Magnitude SV34 Front Bumper Upgrade

[Judge]

Originally Posted by Zenith

Judge, thanks for the information. It made things a lot easier, no need to spend days browsing bumpers to try to find a quality one.


My plastic bumper cover was separated left and right side from the 4 clips holding it to the factory bumper. It also cracked the whole way through where the adhesive was securing it to the factory bumper. One of my fog lights was smashed and the opposite side had a crack going halfway up the cover. I was just one strong breeze away from losing it, I just grabbed and tugged and it popped right off!


My factory bumper underneath was intact, but the side with the crack had a bend in it. I've hit plenty of road debris at this point, so it was probably from one of those times.



I bump curbs, go on gravel roads, and have a lot of mileage for my Magnitude's age, so I think my use case exasperated an already insufficient quality front bumper. I've had more than enough close calls with elk and deer, and run a plate bumper on my Tacoma after I used the factory one to kill Bambi, so this mod was easy for me to justify.





I was able to get new tow hooks on Ebay for under $100, then the bumper from Amazon for $1400: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B078978XHK . The bumper arrived in 3 days and was meticulously packed and high quality.



It took under 30 minutes to remove the factory bumper and around 2 hours to install the new one. I skimmed the instructions before starting, but removal of the factory bumper and installation of the new one is so straightforward it was trivial. I have a shop of tools and a decent amount of experience wrenching, so it may take someone with normal garage tools a bit longer. I did need to ask my neighbor to help me lift it into place, it's heavy duty. It was maybe a 2 beer job. No big deal.



I have new foglights on order, I'm just going to use some generic LED pods.





Magnitude RB34 with new bumper attached.

Looks great!!!!

It makes the Magnitude look rugged but it is very functional. If you end up clipping a deer, etc., you have a fighting chance to keep the coach mobile. It should protect the radiator and even the lights.

I don't know why Thor chose to put the plastic over the stock chrome bumper. I guess to give it more of a heavy truck look. But the Ford stock bumper is not all the rugged either. It would get destroyed with a deer / elk strike.

This bumper is as solid as they come and while it may need replaced after a deer / elk strike, I think damage to the front end would be minimal for the most part.

[rjt30114]

Any link to the tow hooks?

[Judge]

Originally Posted by rjt30114

Any link to the tow hooks?

I just searched 2019 Ford Super Duty Tow Hooks. There were black and chrome. I went with Chrome and got mine on eBay.

https://www.google.com/search?q=2019...obile&ie=UTF-8

[Zenith]

Originally Posted by rjt30114

Any link to the tow hooks?

These worked perfect for me.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/254797384016


They're not new, but neither is my Magnitude. They came in usable condition but a bit dirty since they're used pulls. They cleaned to like new.

[Dan-sr@perra-us.net]

I live in Iowa, home of corn-fed venison. While this will probably keep you going after hitting a 1-ton Moose you will not escape damage. In addition, it will not protect you from the body going through the windshield. Yes. that can happen although you probably won't care anymore after that. The best defense is to avoid hitting large animals if at all possible. I own a Jeep Grand Cherokee and have owned Chevy and Chrysler sedans all told I have hit two deer with the Jeep but at least 6 with the sedans over the last 22 years. Hitting the deer with the jeep did bend the heavy-duty aftermarket bumper on the Jeep. I think one of the reasons I hit fewer deer with the jeep is. 1. because of the lifted height of the jeep, I have a better chance to see a deer about to jump out of the ditch. 2. the jeep is a visually larger vehicle for the deer to see. 3.My jeep has a loud exhaust which serves to warn deer that you are approaching.

[Judge]

Originally Posted by Dan-sr@perra-us.net

I live in Iowa, home of corn-fed venison. While this will probably keep you going after hitting a 1-ton Moose you will not escape damage.

When I am on a 2 or 3 month trip I don't want a deer or even a small fender bender to end my trip prematurely..... especially when we head to Alaska next year.

The stock Ford bumper will bend with minimal force and provides no protection. The radiator, A/C condensor and lights will all be destroyed ending the trip and creating a nightmare where I would need to leave for a long length of time and return once the coach was repaired.

While no solution is full proof, the bumper I put on my SV34 will keep us going unless we are in a serious crash.

[Zenith]

I just got back from a ~4k mile long holiday trip. I had a roadkill hit on the bumper from a deer getting flung into me by a semi, and one unknown large object that made a very loud thud. It sounded wood, but who knows.



Both of those could have been a major issue with the factory bumper - but instead was just a gross mess with no apparent damage, so it's already paid itself off in my mind.


Judge, thanks again for the good recommendation, your posts are always helpful and appreciated.

[Judge]

Originally Posted by Zenith

I just got back from a ~4k mile long holiday trip. I had a roadkill hit on the bumper from a deer getting flung into me by a semi, and one unknown large object that made a very loud thud. It sounded wood, but who knows.



Both of those could have been a major issue with the factory bumper - but instead was just a gross mess with no apparent damage, so it's already paid itself off in my mind.


Judge, thanks again for the good recommendation, your posts are always helpful and appreciated.

You are welcome! Glad that bumper prevented damage. Much easier to deal with a cleanup than bodywork and more!

I feel much better with that bumper installed for sure.

[LarryD]

Originally Posted by Zenith

I just got back from a ~4k mile long holiday trip. I had a roadkill hit on the bumper from a deer getting flung into me by a semi, and one unknown large object that made a very loud thud. It sounded wood, but who knows.



Both of those could have been a major issue with the factory bumper - but instead was just a gross mess with no apparent damage, so it's already paid itself off in my mind.


Judge, thanks again for the good recommendation, your posts are always helpful and appreciated.

Zenith, How do you like the DAYTON 350-1214HD CargoMaxx HD coils you installed? Any complaints with all those miles under your belt? I about to pull my bumper to install the front mounted hitch to carry my motorcycle as we discussed and am thinking about doing the springs + sumo+ sway bar + stabilizer+rancho shocks. thoughts?

[MTcamper]

Judge, thanks again for sharing your upgrades. After seeing the pictures of your new bumper I knew I had to get one. I have hit a mattress (flew out of the back of a pickup) and a pheasant-neither did any damage, but sometimes you can't avoid hitting something. I echo your comments on the build quality and design-great product. What LED lights did you order? I assume you didn't just order bulbs for the fog lights on your Magnitude

[Judge]

Originally Posted by MTcamper

Judge, thanks again for sharing your upgrades. After seeing the pictures of your new bumper I knew I had to get one. I have hit a mattress (flew out of the back of a pickup) and a pheasant-neither did any damage, but sometimes you can't avoid hitting something. I echo your comments on the build quality and design-great product. What LED lights did you order? I assume you didn't just order bulbs for the fog lights on your Magnitude

It certainly is very nice having the extra front end protection... plus the additional air flow to the rad and transmission cooler.

I used these fog lights.... they were plug and play but Thor wired them backwards on the coach so I had to flip the connectors around.

I did replace the plastic threaded block with a nylok nut on the fog lights. The plastic blocks started cracking after a year and would not hold the adjustment.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1


I then added this lightbar for some extra lighting if I needed it off the highway.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

So far so good on both lights.