Rear bumper fender bender

Well someone backed into me in a parking lot and caused a small amount of damage to the drivers side rear bumper. It’s not too terribly bad but the lady’s insurance quoted me $1200 just to fix the end cap and all of that. It is color matched white.
My question is, should I just go after market at this point or try and get a full bumper replacement from the dealership? I don’t really want cheap parts on it, but I also want my rear sensors to work. From what I have gathered most aftermarket bumpers don’t work with the sensors.

Also, may I note that I’m a bit new to forums in general and I wasn’t sure where to post. If this is the wrong place please point me in the right direction. Thanks.

 

I damaged my stock chrome bumper screwing around on a pile of dirt and rocks the other day. The truck failed to climb one line and I had to back down and drive my bumper into the ground. So I am thinking about upgrading my bumper as well. I have no sensors to worry about but I am debating high clearance vs non and also aluminum vs steel. The only certain thing is that I want a hidden hitch to increase departure angle.

The stock bumper is flimsy and mostly useless, but aftermarket bumpers are expensive, come with trade offs, and often take a long time to arrive because they are made to order by small shops.

 

Welcome to TW!

 

Steel. The OEM one fucking blows. Only the hitch protects anything. I found out too.

 

well I'm guessing its not coming out of your pocket so ide just get it fixed. yeah sure steel bumpers are cool and all but its unnecessary added weight if your not actually going to use it for its intended purpose. plus lead times are ridiculous.

 

Steel bumpers are worth the investment and wait. Check out this gem from @Mobtown Offroad
@gudujarlson it's got a hidden hitch behind the plate.

 

Insist on OEM parts with OEM pricing, verify the pricing with a repair shop or a dealer, have the check issued to you and get your new rear bumper. Regarding the Tech Package sensors, most of the aftermarket manufacturers are starting to accommodate those now since they're becoming so prevelant.

 

For Me I like The factory look painted to match the color of the truck besides the factory tow hitch on it is bolted to the frame so Great! In a crash and even with aftermarket bumpers your still going to get damage and the tail gate so the body shop & insurance co still has to replace & repair & paint no mater what is on your truck FYi

 

Steel bumpers are great for off road and such . But for real life accidents they are designed to take force of the impact .so if u have a steel bumper where do You think all the force goes ? Think about that before u decide to get a steal bumper .

 

I guess it is a good thing that the odds of being rear ended by something without a front crumple zone are incredibly low. Mostly kidding. Getting rid of significant structural safety features is something to be wary of. One of the reasons I haven't gone with a sweet steel bumper with the hitch hidden behind the plate. Still, they look so good...

 

There are a lot of choices for $1,200 in a bumper that actually does it's job, the OEM bumpers are a joke. Keep your eyes open on Craigslist, FB, and on this site. There are great used deals often. If you want, I have my old rear bumper available for $200, complete, you can use it until you get your new real one, and sell the old OEM to someone else that's looking for a good deal on OEM. As far as extra weight is concerned, I have a RCI high clearance with hidden hitch and it is only 20lbs heavier than the OEM. PM me if you are interested.

 

Thats what I'll probably end up pushing for after I've sat and thought about it and read this thread. I mean, its not my fault that she backed into me, and I'm paying for my pickup so I don't think I deserve some knockoff replacement parts for something that was not my fault. I was inside the store when it happened.The insurance quote sheet has all the parts listed from some parts store that sells the off-brand parts.

 

This place has a lot in stock

https://bumpersuperstore.com/c-1207664-all-bumpers.html

 

Lol. Rear ended twice. I now bought that fab four bumper. Glade to see it held up. Poor tailgate =/

 

After reading the above i do see people worrying about the cumple zone of our bumper to protect the truck. After being hit twice i can tell you the side pieces are coke can strength plastic. Thier is none, you can break them with your hands. The rear hitch assembly is sold and takes the hit. Steel rear bumper would just add some protection to the sides.

If your hit hard enough to bend the frame, steel bumper or not it will bend. Soft hit by a car. They will take the damage and energy.

I also cant spell. Dont judge lol

 

How's that any different than a frame mounted hitch assembly in the middle? The corners are nothing but plastic so they don't do anything at all. I've seen mine...fully disassembled.

 

Bro.

 

A tire swing out for me then! thank you HAHAHAHA

 

That may be true for the front bumper as it has a plastic crumple zone, and a light aluminum bumper that will give way on impact. The subframe is designed to break away and down, creating a second higher speed crumple zone where the drivetrain will submarine, further protecting the passenger compartment. However, the rear bumper has no such thing, and the steel hitch receiver in the middle of the bumper mounts directly to the frame surrounded by light plastic end caps and a plastic top shelf. A lot of damage from a rear end hit is on the corners of the bumper where there is no protection at all with the OEM. A full steel or aluminum bumper will provide protection at the corners with both lower, and higher speeds without any more force than a straight on hit with the OEM bumper, and it will also protect the side of the bed and rear fender. No comparison in protection, and very little additional weight with most steel bumpers (20 lbs with my RCI), and reduced weight with aluminum. Not to mention that a high clearance bumper adds a lot of additional clearance even with very moderate off roading. For me, it was a no brainer, and if someone is going to pay for the upgrade, a total no brainer.

 

This ^