Keep ARB or change out for hidden winch

Looking for opinions. I’ve got an ARB bull bumper on my 04 and thinking of selling and going with the stock bumper and a hidden winch.

I’m not in the accessorize phase I was excited about after buying the truck and more into usefulness and longevity.

thinking pros
ARB looks great on these older trucks
Tough
Higher clearance
Winch capable

cons
Heavy
Added wear on front end
With OME lift it still dropped the front end even w/o the winch
Could pay for hidden winch bracket with sale of the bumper
Need upgraded springs to support weight

And maybe it’s just a matter of preference but I appreciate your thoughts

 

Hard for us to make that decision for you if you're regretting the ARB bumper.

I'm keeping mine on.

 

in what circumstances do you need a winch but not a tougher bumper? work on a farm or something? if you don't wheel it you probably don't need a winch. if you do wheel it you probably need the bumper for protection no?

 

I like my ARB and bought one after a deer sucked through my radiator.

My 881's hold it up fine...no winch though

 

IMO, it's just a matter of preference. When I first started looking to add a winch, I too was after a hidden winch. At the time, I didn't find anything, and having one custom built was not cost effective. So I went with a Relentless steel bumper. After having it for a couple years, here's my opinion / though process:

Protection
I'm not sure there's a benefit to the steel bumper on the trail - I mean, I don't EVER hit the bumper on any obstacles or anything. Skids sure, and sliders sometimes - but bumper? No. Not on a 1st gen - our angles are so good anyway. Now, you might hit the stock bumper since it hangs a bit lower, but I've been on a lot of trips with Monte in Igor pre-steel bumper and he wasn't rubbing his bumper on much (if anything). So, I'd say that you're not getting protection on dirt roads.

Now, the place where you do get protection from a steel bumper (IMO) is on the highway. Not against vehicles so much (though I'm sure you get some), but against deer/small wildlife. I hit a deer at ~35mph with the Relentless bumper and had no damage to the truck. The bumper essentially paid for itself in that one incident - with the stock bumper, I'd have had to replace the entire front end. Note: this same result may not be a direct comparison with the ARB, since my understanding is that it has a bunch of crumple zones built in so that it is "DOT approved"

Tie-ish - since stock wins on-trail, steel wins against deer (except maybe in the case of ARB, unfortunately).

Fuel Mileage
If you're someone who cares about this, keep in mind that the stock bumper is going to give you much better fuel economy. Probably about 5% or so, due to aerodynamics. Of course, weigh that gain with everything else. Stock bumper wins.

Wear and Tear (and cost of "other" components)
This is where I'd bucket things like your current springs not being able to support the weight of the bumper. One of the things we all often overlook are the ancillary costs of a given mod. Getting a winch requires more than just the winch purchase ('cause you need somewhere to mount it). Keeping the ARB isn't "free just b/c you have the ARB already," since you'll have the ongoing cost of new suspension each time you wear out whatever you have installed. From this perspective, I think the stock bumper wins out, easily.

Looks
Well now, that's totally personal preference. I'm not a huge fan of the ARB look, but then, some people don't love Relentless. Some like a clean stock look, others want the "mean" stance that steel gives.

That leaves us with Stock 2.5 vs. Steel .5

So there you go. I think in most cases, stock with a hidden mount is "arguably better." I'm pretty sure I'd have gone that route and been happy if I could have. I'm still happy (given my deer incident) with the Relentless.

 

For what's it's worth, my idea when the time and funds become available is to do a front receiver hidden hitch, where I can mount a winch when I need it, and can move it from front to rear if needed. The Hidden receiver hitch will weight quite a bit less than the ARB, and shouldn't wear out my front end suspension quite as fast. but the ARB does have one really good factor going for it, strength. I've seen many vehicles hit by deer, and they can do some serious damage. I've seen cars hit by them and seen them go through the windshield after tearing up the front end. Pickup trucks don't fair much better because they ride higher and the impact is more direct on the front end, grill, radiator, head lights, front bumper, ect. I'm always on the lookout for deer during the winter months, trying to find those shiny eyeballs on the the side of the road. and I always tell my friends, if you see one run across the road in front of you slow down, where there's one, there's usually more. but this argument really comes down to your personal likes, and how deep are your pockets for keeping the suspension updated when needed. If I had unlimited funds, I'd most likely trick my rig out, but I don't so I'm keeping mine stock for now. Good luck with your decision.

 

Which OME springs do you have? If you have an xtra cab or double cab with the v6 and 4wd, you probably need the heavier 883 springs assuming you want closer to 3" of lift without sagging. 880-882s are all 500# springs, the 883s are 590# springs.

 

Your mind is made up .

You want to ditch the ARB bumper

Go for it .

Myself I would Keep it because I like that look

 

Sounds like you have your mind made up to rid of the ARB piece.
I was close to buying one when I found Shrock Works. The winch is concealed and the fit/ finish is awesome as are the approach/ departure angles.

Good luck.

 

If you go for a hidden winch, you're likely going to need to go with a custom build.

Ask @Kwikvette, he'll tell you that if you ask nicely, I might consider helping with one if you're local... Just don't look at my old photos of some of my welds, lol...

So that's definitely a con if you have me help build it

 

I like the look of an ARB, and the practicality of it's extra curricular uses. But for a daily driver, unless you like the looks I don't see a reason to have it. I don't daily drive my truck, well not regularly, and I have two other vehicles to split my usage with so things that reduce MPG are just a drop in the bucket.

 

I love my ARB but if you do decide to take it off, I have a hidden winch bracket sitting in my garage collecting dust if youd like to buy it cheap Im in Everett WA

 

What he said

Thinking about it...I just threw up a little

 

Thanks for all the replies!

The truck is a daily with some weekend adventures

I have the double cab and the lift came on the truck but I think it’s the lower rated. Sounds like stiffer springs would help the sag

Thanks for the itemized list of pros and cons. Really helps put it in perspective

I like the idea of the hidden hitch and will take you up on the offer if I do go back to stock!

I sure like way they look

 

I’d keep it since you already have it, plus the OG Tacoma is so got dang purty with it.

 

I'd keep it if it's already on there. The ARB bumpers on my Tacomas have paid for themselves multiple times over. They are also surprisingly light without a winch installed, so if you're having suspension sagging issues then you may just need new front suspension regardless.

• As turbodb said with his Relentless bumper, I've hit a deer going 35-40 and there was no resulting damage.

• I've seen several careless people back into my truck in parking lots, only to find that their plastic rear bumper is cracked and my steel ARB is fine.

• Someone sent me into a rock wall on the interstate last summer. I was down to about 50-55 by the time the truck impacted the wall. The truck was completely fucked but I walked away with barely a scratch, thanks in large part to the crumpling of the ARB bumper on the front of the truck it seems.

 

I purchased the front and rear Schrockworks bumpers for my 96 and they are awesome, they also weigh a LOT more than the ARB.

 

Maybe your suspension is just tired rather then the bumper and winch being to heavy

 

Possibly

from everything I’m reading above sounds like now that it’s on it makes sense to keep it. And it’s still hard not to walk by and think man that’s a good looking truck w/ the bumper on there

I’ll probably look at stiffer springs for the front to bring the sag back up. The OME 883s

thanks everyone for the input!

 

Since you have the heaviest front end configuration (double cab v6 4wd) I think that's a wise idea, the 883s should hold the ARB no problem without sagging.