H3 Road Armor Bumper Troubles
Posted: Sat Feb 13, 2010 12:01 pm
I wanted to share my recent experience with Road Armor;
While at first they were very helpful and accommodating, in fact you couldn't hold a candle to their initial service... that brief period is now over and I am now dealing with a number of problems and have been cut off from customer service and ignored (unless of course this thread catches the attention of RA).
Anyway, without further delay I want to identify the 4 major deficiencies with the bumper. The first 3 are forgivable in my opinion, although I am a pretty nice guy and likely these problems would be enough to bother other owners.
Problem #1: Missing parts
After paying a staggering 550$ for shipping, I found that the instruction manual (if one exists) and all bolts, washers and nuts were missing from my package. After contacting RA about the problem it was deemed to be cheaper and faster if I went out and purchased the hardware myself... I expected they would reimburse me the 35$ or so for the cost... instead they started ignoring my e-mails and hoped I would go away... which I supposed I did, I am not going to make a big deal about 35$.
Problem #2: Skid Plate
Once the bumper was installed it became apparent I could not reinstall the stock skid plate. My radiator stuck out like a sore thumb in the front. Very bad for off-road, RA does not offer a skid plate or a solution for this problem. I had to have a custom plate made for a few hundred dollars. Something to think about if you go with this bumper.
Problem #3: Rust
Only 2 months in and at our last Hummer meet several of the welds are starting to show clear signs of rust. The powdercoat is not really a good job... I would recommend people do not go for the powder coated options and rather order it bare and do it yourselves.
Problem #4
This by far is the biggest and most insulting problem so far. Road Armor claims it can handle a 12,000lb winch... it suggests Mile Marker as the winch for this bumper. This was the selling point for me, I needed a big honking winch so I could help out other larger Hummers once in a while... as far as winches go bigger is better and with Mile Marker the added option of Hydraulic was more than alluring to me.
So join me in a photo journey of why there isn't a single 12,000lb winch on the market that will fit;. Not only that most 9000lb or greater winches do not fit.... not even most compact designed ones. <img src='http://www.canadianhummerclub.com/forum ... /angry.gif' class='bbc_emoticon' alt='>:(' />
After some brief measurements it wasn't looking good. The clear distance between the stiffener plates on each side is about 23"... the bolt holes for the winch are centered leaving about 6.5" from the center of the bolts to the edge of the clear space.
But I wanted to be sure... so I took the dimensional drawing for the winch and made myself a full size cardboard version. It is a mile marker winch in every way that counts for this fitment test.
[img width=500 height=205]http://i211.photobucket.com/albums/bb25 ... ension.jpg[/img]
[img width=500 height=473]http://i211.photobucket.com/albums/bb25 ... ARKER1.jpg[/img]
After making the mock up, I did some test fitting: As you can see, my cardboard skills are amazing... a perfect fit to the bolt holes.
[img width=500 height=321]http://i211.photobucket.com/albums/bb25 ... ARKER2.jpg[/img]
However when trying to mount it inside.... my cardboard cut out was bend and twisted at the ends.
[img width=500 height=186]http://i211.photobucket.com/albums/bb25 ... ARKER4.jpg[/img]
So I had to make a modification... easy to do with cardboard, not so easy to do with a real winch. As you can clearly see.... the clear distance from the edge to the bolt center line is roughly 6.5". Not nearly enough room for any 12,000lb winches on the market. The mounting bolts are symmetrical so both sides of the bumper are exactly the same.
[img width=500 height=341]http://i211.photobucket.com/albums/bb25 ... ARKER5.jpg[/img]
Cutting out the plate is not an option, the winch would need the space currently occupied by the mounting bracket and bolts.
[img width=500 height=334]http://i211.photobucket.com/albums/bb25 ... ARKER6.jpg[/img]
As far as re drilling new holes to be offset from the center goes... well that won't be easy either. It doesn't bolt to the bumper itself, it is actually bolted to mounting brackets on the inside. It would be a massive undertaking to relocate that. This is a picture from the outside.... you can see the fully welded mounting brackets on the inside.
[img width=500 height=904]http://i211.photobucket.com/albums/bb25 ... ARKER3.jpg[/img]
Anyway, this is the final straw for me. I was being quiet on the other issues so far, but this is totally unforgivable in my opinion. I feel that I shouldn't have to rework my bumper at my own cost to make something fit that it is advertised for. I am hoping RA will help me with the problems.
Thanks for taking the time to read my thread,
Regards
-SP
While at first they were very helpful and accommodating, in fact you couldn't hold a candle to their initial service... that brief period is now over and I am now dealing with a number of problems and have been cut off from customer service and ignored (unless of course this thread catches the attention of RA).
Anyway, without further delay I want to identify the 4 major deficiencies with the bumper. The first 3 are forgivable in my opinion, although I am a pretty nice guy and likely these problems would be enough to bother other owners.
Problem #1: Missing parts
After paying a staggering 550$ for shipping, I found that the instruction manual (if one exists) and all bolts, washers and nuts were missing from my package. After contacting RA about the problem it was deemed to be cheaper and faster if I went out and purchased the hardware myself... I expected they would reimburse me the 35$ or so for the cost... instead they started ignoring my e-mails and hoped I would go away... which I supposed I did, I am not going to make a big deal about 35$.
Problem #2: Skid Plate
Once the bumper was installed it became apparent I could not reinstall the stock skid plate. My radiator stuck out like a sore thumb in the front. Very bad for off-road, RA does not offer a skid plate or a solution for this problem. I had to have a custom plate made for a few hundred dollars. Something to think about if you go with this bumper.
Problem #3: Rust
Only 2 months in and at our last Hummer meet several of the welds are starting to show clear signs of rust. The powdercoat is not really a good job... I would recommend people do not go for the powder coated options and rather order it bare and do it yourselves.
Problem #4
This by far is the biggest and most insulting problem so far. Road Armor claims it can handle a 12,000lb winch... it suggests Mile Marker as the winch for this bumper. This was the selling point for me, I needed a big honking winch so I could help out other larger Hummers once in a while... as far as winches go bigger is better and with Mile Marker the added option of Hydraulic was more than alluring to me.
So join me in a photo journey of why there isn't a single 12,000lb winch on the market that will fit;. Not only that most 9000lb or greater winches do not fit.... not even most compact designed ones. <img src='http://www.canadianhummerclub.com/forum ... /angry.gif' class='bbc_emoticon' alt='>:(' />
After some brief measurements it wasn't looking good. The clear distance between the stiffener plates on each side is about 23"... the bolt holes for the winch are centered leaving about 6.5" from the center of the bolts to the edge of the clear space.
But I wanted to be sure... so I took the dimensional drawing for the winch and made myself a full size cardboard version. It is a mile marker winch in every way that counts for this fitment test.
[img width=500 height=205]http://i211.photobucket.com/albums/bb25 ... ension.jpg[/img]
[img width=500 height=473]http://i211.photobucket.com/albums/bb25 ... ARKER1.jpg[/img]
After making the mock up, I did some test fitting: As you can see, my cardboard skills are amazing... a perfect fit to the bolt holes.
[img width=500 height=321]http://i211.photobucket.com/albums/bb25 ... ARKER2.jpg[/img]
However when trying to mount it inside.... my cardboard cut out was bend and twisted at the ends.
[img width=500 height=186]http://i211.photobucket.com/albums/bb25 ... ARKER4.jpg[/img]
So I had to make a modification... easy to do with cardboard, not so easy to do with a real winch. As you can clearly see.... the clear distance from the edge to the bolt center line is roughly 6.5". Not nearly enough room for any 12,000lb winches on the market. The mounting bolts are symmetrical so both sides of the bumper are exactly the same.
[img width=500 height=341]http://i211.photobucket.com/albums/bb25 ... ARKER5.jpg[/img]
Cutting out the plate is not an option, the winch would need the space currently occupied by the mounting bracket and bolts.
[img width=500 height=334]http://i211.photobucket.com/albums/bb25 ... ARKER6.jpg[/img]
As far as re drilling new holes to be offset from the center goes... well that won't be easy either. It doesn't bolt to the bumper itself, it is actually bolted to mounting brackets on the inside. It would be a massive undertaking to relocate that. This is a picture from the outside.... you can see the fully welded mounting brackets on the inside.
[img width=500 height=904]http://i211.photobucket.com/albums/bb25 ... ARKER3.jpg[/img]
Anyway, this is the final straw for me. I was being quiet on the other issues so far, but this is totally unforgivable in my opinion. I feel that I shouldn't have to rework my bumper at my own cost to make something fit that it is advertised for. I am hoping RA will help me with the problems.
Thanks for taking the time to read my thread,
Regards
-SP
