WeatherTech BumpStep

Drove my Tacoma into San Francisco for the first time last weekend for an Xmas party and had to parallel park, and as is the case more often than not in SF, spaces can be tight and I worry about some Jamoke banging up my bumpers.

I read through some older threads where people talked about leaving their hitch and ball mounted in the receiver to prevent damage to the rear bumper. I also read a lot of opposing opinions to this saying people who don't tow often and leave their hitch in the receiver for protection are irresponsible and just rude, and it takes up space, can be a tripping hazard for people walking, and one gentleman who was wheelchair bound said a truck with the receiver attached actually blocked his path once since the truck overhung onto the sidewalk so much.

I don't want to be "that guy", but also don't want my bumper getting messed up by some moron who has no regard for other people's property. Looked into products that mount into the hitch, and most were just plain fugly, expensive, overkill, or all of the above. So I ended up going with a WeatherTech BumpStep. It's made of a composite resin, its lightweight and rated to hold 300lbs, and doubles as a nice step if for whatever reason you need to stand on it.

Sure it's not the prettiest looking thing, but in my opinion it's not that bad either and looks better than a lot of other options and is way lower profile. I am fully aware that it's not made to prevent damage from getting rear-ended and what not, but since it's not made out of metal, it should absorb a really light impact instead of transferring the impact to the hitch and frame like most of the hitch steps that are make out of metal will do. Also, since it's a resin it won't rust or corrode inside the receiver.

Ideally I think it's a great device for situations like backing into a space say in a parking garage when your backing up to a wall or parallel parking, and just adds a small bit of protection and insurance.

FWIW, I have no affiliation with WeatherTech, but just thought it would be nice to share my experience with the product. Thanks!

 

I bought this...Only a few people would have the nuts to put this thing on their trucks but......It will take a 20MPH Hit (due to hard rubber inserts and works great as a step. Not "pretty" either but it does the job. ...and if I am going to put something ugly on it had better be the best option against for the problem I want to solve
http://sparebumper.com/index.php?act=viewCat&catId=7&mc=5

$139 http://sparebumper.com/index.php?act=viewCat&catId=7&mc=5

 

Good compromise!

 

$72 Smittybilt Beaver Step (Black) - 27046B 18 x 6 x 1"es

http://www.amazon.com/Smittybilt-27046B-Beaver-Step-Hitch/dp/B004K23KQ0

I like the looks of this one.

And this one.

Go Rhino! 360B Black HitchStep for 2" Receivers

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000CMDCKQ/ref=s9_dcbhz_bw_g263_i2_sh

 

I like the Go Rhino one - but damn expensive!

 

Yes it is. The other one is dual purpose though. Someone could put a big dent in there front bumper, or you can put a choker (Pull strap) on it to pull someone out.

The Go Rhino is nice because it protects a larger area of your bumper.

 

you say you do not want to be that guy that causes tripping hazards etc...but its going to cause the same effect lol. just might not damage other vehicles.

At the end of the day at least with trucks its not that bad, but when you walk through a parking lot and some random mini van or worse a car has one and you bash your shin, you just want to kick the car lol.

 

I'd have to respectfully disagree with you here. Really, the WeatherTech BumperStep hardly sticks out. and, compared to a hitch and ball sticking out of a receiver, the BumperStep is pretty insignificant, and I could even push it in one slot further to make it stick out even less, but still offer protection. Also, if someone did pull up and tap my rear bumper at least they wouldn't have a nice hole on their bumper if there was a hitch and ball in the trucks receiver instead, while if this happened with the BumperStep, theres a very good chance it wouldn't cause any damage to their car, or at the most possibly a light scuff. And unless you're a pedestrian who's really aloof and/or not paying attention and walking while texting on your cell phone, I doubt the BumpStep is going to trip someone up, and if they did, it might cause them a small bruise, as opposed to the damage that would be cause my some of the more cumbersome, larger, more obnoxious metal devices people use for this purpose. If you're worried about bashing your shin one one of these you should probably be paying more attention and get your nose out of your cell phone and watch where you're walking and what you're doing.

 

I've been looking at a solution like this as well. I'm attaching a picture of the one that I'm considering, although I'm not sure my truck would fit in my garage with the hitch step attached, which my be a deciding factor. And as far as it being a "tripping hazard", my opinion is that if someone does trip on it, they were walking way too damn close to my truck in the first place!

 

Agree with you 100%. I like the one you're considering, but just didn't want to spend the money for one of the more expensive ones and didn't want something that big. Also, the ones made out of metal just seem like they'd just transfer all the energy from an impact of any significance into the tow hitch and frame of the truck, not really offering any added protection, aside from preventing damage from a gentle tap from another vehicle, etc. And obviously the one I have won't offer any protection either from a significant impact, but went with it in hopes of preventing damage from light taps like when parallel parked, backing up into something, etc., plus is another vehicle did bump into me it would;t put a big hole in their bumper. Some may not care about that part and could care less what happens to there peoples vehicles, but I figure what comes around goes around and wouldn't want that to happen to me if I was in the other person's position. I never meant to use it for preventing damage in a significant collision, and just wanted something fairly low profile and wasn't metal so it didn't corrode and start using inside the receiver.

 

I agree about the fact that it will protect your bumper from minor bumps and bruses, but here in NY it is illegal to drive with it in while not towing because it changes the dimension of an impact (your air bags may not go off because the sensors are behind your bumper). Although I have never heard of anyone getting a ticket for having one in.

 

hmm maybe the bumperstep one isn't as bad then.
truthfully haven't seen this one in person yet, but I've seen a lot of the others and they all stick out just as much as a hitch.
With trucks it isn't as bad with tripping on them etc. Because you expect them.
But in the dark walking between cars and someone has a hitch on their minivan or car those things are evil. Cant see them and they kill your shin haha.

But that's good then. I figured this one would be identical to all the others and stick out like pinocchios nose

 

Feel free to take another peek at the pics I posted. It really doesn't stick out that much, and I could honestly slide it in one notch further and still have it prevent being bumped by someone when parallel parking or backing into a shopping cart at Costco, into a wall in a parking garage and low speed, etc. That's really all I purchased it for, was for added insurance. I mean really, a dinged or scratched bumper would probably cost a remote bumper guy $200 to come to your place and fix it on the spot so I feel like the $50 spent on this makes it pay for itself in most circumstances. Obviously won't prevent everything, but it also sticks out about, or less than half of a hitch and ball.

 

Good thing I don't live in Mew York and have no plans to ever go back in the future!

 

Here are a few videos showing what the product is made to do. Just helps with minimal, minor situations, so don't have any grand expectations that it will precent any real damage in a crash or anything.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kizzQ7lsYHs

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A1dUvP3Bk4A

 

Wish my truck had a receiver on it.

 

I made my own, will post pics latter

 

Too heavy hitch like "that guy" (I never used it for towing)

So I went to buy scrap metal at Metalsupermarkets



Some drilling, cuts, and welding...


Here is my own step bumper, for about $15 for parts and about 3 hrs. of my time.


I haven't estimated its capacity but all metal is 3/16" thick. Latter will post pics of the upgrade I just made today: I added a shackle for pulling someone out of snow or so.

 

Have a link to this item?

 

I had one of these Weathertech bump stops for the same purpose. It dragged a couple times during recent off-roading expeditions, so I ended up sacrificing it to R'hllor and putting a hitch shackle in there.