C-ROK RD Rear Bumper Install Write Up

[akelts]

I won this bumper at our Rockfest event raffle way back in March and just got around to installing it last weekend. I figured this would make a good first write up for me on . The install was pretty straight forward and the directions that came with the bumper were pretty well written, but like all the work I do on my XJ I ran into a few hang-ups. A few of the issues I had were probably only specific to my Cherokee, but I figure I will share them and maybe I will end up saving some other people some aggravation in the future. Another thing to consider is that this bumper won’t work too well if you have done the cut and fold modification to your rear quarter panels already. Also, YOU NEED TO HAVE FACTORY NUTSTRIPS TO INSTALL THIS BUMPER.

First off remove you old bumper. I had a Tomken rear bumper that I had installed a few years back that was relatively easy to take off. If your still stock you have to remove the plastic bumper endcaps (or scrape them up against some rocks to rip them off as I did). If I remember right when I first installed the Tomken bumper several years ago it was a PIA to get a few of the bolts holding the stock bumper brackets on due to rust. My solution at the time was to drill a hole in the stock bumper with a hole saw so I could get an extension and the socket through it to the bolt….you may have better luck if you try a few different length sockets and wrenches.

Once the quarter panel plastic is removed you will then have to remove the metal mounting clips that held them on by drilling (with a 1/8” bit) out the rivets that hold them to the quarter panel. I don’t have any pics of this step as I had already removed these a while back when I bedlined the lower half of the Cherokee. I also removed the taillights so I could spray some bedliner in the remaining white areas behind the bumper. Removing them was easier than taping them up to protect them from overspray.

I removed the old rear bumper while I was waiting for the coats of primer and Rustoleum spray bedliner to dry on the new one….MULTI-TASKING. My bumper came bare metal and I used some brake cleaner to remove any dirt and grease before priming and spraying bedliner on it.


Rear bumper removed:

The new C-ROK bumper bedlined and ready to install.

I had previously installed a factory gas tank skid and the nutstrips that I had stripped off of a parts Cherokee I had a few years back. If your XJ doesn’t have the nutstrips you will have to find some before continuing. If you have the nutstrips and the skid plate, remove the two rear bolts on either side that secure the skid plate to the unibody. For some reason that I can’t recall now I had actually cut the rearmost nut off the nutstrip on both sides? I ended up just using a regular nut and washers for the rearmost one.

 

[akelts]

Now remove the interior panels in the rear cargo area. C-ROK states that this is to make sure that you don’t drill into any wires during the next few steps and also if you have an interior tire carrier from the factory you will have to remove it. Removing this tire carrier bracket ended up being the biggest PIA of the install. Removing the trim is easy enough just start unscrewing any Phillips head screws on the bottom trim piece by the bumper latch and remove it. Then unscrew the panels below the rear side windows and pull up on them from the bottom and they will pop out. I left the seatbelts threaded through them and just flipped them over the rear seat so they would be out of the way.
Here is a pic of the darned spare tire support bracket:

I removed all the bolts I could see and I could not get this thing to budge. Turns out there is another bolt that I could feel from underneath, but the head stripped out before the darn thing would let loose. So I figured I would leave the bracket in and I could work around it. I figured wrong.
At this point the directions from C-ROK state that on 97+ models you may have to trim about 1/4” of material around the old bumper mount to get the new brackets to fit. I broke out the grinder and removed the material just to be on the safe side, but I am pretty sure it would have worked without me doing this step. You can see the area they want you to remove outlined in this pic:

After removing the material and bedlining:

Now you can install the bumper brackets. I used the bolts from the old bumper brackets but added bigger washers. Keep the bolts loose until you get them all started. At first I couldn’t get the four holes on the bracket to line up as there was some interference with the flange on the bottom of the bracket hitting on the sheet metal below the four holes. I ended up having to grind notches for the flanges along the bottom of sheet metal as seen here (you can also see my missing nut on the nutstrip):

I was able to get to 3 of the 4 bracket bolts fairly easily with a short socket, but one of the top ones required a wobble attachment and an extension to tighten. I was missing the 1/2” spacers that were supposed to go between the uniframe channel and the flange on the new brackets….so off to ACE hardware where I found two 1” spacers and cut them in half. I then had to cut one of the half inch spacers in half again to get them it to fit in the between the flange and the unibody in the rearmost hole as seen here:

Once all the bolts are started then you can tighten them down beginning with the topmost bolts and working your way down.

 

[akelts]

Once the two brackets are installed you can slide the bumper unto the Cherokee. I would recommend having someone give you a hand with this step. Because of the bedlining on my Cherokee, we really had to push to get this thing to seat all the way back against the brackets and it stayed on there pretty well afterwards; your experience may differ. Install the six bolts and washers through the bumper and into the brackets and make sure its level before you tighten them down.
Now for the fun part. You have to drill holes in the quarter panel through the holes in the top of the bumper with a 1/4” drill bit. I had to use a floor jack to get the passenger side to sit flush with the bottom of the quarter panel since my quarter panel wasn’t really straight there anymore. I was impressed that the floor jack actually lifted the body a good 2-3” and the bumper took the weight of the Cherokee on the quarter panel guard without any issue.
Drilling the holes on the passenger side and getting the smaller nutstrip on the inside of the quarter panel was not a big deal. But I had issues with the driver’s side….remember the tire carrier bracket I thought I could “work around”? Turns out I couldn’t. I ended up cutting it out with a sawzall so I could get the four bolts started in the nutstrip on the driver’s side quarter panel.
After cutting the tire carrier bracket out:

Even with it cut out, getting the bolts lined up and started was a chore and if you can do it without someone helping you, you belong in the circus as a contortionist. Here are some pics of the quarter panel guards bolted up:

Only six more bolts to go! Just drill out the bottom three holes on the quarter panel guards with the same 1/4" drill bit and install the remaining hex bolts through them using a washer and nut on top.

Screw the interior panels back in place and….
YOU’RE DONE!

I really like this bumper. It definitely sits high and tight to the body. The welds are very professional and it is really strong without being crazy heavy. I am actually a little worried about catching the lip of the hatch on rocks now as it sticks out about ½” more than the top of the bumper, but I figure the receiver and D-ring brackets will protect it.
I did a little customizing while I was at it…now I don’t have to remember to bring a bottle opener with us every time we go camping:

 

[akelts]

Before you put the interior trim back in now is a good time to cut out the little pocket on the inside passenger rear trim area and create a handy area to store stuff (fluids, first aid or tire repair kit, etc.) inside the quarter panel. I moved the wires up out of the way as much as I could and secured them with some zip ties and I will go back and bedline the inside of it eventually.

 

[Bjorn86]

Very nice, I've got the same bumper and I really like it. I'm thinking about adding the tire carrier soon.

 

[CartsXJ]

I've been running this bumper with their fire carrier for the past 7 years and love it. Nice write up!! I didn't realize C-rok was still making them.

 

[WB9YZU]

Nice write-up

A couple of observations.
I see you make extensive use of bed liner. My experience with bedliner on exterior items like bumpers is that it looks good at first, but rust will form under it and it will be extremely hard to deal with.

2nd. Does that bumper sit further back? Where it is mounted now, the hatch will make contact before the bumper does, causing extensive damage.

 

[akelts]

Nice write-up

A couple of observations.
I see you make extensive use of bed liner. My experience with bedliner on exterior items like bumpers is that it looks good at first, but rust will form under it and it will be extremely hard to deal with.

2nd. Does that bumper sit further back? Where it is mounted now, the hatch will make contact before the bumper does, causing extensive damage.

Rust isnt such a big deal here in Arizona so I'm not too worried.

I actually mentioned that toward the end of my write-up about the hatch sticking out a little bit further than the top of the bumper, but I think the reciever and the shackle brackets will probably (hopefully) keep it from getting hung up on the rocks....we will test it out once it gets cool enough to take the XJ out to the trails again here.

 

[SleeperXJ]

Akelts, good writeup.
I installed this bumper a couple years ago. I had trouble sliding the bumper in place over the quarter panel.
My fix was to slightly grind a radius or chamfer on the leading edge of the
bumper. Smooth sailing after that.

 

[Brent T]

Nice write-up Aaron. I have a couple friends who have that same bumper. On the 97+, the center of the hatch does stick out further than the bumper due to the hatch being curved. On the pre-'96, it fits perfectly since the hatch is straight across the bottom, not curved. Apparently it was originally designed for pre-97's, but they are really nice bumpers. Mucho clearance.

 

[WB9YZU]

Rust isnt such a big deal here in Arizona so I'm not too worried.

I actually mentioned that toward the end of my write-up about the hatch sticking out a little bit further than the top of the bumper, but I think the reciever and the shackle brackets will probably (hopefully) keep it from getting hung up on the rocks....we will test it out once it gets cool enough to take the XJ out to the trails again here.

Cool on no rust issues in AZ :thumbup:

I'm certainly not knocking the bumper, it looks well made, but for other browsers of this thread, or others looking for ideas on how to build their home build bumpers, a caution on bumper protection. In my experience; mind you we have Trees here Bumpers that sit too close to the body do not protect body parts, like gates. I built one similar in clearances as that. I tapped a tree while maneuvering. The glass exploded and the gate folded up like a pop can. Point of impact? That plastic lic plate light cover. Bumper was not even touched. I welded on a piece of 2" square tubing to the bumper after repairing the gate and replacing the glass.

Of course, you probably don't have trees either