Multi-Purpose Light/Brush Bar w/optional Skid Plate & Winch

[Skemcin]

Ahh the difference between a car built fifty years ago and one built now. Thank you for bringing up safety. With that in mind I think i'm out too. Unless when I look under my Baja tomorrow in the daylight I come up with a alternate idea.

RoverLander

Out all together?

[RoverLander]

Still in for brush guard/winch combo. Need to do more feasibility research on the rest.

RoverLander

[Skemcin]

## BUMPDATE ##

Here a few pictures ...

This is the Impreza Bar held up to the Baja - and it looks really good. But, there are no similar mounting points so this approach is not going to work.


Here is what we're doing:




Two straight pieces (front to back) and then three crossing (left to right). The top hoop (going above the bumper/license plate) is optional but will be required for the winch option as it will have bolts where the license plate goes. It will be wider, stretching just to the outer edge of the fog light itself. Mounting will be on the center jack plate, either sway bar mounting points, and the front radiator cross member.
(of course this is subject to change slightly, but that's where we are right now)

We've decided (based on feedback and lack of front mounting points) to drop the rock slider and/or nerf bar concept. If time permits, we'll do a bumper bar similar to this:



More pictures late tonight...

[RoverLander]

Like the rear bumper concept. If you could find some way to add a 2" trailer slider to it, it would be a dream come true.@;-)

Keep up the good work.

RoverLander

[Skemcin]

Like the rear bumper concept. If you could find some way to add a 2" trailer slider to it, it would be a dream come true.@;-)

Keep up the good work.

RoverLander

To clarify, what is your idea of a trailer slider. If it has anything to do with modifying or creating a receiver hitch, we won't have the time to do that. Plus, its an entirely different situation when you start talking about receiver hitches. Post a pic if you can.

Thanks

[RoverLander]

Yes, I was wanting a 2" Receiver. I'm willing to wait if it's something you think you could tackle in the future. I can't bring my self to buy a Curt or Subaru 1-1/4"receiver because they are so small and under built in my opinion. Been looking for somebody to fab up a 2" half heartedly for a few months. Again in wanting to use the Baja for towing ( ~ 1100 lbs 13' Boston Whaler) instead of the using the Land Rover.

RoverLander

[Skemcin]

## PICTURES ##

As promised, pictures of the bar ...
(sorry, ended up using the cell phone for pictures - the Rebel EOS will be charged for tomorrow's pics)

Given our direction on this bar, we were able to make two products from it - one with the top hoop and one with out. It's not that much less (or more) material but for those who want to save a little cash and just want the under carriage / core support with a skid plate we have this:

[pictures removed - not web friendly - jump down a couple posts for updated pictures]

As pictured there, all the tubing ends will be capped - so the ends seen in the first few pictures will be closed off. The winch mount will be done exactly the same way as on the Impreza bar.

I'll post cleaner images Sunday so I'll check back in then.

[Skemcin]

And sorry about he size of the pictures - I thought the site re-sized them...

I'll fix it Sunday evening.

[koehlean]

Sweeeeet! Looks like it was supposed to be there.

I also dig the idea for the rear bumper add on too. Just a reply to the towing capability... - I've pulled a Suzuki Samurai and on numerous occasions, a 4X8 trailer with a 1000cc race bike with tools, gear and the like. I've never had a problem with the Subaru bar - I just purchased an adapter to recieve a 2". I would agree it would be nice to replace the tow bar completely with a 2" version (possibly adding on the rear skid protector) but not necessary.

Just my 2 cents.

[RoverLander]

Thanks for your input. The problem i saw with adapting to 2" is it brings the tung load further away from the car, thus putting more stress because of the added leverage on the already weak 1-1/4" receiver. I've yet to find a 1-1/4 receiver that has a double wall or thick enough stock to my liking. In my line of work we do alot of towing and I've seen what happens when a hitch fails. Which now makes me overly cautious I guess. I'd rather pay to have the best option possible the first time, over settling for an adequate one and having to replace it later. Just my personal view in life.


I second rear bumber w/skid plate.@;-$

Received superwinch on Tuesday. Looking to see if it would fit under the rear with or without removing spare tire.

RoverLander

[Buck Rogers]

I like what I see so far. I am looking forward to seeing the other pictures (browser friendly ) would it be possible to get a couple of shots where the engine cross-member bolts to the uni-body (left and right)? As I really need to compare stock verses what I have. This would be for spacer purposes.

Thanks
Buck

[steven765]

umm why are you lifting that poor baja by the floor pan?! That's not a lift point.

[Skemcin]

Sweeeeet! Looks like it was supposed to be there.

I also dig the idea for the rear bumper add on too. Just a reply to the towing capability... - I've pulled a Suzuki Samurai and on numerous occasions, a 4X8 trailer with a 1000cc race bike with tools, gear and the like. I've never had a problem with the Subaru bar - I just purchased an adapter to recieve a 2". I would agree it would be nice to replace the tow bar completely with a 2" version (possibly adding on the rear skid protector) but not necessary.

Just my 2 cents.

We focused our time on the main build and simply didn't have enough time to address the rear bumper. At this time, I can't say for sure whether or not we'll get to it given how difficult is was to get a truck for fitment - at least without asking someone to drive 5 hours (again, a huge thank you to for driving out here and volunteering his truck).

I'd have to do a lot of research before I dig into a receiver hitch, let alone a 2" one for this truck. My biggest concern is whether or not it should be done - if the manufacturer doesn't build or even recommend that type, there is a lot for me to worry about. So, I'm not sure I'm ready to tackle that beast at the moment. Not off the table, but I have to establish myself before I take that type of work on. I hope you understand.

Thanks for your input. The problem i saw with adapting to 2" is it brings the tung load further away from the car, thus putting more stress because of the added leverage on the already weak 1-1/4" receiver. I've yet to find a 1-1/4 receiver that has a double wall or thick enough stock to my liking. In my line of work we do alot of towing and I've seen what happens when a hitch fails. Which now makes me overly cautious I guess. I'd rather pay to have the best option possible the first time, over settling for an adequate one and having to replace it later. Just my personal view in life.


I second rear bumber w/skid plate.@;-$

Received superwinch on Tuesday. Looking to see if it would fit under the rear with or without removing spare tire.

RoverLander

The pictures below do not show a winch mount yet, but it won't be that much different from the Impreza. But there is a shot of the winch on the truck - so you'll get the idea.

I like what I see so far. I am looking forward to seeing the other pictures (browser friendly ) would it be possible to get a couple of shots where the engine cross-member bolts to the uni-body (left and right)? As I really need to compare stock verses what I have. This would be for spacer purposes.

Thanks
Buck

We did a lot of thinking on this bar (like everything we do) and we decided to delete the rear most cross bar - like what is on the Impreza bar. We did this for a couple reasons. First, the Legacy chassis is build differently in that it has a cross member right there and its beefy. So, putting a bar across really wouldn't do much but get in the way. I found and crawled under a 2003 Legacy Outback in a local grocery store and saw noted the stock exhaust location and compared them to the Borla headers pictures that were sent and decided the if we didn't have the rear most cross bar, then non-turbos wouldn't have any issues as there would be nothing in the way. Having said that, the only modification will be to the skid plate. So, what I need now is a picture and a distance from the middle of the jack plate to the outer most area of where the headers are - shouldn't be any farther out than the exhaust outlets from the motor. For n/a we will simply bend the skid plate a little differently. All in all, you will not need spacers.

umm why are you lifting that poor baja by the floor pan?! That's not a lift point.

His question in relation to spacers is not for lifting the truck, but to push the bar/skid plate lower so it will clear the 3" Borla headers he has on the truck. But, our design accommodates that, so it is a non issue.

[Skemcin]

## PROJECT UPDATE W/PICTURES ##

I have to start of, again, with a huge thanks to Cosmictech for driving 5 hours out here to volunteer his truck for fitment. Please, when you guys have chance, please send him as PM and a some thanks.

First and foremost, I took 40+ pictures but I'll just post a few here. The rest you can browse here:
https://picasaweb.google.com/1016151332 ... aruBajaBar

Here a few shots:















MOUNTING
There are six(6) individual mounting points used for the bar and eight(8) mounting points for the skid plate. The three front mounts spotlighted are the factory threaded bolts used for the stock plastic belly pan. We found that cross member to be plenty strong upon inspection (not anything like the Impreza's which is pretty weak). The center jack plate, which is also used by the stock plastic belly pan, has two threaded holes that we used as well. On the outsides, in front of the control arms, we use the sway bar mounting bracket. All the other tabs not spotlighted are for the skid plate.



I think I've detailed most of what has been asked or is helpful to point out. So, I'll let the picture drive the discussion. Remember, the skid plate bends will be a little more on the outside for non-turbos and the front upper hoop (up to the bumper) can be requested to be omitted (saving a $100 and probably some shipping). That upper hoop will be a little higher to accommodate the license plate bracket - its hard to tell with these photos since this truck doesn't have one. And, for those interested, the link and instructions to make a deposit are on the original post of this thread and I will post information on how we will move to production and collect final payments in the coming days.

Thanks again for all the support and interest.

[steven765]

Looks like quality work. Are those prices final? Is the power coating still included? I dont see the tow hook or the fancy round bars around the winch. Are you just bolting the winch to it, lowering the cost?

Thinking about the rear attachments, have you considered shear bolts? That would cause the back end to break away on a hard impact, I'm thinking like a grade 5 shear bolt, to take the load normally, but break in really hard impact allowing the car to crumple. Heh that would be a great project for the undergrad senior engineering year. I would suggest stainless wing nuts to remove the skid plate so you can change the oil easily without extra power tools, if you can.