stubby vs full width bumper.

For quite some time I was a huge proponent of waiting for the AEV bumper. Still love the design but I’m probably one of many who will be looking for an alternate front steel bumper as that price point is rather absurd.

I’m considering Taktic (stubby) or ARB or Barricade Adventure (full width).

While I understand the mfg issues with Covid over the last year, and the new steel material is stronger, someone at AEV made a sales volume and profit margin mistake by switching the material to a product that greatly increases the price point and likely removes a lot of potential buyers from the equation.

Unless the cost for the new raw material is marginal and the up charge adds to the profit margin per unit sold and adds to the exclusivity factor.

 

[Gadgetech]

Finally!
A few notes. The Warn 12S does fit, and even with all the lights it still gets plenty of air. The 2.5DS lift is what these trucks should come with from the factory. Rides and drives like a dream.

Looks great and appears to not stick so far out from the front of the truck like some bumpers do.

Do I see the trail cam? Assume you’re waiting on the trail can relocation?

 

[Nate]

Looks great and appears to not stick so far out from the front of the truck like some bumpers do.

Do I see the trail cam? Assume you’re waiting on the trail can relocation?

Yes, Was told they relocation kit will be around the 27th

 

[KurtP]

Looks awesome Nate. I ended up going with the ARB. super happy with it.

 

[2020 SCRAMBLER]

Guess I'm going to have to eat crow regarding my prior posts about the AEV bumper. Sort of.

Wanting an AEV Brute for years meant I HAD to have an AEV bumper on my Gladiator. That bumper was by far the most functional and best looking JK bumper IMHO.

Ordered my Gladiator Rubicon in April 2019 with the base plastic bumper knowing I'd be replacing it with the new AEV bumper. And now I've waited almost 2 years for AEV to release the JL/JT bumper - to a lottery situation no less.

And I thought AEV's pricing on the new bumper would be similar to the previous bumper ($1,300 bumper + $300 skid plate + $200 winch plate). No doubt, $1,800 is a lot of $ for a bumper.

And the the new "RX" bumper, finally being released more broadly now, is really awesome. But the RX is a just stubby - the full width sections are not yet available. And it is at least $2,484 optioned with skid plate and winch mount BEFORE the front camera relocation kit (not currently available) and BEFORE shipping is added to that price. Which means the full width "EX" bumper sections (whenever they decide to release those parts - if at all) HAS to be a higher price and I'm guessing at least another $300-$500+ for those parts.

So this is going to be a $3,000 bumper??? WTF.

See above post #156 where I decided to pass on an AEV bumper. That was 3 posts and 7 days ago.

This weekend I stumbled across a used JK Moab / Call of Duty bumper (basically AEV's JK bumper) on OfferUp. With skid plate. Plus winch mounting. Plus fog lights, fairlead, and hardware.

And since the JK and JL/JT bumpers can be swapped back and forth...I snapped it up for $350!

I'm sure some amount of massaging will be required to get it all to work and not sure if I'll end up with my steel JT or the AEV skid plate. And I've been looking around online to locate a similar 3" round tube grille guard to match the Brute's bumper...and for $65 - $200 I've found multiple options. After pressure washing it clean it's really in good shape - the paint is faded but no dents or anything beyond surface scratches. Just needs a light sanding and a new coat of satin black. And I'll probably spring for new grade 8 hardware too.

So, for less than $500 installed plus my time, I think I now have my AEV bumper!

 

[JK4AER]

Guess I'm going to have to eat crow regarding my prior posts about the AEV bumper. Sort of.

Wanting an AEV Brute for years meant I HAD to have an AEV bumper on my Gladiator. That bumper was by far the most functional and best looking JK bumper IMHO.

Ordered my Gladiator Rubicon in April 2019 with the base plastic bumper knowing I'd be replacing it with the new AEV bumper. And now I've waited almost 2 years for AEV to release the JL/JT bumper - to a lottery situation no less.

And I thought AEV's pricing on the new bumper would be similar to the previous bumper ($1,300 bumper + $300 skid plate + $200 winch plate). No doubt, $1,800 is a lot of $ for a bumper.

And the the new "RX" bumper, finally being released more broadly now, is really awesome. But the RX is a just stubby - the full width sections are not yet available. And it is at least $2,484 optioned with skid plate and winch mount BEFORE the front camera relocation kit (not currently available) and BEFORE shipping is added to that price. Which means the full width "EX" bumper sections (whenever they decide to release those parts - if at all) HAS to be a higher price and I'm guessing at least another $300-$500+ for those parts.

So this is going to be a $3,000 bumper??? WTF.

See above post #156 where I decided to pass on an AEV bumper. That was 3 posts and 7 days ago.

This weekend I stumbled across a used JK Moab / Call of Duty bumper (basically AEV's JK bumper) on OfferUp. With skid plate. Plus winch mounting. Plus fog lights, fairlead, and hardware.

And since the JK and JL/JT bumpers can be swapped back and forth...I snapped it up for $350!

I'm sure some amount of massaging will be required to get it all to work and not sure if I'll end up with my steel JT or the AEV skid plate. And I've been looking around online to locate a similar 3" round tube grille guard to match the Brute's bumper...and for $65 - $200 I've found multiple options. After pressure washing it clean it's really in good shape - the paint is faded but no dents or anything beyond surface scratches. Just needs a light sanding and a new coat of satin black. And I'll probably spring for new grade 8 hardware too.

So, for less than $500 installed plus my time, I think I now have my AEV bumper!

Post some pics when mounted!

 

[2020 SCRAMBLER]

Haven’t repainted the AEV bumper yet or swapped lights (direct swap), etc. as I wanted to make sure the bumper fits and no major problems.

Answer = yes!

Comparison photos (plastic Rubi bumper first)...

Front view:

Installed my roller fairlead, but may swap to the flat one that came with the bumper for use with synthetic wire.

Gap between bumper and grille:

Side view and fender alignment:

Skid plate spacing (with stock Rubi skid):

Top view:

Overall findings from initial test fitment:

• Lower edge of bumper is higher than OEM bumper by 1-2”, so better approach angle
• Fog lights are a direct swap
• Aligns very well with Rubicon high fenders
• Wraps around sides more than stock
• Skid plate will work, but will require mods; trim ~1/4” off length of back edge to clear steering; drill bolt holes to re-use stock Rubi skid plate mounts

There are 4 parts I didn’t get (gray color parts):

One is a close out bracket and the other is a lower tow point (which didn’t come on the Moab pkg). To get those parts plus new hardware from AEV requires you to buy a $600 “con-box”.

But they will sell all the bumper hardware (grade 10.9) for $60.

I’ll use AEV’s hardware, Warn tow points ($100), and either delete or fab the close out brackets myself.

Will update after I test fit the winch plate, paint, and swap the fog lights over....but overall happy with it.

 

[jwilson2899]

Haven’t repainted the AEV bumper yet or swapped lights (direct swap), etc. as I wanted to make sure the bumper fits and no major problems.

Answer = yes!

Comparison photos (plastic Rubi bumper first)...

Front view:

Installed my roller fairlead, but may swap to the flat one that came with the bumper for use with synthetic wire.

Gap between bumper and grille:

Side view and fender alignment:

Skid plate spacing (with stock Rubi skid):

Top view:

Overall findings from initial test fitment:

• Lower edge of bumper is higher than OEM bumper by 1-2”, so better approach angle
• Fog lights are a direct swap
• Aligns very well with Rubicon high fenders
• Wraps around sides more than stock
• Skid plate will work, but will require mods; trim ~1/4” off length of back edge to clear steering; drill bolt holes to re-use stock Rubi skid plate mounts

There are 4 parts I didn’t get (gray color parts):

One is a close out bracket and the other is a lower tow point (which didn’t come on the Moab pkg). To get those parts plus new hardware from AEV requires you to buy a $600 “con-box”.

But they will sell all the bumper hardware (grade 10.9) for $60.

I’ll use AEV’s hardware, Warn tow points ($100), and either delete or fab the close out brackets myself.

Will update after I test fit the winch plate, paint, and swap the fog lights over....but overall happy with it.

That looks great! I loved the AEV bumper on my old JK, but have the same issues with the JL/JT bumper as you. Interested to see how the winch plate and such fits.

 

[2020 SCRAMBLER]

Quick update on my used AEV JK Moab / Call of Duty bumper. (AEV’s Tubeless JK front bumper). Not fully installed yet as I sanded and painted the main bumper over the weekend and letting the paint cure for a few days.

But the big update is the winch plate installation. It fits! Only requires 2 minor brackets to be trimmed on the Gladiator and no drilling!

So here’s the winch plate and the fairlead plate:

You don’t need the vacuum pump bracket for the JK, so feel free to leave this part off:

You’ll need to test fit the winch plate (bottom section in above pics) and mark your frame extension brackets for trimming. It almost fits the Gladiator chassis and frame rails, but has minor interference from two brackets that will need to be trimmed. Note sections in front of black line:

^pass side

^driver side

This is all that had to be trimmed:

After trimming off these sections with a cutoff wheel, the winch plate will side back flush with the frame horns (the area where the 8 bolts attach the bumper to the frame).

The winch plate barely touches the rubber hanger for the electric sway bar disconnect motors (Rubicon only?) and the bracket that holds the rubber hanger could be persuaded back a little but I just left it alone.

There is already a 1/2” hole through the lower extension on the frame rails to bolt down the winch plate. No drilling!

Next pic I’m just mocking up the bolt lengths to pass through BOTH sides of the frame horns extension (AEV only bolted to the inner sides of the frame rails...have to think passing through both sides of frame rail is a stronger mounting method. I’ll be buying Grade 8 bolts, nuts, and washers to complete the install:

Also note thick gold round washer used to shim the space between the winch plate and the inner frame rail. These are thick grade 10.9 offset center hole washers from another project (‘89 Ford Thunderbird Supercoupe rear IRS) that I had laying around.

The reason for the offset washer will be apparent as you look to install some form of shim. Either a few grade 8 washers stacked and trimmed or a 1/4” thick steel plate section trimmed down would also do the trick. You effectively want the winch plate to have no room to move side to side once tightened down and when the winch is pulling.

With the winch plate loosely fitted its easy to bolt the fairlead plate to the front of the winch plate and the 8 mounting points at the ends of the frame horns.

When done at this stage you effectively have a stubby bumper.

Here’s a link to AEV’s Winch Mounting Plate Installation Instructions

Next step for me is installing the bumper along with fog lights and fog light bulb upgrade!

 

[jwilson2899]

Quick update on my used AEV JK Moab / Call of Duty bumper. (AEV’s Tubeless JK front bumper). Not fully installed yet as I sanded and painted the main bumper over the weekend and letting the paint cure for a few days.

There is already a 1/2” hole through the lower extension on the frame rails to bolt down the winch plate. No drilling!

Next pic I’m just mocking up the bolt lengths to pass through BOTH sides of the frame horns extension (AEV only bolted to the inner sides of the frame rails...have to think passing through both sides of frame rail is a stronger mounting method. I’ll be buying Grade 8 bolts, nuts, and washers to complete the install:

Be careful that you don't crush the frame at all since you don't have a sleeve or spacer on there. That's part of why AEV only attaches to the inner part of the frame rail, which should be plenty. It might be a bit safer if you can reach a nut and washer up through that access hole to just go to the inside of the rail like the original does.

You're install looks great! I loved my JK AEV bumper, if I didn't have the factory steel one, it would tempt me to go this route too.

 

[JRobes]

Be careful that you don't crush the frame at all since you don't have a sleeve or spacer on there. That's part of why AEV only attaches to the inner part of the frame rail, which should be plenty. It might be a bit safer if you can reach a nut and washer up through that access hole to just go to the inside of the rail like the original does.

I second this. You won't be able to torque the hardware down nearly as much without a sleeve inside the frame rail, and that may be critical for their designed installation procedure. I'd do what @jwilson2899 recommends of using a shorter bolt and only attach to the inner frame rail wall.

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