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OEM Steel Bumper vs. ARB Classic (and AEV)

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dtortie

dtortie

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First, I like the sturdiness (see my thread on my crash) and the appearance. Also, unlike aftermarket bumpers, you will get some residual value in the OEM (they are an adder to your KBB's valuation) when you sell.

https://www.jlwranglerforums.com/fo...ng-on-ordering-the-steel-bumper-option.44772/
Wow. Do you have a picture of your Jeep/front bumper when it happened? Was your frame checked?
If the production version looks like this, I'll be buying the AEV bumper...


JL-Jeep-Wrangler-AEV-SEMA-3.jpg
The more I see the AEV, the more I like it (I'm just about sold on the rear - if I decide to upgrade).

Since I've figured out how to add a picture, let's throw in another ARB for good measure.
upload_2020-1-23_22-56-20.jpeg
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cosine

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i've been looking at a couple of winch bumpers myself and leaning towards the arb classic. after looking at the aev, i'm going to sit back and think about it. and look at the pros and cons between the two. as for the rear bumper still havent decided on one.
 
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dtortie

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i've been looking at a couple of winch bumpers myself and leaning towards the arb classic. after looking at the aev, i'm going to sit back and think about it. and look at the pros and cons between the two. as for the rear bumper still havent decided on one.
Some days I lean towards the looks of the ARB, others the AEV. Maybe I need to see each in person. I'll probably end up sticking with my factory steel front bumper because I cannot make a decision (ha!).
 
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I've run ARB on everything that I can, as they are the most durable you can get at the price. I've seen the AEV and it looks great and by the looks, it seems to be tucked closer to the grille and possibly offers a better approach angle than the ARB. For me, since my off-roading style doesn't include highly technical rock crawling, the difference in approach angle between the ARB and other bumpers wasn't as important to me as the protection it offers from animals and traffic. When I was doing my research before I pulled the trigger on my first ARB bumper, I found a couple in northern Nevada that had hit a large deer at about 65 MPH and the ARB got a mild scuff in the coating and their vehicle itself had zero damage. That was important to me, living in big game country, since pretty much everyone I knew had hit at least one deer in their lifetimes.

Anyhow, I'm also in the market but I'm going to be (hopefully) moving to Arizona soon so I haven't purchased anything for my JLU yet. I'm also looking at the LOD bumpers.

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rickinAZ

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I've run ARB on everything that I can, as they are the most durable you can get at the price. I've seen the AEV and it looks great and by the looks, it seems to be tucked closer to the grille and possibly offers a better approach angle than the ARB. For me, since my off-roading style doesn't include highly technical rock crawling, the difference in approach angle between the ARB and other bumpers wasn't as important to me as the protection it offers from animals and traffic. When I was doing my research before I pulled the trigger on my first ARB bumper, I found a couple in northern Nevada that had hit a large deer at about 65 MPH and the ARB got a mild scuff in the coating and their vehicle itself had zero damage. That was important to me, living in big game country, since pretty much everyone I knew had hit at least one deer in their lifetimes.

Anyhow, I'm also in the market but I'm going to be (hopefully) moving to Arizona soon so I haven't purchased anything for my JLU yet. I'm also looking at the LOD bumpers.

jeep.jpg
Have you seen my post regarding the aftermath of a rear-ender with my Mopar OEM steel bumpers?
 

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Have you seen my post regarding the aftermath of a rear-ender with my Mopar OEM steel bumpers?
Ouch. Yeah, that didn't go well for the Honda. I did go back and re-read that the OP had the steel factory bumpers. If I had them, I'd just add the winch plate and call it a day. If someone were to offer me a take-off for a reasonable enough price that I could buy the winch plate and still be under what the ARB costs I'd do that as well. Sadly, everyone seems to want a mint for their used Mopar bumpers so sans lights so I'll likely still go with the ARB or similar.
 
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Ouch. Yeah, that didn't go well for the Honda. I did go back and re-read that the OP had the steel factory bumpers. If I had them, I'd just add the winch plate and call it a day. If someone were to offer me a take-off for a reasonable enough price that I could buy the winch plate and still be under what the ARB costs I'd do that as well. Sadly, everyone seems to want a mint for their used Mopar bumpers so sans lights so I'll likely still go with the ARB or similar.
Your JK looks great with the ARB. It's those kinds of stories (couple that hit a deer that you shared) that have me leaning towards the ARB as well. I want as much protection as possible (but as I mentioned earlier, I'm equally concerned about airflow). Do you feel that AEV offers just as much protection, pricing aside?

Then we're back to my factory steel bumper. I specifically opted for this package because I thought I would keep my Jeep stock (the horror, I know) - which I may still do. Like you said, just add a winch plate (and maybe some lights) and call it a day. Decisions, decisions.
 
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Your JK looks great with the ARB. It's those kinds of stories (couple that hit a deer that you shared) that have me leaning towards the ARB as well. I want as much protection as possible (but as I mentioned earlier, I'm equally concerned about airflow). Do you feel that AEV offers just as much protection, pricing aside?

Dave Harriton, AEV's founder, is a U Montana grad so he's very familiar with the importance of protecting the front of the vehicle from road rats. I don't know if AEV still has their office in Missoula, but it's just a couple hours down I-90 from where I'm from and that part of the country is full of moose, bear, deer, and elk that like to run out in front of cars. That being said, I'm not sure how well that experience translates into their engineering on the JL bumper. My old neighbor had an AEV prepped JK and the bumper seemed every bit as stout as my ARB, however.

I have seen a couple of options to add a hoop onto the Rubicon steelies if that would be an alternative to getting a new bumper. For about $400 you should be able to get a winch mount and some additional radiator protection on there. For me, it doesn't make sense unless I could get the Rubicon bumper for super cheap, but everyone I've seen selling them on Craigs and our local Jeep club want from $800-1k for them. Then add the $400 for a hoop and winch plate, I can have the ARB for $950 OTD from our local 4x4 shop.
 
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Dave Harriton, AEV's founder, is a U Montana grad so he's very familiar with the importance of protecting the front of the vehicle from road rats. I don't know if AEV still has their office in Missoula, but it's just a couple hours down I-90 from where I'm from and that part of the country is full of moose, bear, deer, and elk that like to run out in front of cars. That being said, I'm not sure how well that experience translates into their engineering on the JL bumper. My old neighbor had an AEV prepped JK and the bumper seemed every bit as stout as my ARB, however.

I have seen a couple of options to add a hoop onto the Rubicon steelies if that would be an alternative to getting a new bumper. For about $400 you should be able to get a winch mount and some additional radiator protection on there. For me, it doesn't make sense unless I could get the Rubicon bumper for super cheap, but everyone I've seen selling them on Craigs and our local Jeep club want from $800-1k for them. Then add the $400 for a hoop and winch plate, I can have the ARB for $950 OTD from our local 4x4 shop.
Really appreciate you sharing your knowledge. I don't have any first hand experience with any of these products (haven't even had the opportunity to see one in person). Being from the east coast, deer are the biggest offenders here.

I have seen a few of those hoop options too. I feel as though both the ARB and AEV hoops tie in with the style whereas a hoop added onto the factory steel looks a bit out of place (IMO, of course). $950 OTD seems to be a very competitive price compared with what I've seen online.
 

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Your JK looks great with the ARB. It's those kinds of stories (couple that hit a deer that you shared) that have me leaning towards the ARB as well. I want as much protection as possible (but as I mentioned earlier, I'm equally concerned about airflow). Do you feel that AEV offers just as much protection, pricing aside?

Then we're back to my factory steel bumper. I specifically opted for this package because I thought I would keep my Jeep stock (the horror, I know) - which I may still do. Like you said, just add a winch plate (and maybe some lights) and call it a day. Decisions, decisions.
Yes, ARB built their rep by first creating custom high strength bull bars to protect against animal strikes on Australian highways - eventually turned small scale operation into a massive business. Extremely solid and heavy builds- my local ARB tech had a bit of a smirk when seeing how thin my Rubicon steel bumper was.

I think it's pretty cool how well ARB have done overseas. They are a staple 4X4 accessories company here in AUS, although typically with Toyotas etc - Japanese brands being much more popular here for long range touring.

All that said, I'm waiting on AEV to release their range as I prefer the look/consistent flowing designs. Especially the rear ARB bar seems to have an awkward gap between the rear fender and bumper.
 

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All that said, I'm waiting on AEV to release their range as I prefer the look/consistent flowing designs. Especially the rear ARB bar seems to have an awkward gap between the rear fender and bumper.
Agreed - I think the AEV Rear is the best design out there. Both in looks and protection. My AEV rear on my JKU tore the piss out of a car that rear ended me. Not a scratch on it.
 

Jlhens03

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I wish ARB made a trail cam relation kit for the JL ARB classic bumper.
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