AEV RX Bumper and Tire Carrier - My Installation Experience

[BKEvans]

After being a long time lurker of the forums, I have been compelled to post here regarding my experience with installing an AEV RX bumper and tire carrier on my 2021 JLUR.

TLDR: it has not been a good experience, and I would be hard pressed to recommend it to anyone else at this time.

A little backstory: I ordered a 2019 JLUR in Fall 2018 and recently sold it in favor of a diesel variant. Like a lot of other Jeepers, I have been patiently waiting for the AEV bumpers to become available for purchase ever since they were shown at SEMA. After all of the waiting, and waiting, and waiting, I finally got my hands on one; and was very excited to get it installed. AEV has consistently shown "out of stock" for these bumpers on their site, so I ordered the bumper and tire carrier from @Quadratec along with fender flare extensions, aux backup light, and AEV touch up paint (more on this later) from @Northridge4x4

The first parts I took out of the boxes were the corner tubes and corner tanks. Both of the corner tubes were scraped pretty badly from shipping, with spots of powdercoat chipped to the bare metal. I ultimately decided to sand the problem areas and touch them up with the AEV touch up paint since these would be taking abuse off-road anyway. I was able to install the corner tubes onto the Jeep without much issue aside from having to grind down less than smooth factory welds on top of the rear frame rails. Next up were some tire carrier bits, which installed without issue. I did call AEV at one point due to some confusion. The main carrier assembly was labeled as a JK part, so I called just to confirm that it was the same part for the JL before opening it.

Then came the center section, which is a large, powdercoated bent piece of steel. The center section was also damaged, and I was not willing to touch up spots on such a large flat piece. I contacted Quadratec, sent them some pictures, and they promptly overnighted a replacement center section, along with sending a return label for the damaged part. Kudos to @Quadratec for excellent customer service. Pictures of the original damaged center section (the box it shipped in was undamaged):

Unfortunately, the replacement center section arrived with its own damage. Not as bad as the first, but there nonetheless. Instead of starting a continuous return/replace cycle hoping for an undamaged part to be delivered, I decided to sand the areas and touch them up. FYI: the AEV touch up texture black paint is a slightly shinier sheen than the powdercoating on the bumpers. While the touch up was drying, I installed the corner tanks on the corner tubes. I'm not sure if they're supposed to be straight (level) relative to the body lines on the Jeep...but they definitely aren't. AEV does included shims to get the corner tubes to sit straight, and mine are shimmed so that the vertical ends are vertical. There is a gap on the bottom side of the tanks where they meet the vertical recovery point. The funny things is that the fender flare extensions are level with the bottom of the fender flares, but the gaps are 1/8" different from side to side.

After the touch up paint on the replacement center section had dried, I went to install it on the Jeep and found that 3 of the 7 holes to attach the center section did not line up. 3 holes doesn't sound too bad...unless you think of it as 43% of the holes to mount that piece. Not good. Not by a long shot. This mean I had to remove the center section and ream out those holes with a die grinder. And then sand, etch prime, and paint AGAIN.

From here things were pretty uneventful...until it cam time to install the backup camera. Details to follow...

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[BKEvans]

I routed the camera/3rd brake light (CHMSL) wire for the tire carrier and all was well until I went to plug in the backup camera. My Jeep has the forward facing trail cam, and so I have a different camera plug than the older 2018-2020 Jeeps. It may only be on the Jeeps with the trail cam, I'm not 100% sure. More info on the camera change can be read in this thread.

I called AEV and talked to someone in support who said they had a fix and put me through to sales. The sales guy had no idea what I was talking about and tried to put me back through to support, but the support guy was then unavailable...so sales guy said he'd have support guy call me back. He never called me back. So....I created an account and opened a support ticket on the AEV SupportSync platform. I provided very detailed instructions, along with labeled images for reference:

The AEV support person informed me that he had sent this information to their engineering department, and that he'd get back to me as soon as he heard something. At this point it was 5:30PM on a Friday, so he said it'd likely be Monday. So, Monday at 4:30PM I sent a message on my support ticket asking for an update, and he responded that he had just heard back, and that sometimes their harness vendor sends the wrong ends and that they would send out a "known good harness." I requested that he reference my pictures before sending out the replacement harness, because there had been a change to the camera by FCA. The next message I got was letting me know that a replacement had shipped.

Well, the replacement got here today...and wouldn't you know it's the exact same harness that came with my bumper, that DOES NOT fit my backup camera. So, I posted yet again on the support thread (I'd much rather call, but a paper trail is useful in this type of situation) and attached annotated pictures again. This time showing all three ends, as well as the actual connector types:

Now I just have to wait to hear back from them. I understand pandemic difficulties, but I am not very tolerant of avoidable mistakes. This has been a very frustrating experience. I have always viewed AEV as a top tier brand (their prices certainly are), but this bumper and tire carrier have missed the mark. I have their DualSport suspension and Borah wheels sitting in the garage waiting to go on once tires are available. Hopefully those are a better experience than this bumper has been. Rant over. Here's a pic with the bumper installed...minus the backup camera:

 

[Overactor]

Ive always liked the look of the AEV bumpers. I had them on my 2013 Gecko green wrangler and had thought about putting them on My new 21 gecko green wrangler when it comes in. I might have to hold off for a bit and see what comes of this. Pretty odd to return a damaged piece to receive a damaged piece. I wanted to run their front bumper on my Ram 2500 but wasnt sure how thick the metal is having not seen one.

 

[BKEvans]

Ive always liked the look of the AEV bumpers. I had them on my 2013 Gecko green wrangler and had thought about putting them on My new 21 gecko green wrangler when it comes in. I might have to hold off for a bit and see what comes of this. Pretty odd to return a damaged piece to receive a damaged piece. I wanted to run their front bumper on my Ram 2500 but wasnt sure how thick the metal is having not seen one.

Yes, I think that the AEV bumpers are the best looking ones in that they look like they could be factory. The shipping damage was definitely a bummer, if there was more protection for the parts when they are packaged it would likely mitigate any damage. I do wonder if the parts come bundled from AEV to help prevent damage. I received the components in separate boxes from Quadratec.

I will say the fitment is good as far is the bumper is concerned. Once again I was a little bummed that 3 of the holes had to be opened up, but the tolerances are very tight with pretty much no wiggle room.

They were able to get the correct harness sent out to me, and have sent a return label for the original camera harness and the first replacement. So everything is installed and working. My intention with this thread was not to bash AEV or their products, but instead to share my experience so that others can make informed decisions. The rear bumper and tire carrier are on and look great, after a little tweaking.

 

[Overactor]

I love that they look oem. I have the ones from my 13 in the barn after trading it off, im hoping to find an older manual 2 door to bash on some. They are by far the best looking for the ram in my opinion. I didnt take the post as a bash on AEV, I did however take it as Quadratec customer service is great. So when i start modding the new Jeep I'll buy from them.

 

[KC_Jeep]

For what its worth I bought mine from @Northridge4x4 and they reached out after I placed my order offering to ship mine via freight on a pallet since they were getting complaints that the bumpers had damage when arriving. Mine only had one small scuff on the tire carrier. I did have to make two holes in the middle section of the bumper larger though.

 

[BKEvans]

Good to know @KC_Jeep , I could see how shipping everything together would help mitigate damage. Out of curiosity, do your corner tanks sit level with the body line or do they also angle upward a bit?

 

[KC_Jeep]

Good to know @KC_Jeep , I could see how shipping everything together would help mitigate damage. Out of curiosity, do your corner tanks sit level with the body line or do they also angle upward a bit?

They sit pretty level. I did use the shims though. My main issue was since I have the parking sensors, you have to cut a hole in the backside to install the sensors. I drove though rain for several hours and when I got home they were full of water so I drilled a drain hole in the bottom

 

[TxJeepers]

AEV aint what they used to be. Pandemic or not. Not top shelf anymore. From Jeeper who's run their parts on multiple Jeeps.

 

[acsak]

I am half way through this installation now and I can confirm that it's frustrating. I didn't have quite as much damage, but there are definitely scuffs and scratches from shipping. Lots of the boxes had holes in them. For such a robust bumper, it's not packed well at all.

At this point I'm two days in and haven't even touched the tire carrier yet. I finally got the center section of the bumper on today and that was extremely frustrating. Only one of the holes lined up for me so I was forced to widen every other hole with a Dremel, clean them all up and clear coat them to prevent rust and then bolt the whole thing down.

After all of this I realized that I hadn't attached the license plate light wiring. Because it took so long to get the thing on I really struggled with the decision to take it off again to wire up the light, but I want it done right so that's what I did. Although there is a perfect mounting location for it there is absolutely NO MENTION of the license plate light in the instructions - the only reason it was on my mind was because I watched this video:

I suggest anyone wanting to install watch it - it depicts the experience accurately and there's lot of helpful hints in there to fill in the gaps in the installation instructions.

Silly of me to think of the license plate light but not the wiring - I was assuming I could easily plug it in after it was on. DON'T MAKE THAT MISTAKE. Wire it up first. If you don't have a hitch receiver you might be able to get your hand up there, but if you do have the receiver you'll either have to take that or the bumper off if you forget to install/wire up the light beforehand.

Lots of the weld nut threads are completely painted over so it takes a lot of work to get those pan head hex bolts tightened down even after widening the holes. The bolts themselves are pretty heavily painted inside the hex as well so I initially had to use a size too small until enough of the paint got compressed or removed or whatever happened in there. Eventually I started using a rubber mallet to get the correct hex bit seated in each bolt before tightening. This is not the end of the world, but it's another small frustration on an already pretty big list.

One thing I do not understand is why the holes on the center section have lateral play but no vertical play. They're kind of an oval/racetrack shape opening. I didn't need any lateral play - I only needed vertical play and had absolutely none. I think they just needed to cut wider circles instead of using the oval shaped openings. That would go a long way in reducing stress and extra cutting and painting, etc.

For what it's worth I have a Gobi ranger rack and the end caps with the plastic "tanks" (another issue) JUST fit together. I had to do things a little out of order to get the "tanks" in there, but it all fits nicely together. The plastic is probably squishing just a little up against the body mount brackets of the Gobi, but I was very happy to see it fit together.

Also, what's up with these "tanks"? The concept of the tanks on the JK bumper was so cool - a novel use of space keeping water down low in an otherwise empty area. It's not a lot of water, but it a very thoughtful touch nonetheless. These are fake and they include inserts to plug the fake holes presumably where the caps on JK tanks would be. It makes sense to have the hole and cap on the right side because that's where the spindle mount for the tire carrier attaches to the frame, and if you don't have the tire carrier it's best to plug that hole, but the cap on the left doesn't make sense. Maybe I'm missing something - maybe there's a configuration in which the tire carrier can be mounted on the left side, but I don't think so. Anyway that left side plug really seems like an afterthought.

Lastly the license plate doesn't mount flush to the bumper because there's a pan head bolt right up against it on the back left side, so now the license plate is sort of smashed up against that bolt and has to bend at the bottom to sit flush at the top. Again, not the end of the world, but the afterthoughts seem to be piling up here.

Haven't even started the tire carrier. I was going to try today, but I'm pretty tapped out and frustrated and not really looking forward to it to be honest. Looking forward to it being done. It's a really solidly constructed heavy duty bumper, and I think it'll work well for me my needs, but wow, definitely more of a headache than it needs to be.

 

[BKEvans]

@acsak thank you for sharing your experience with the install so far! I did watch the video you shared above prior to my bumper being delivered, and as you said there are some good tips in there to help with the process. I'm not sure what happened with the tanks, but like others I wish they would have retained the ability to carry some water in there.

I didn't even mention the bolt behind the license plate, but yes...it's definitely back there. I "mushed" my plate down around the bolt and put two tiny pieces of 3M windo-weld ribbon sealer on the bottom corners of the plate to hold it down and prevent potential rattles. I had the sealer tape left over from sealing the mopar all weather mat drain plugs on both the 2019 and the 2021 Wranglers. I did notice that the left side of the plate is dark now since the light can't shine evenly across it, but it doesn't bother me too much. I like that the plate is in the factory location much better than having it stuck on top of the bumper like some of the others that are available.

Installation of the tire carrier went smoothly for me (aside from the camera harness ordeal), so hopefully it'll be smooth sailing for you as well. Definitely take the taillight out to install the carrier; it only takes a minute and gives a lot more room to work. A 10mm socket works for the taillight bolt if you don't have a torx handy.

I bet it looks good on there with the Gobi rack...post up some pics when you're done!

 

[acsak]

@acsak thank you for sharing your experience with the install so far! I did watch the video you shared above prior to my bumper being delivered, and as you said there are some good tips in there to help with the process. I'm not sure what happened with the tanks, but like others I wish they would have retained the ability to carry some water in there.

I didn't even mention the bolt behind the license plate, but yes...it's definitely back there. I "mushed" my plate down around the bolt and put two tiny pieces of 3M windo-weld ribbon sealer on the bottom corners of the plate to hold it down and prevent potential rattles. I had the sealer tape left over from sealing the mopar all weather mat drain plugs on both the 2019 and the 2021 Wranglers. I did notice that the left side of the plate is dark now since the light can't shine evenly across it, but it doesn't bother me too much. I like that the plate is in the factory location much better than having it stuck on top of the bumper like some of the others that are available.

Installation of the tire carrier went smoothly for me (aside from the camera harness ordeal), so hopefully it'll be smooth sailing for you as well. Definitely take the taillight out to install the carrier; it only takes a minute and gives a lot more room to work. A 10mm socket works for the taillight bolt if you don't have a torx handy.

I bet it looks good on there with the Gobi rack...post up some pics when you're done!

Ooh good tip with removing the taillight. Does your carrier rub against it like it does in the video I posted?

I will post pics when it’s done!

 

[BKEvans]

Ooh good tip with removing the taillight. Does your carrier rub against it like it does in the video I posted?

I will post pics when it’s done!

No rubbing on the light at all once installed...it has plenty of room. In the video his was rubbing the taillight when he was removing the main carrier assembly. Way better to just pull the light so that it's out of the way!

 

[Dudley Dawson]

Great info here. Thank you everyone for sharing your experiences. I really like the AEV rear bumper the best among the selection of aftermarket solutions. But it’s obvious they need to tune-up their instructions and address some fitment issues.

 

[ToolMan514]

TLDR, but the housings come off those Fakra connectors. You can pull the tab and remove the black/pink/white housing of the connector and replace it with the one from the OEM cable.

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