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Front-End Transformation: New Bumper and Winch Installation for Toyota 4Runner

BRANDON BURRELL . September 24, 2024 . New Products
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Giving a 4Runner Front End Options

Having the right gear on your rig when you take it off-road is important. Whether you are doing some hardcore rock crawling, playing in the mud, or just out for an overlanding camping trip, having the correct equipment can keep you out of trouble. One of the best and easiest things you can do to your rig is add a winch. This can not only pull you out of a sticky situation, but it can also assist those with you in need.

There are tons of options when it comes to winches and their accessories, as well as different mounting configurations. For this installation on a 2023 Toyota 4Runner TRD Pro, we opted for a new front bumper center section that included a winch mount as well as a light bar mount and push bar. This particular vehicle has the adaptive cruise option, so we had to make sure to order the right bumper that wouldn’t interfere with that function with the front camera. While some people choose a full front bumper replacement with the way these new 4Runners are built, adding a new center section made better sense for our needs. Installing a bumper like this is a simple job if you are comfortable with basic hand tools, and it can be done in your garage or driveway without a lift. We happened to have access to a lift so we utilized it (mostly to make taking these photos easier), but also to get the vehicle eye level and keep us from crawling on the ground. The install only took a few hours so it won’t eat up too much of your time.

The bumper chosen was the Covert Baja front bumper from CBI Offroad Fab and comes with a $950 retail price. It comes already powdercoated, so it’s ready to install but does require you to cut the lower center section of your factory front bumper. It comes with a universal winch mount, and we chose the Warn VR EVO 10-S winch, which has a $865 retail price. This winch has a plug-in remote control and comes with a 90-ft 3/8-inch line. Since there was room for a 30-inch lightbar to be mounted behind the front bumper, we opted for a Baja Designs OnX6+ amber lightbar, with a $443 retail price. With the vehicle already having white forward-facing lighting, adding the amber light here will give more lighting options for various conditions.

Follow along with the process of installing these parts to see if it’s something you would feel comfortable doing yourself, or if you should trust it to the experts.

With all the parts set out, you can ensure you have everything you need before you tear into the install.
The front of the 4Runner in stock form won’t be altered too much.
Flip the new bumper over and bolt on the winch fairlead.
Slide the nuts into the mounting feet of the winch. We used some painters tape to secure them in place while moving the winch around to set it in place.
With the winch set in place, we used the supplied bolts to secure it and then removed the tape.
After the winch was secured to the bumper, the front lower plate was installed.
The supplied lightbar mounts are installed to the inside of the bumper and the lightbar secures to both brackets. We made sure they were tight but left enough slack in the light with solid pressure so we could adjust the angle of the light once we got the vehicle out at night.
Now that the new bumper is pre assembled, it was time to tear into the vehicle’s bumper to make room for the new CBI bumper. The lower front bumper cover needed to be pulled off. Clips will break, but don’t worry—they will not be reused.
Using a Sharpie, we traced the inner lip where the front bumper cover we just removed sat.
Using a drill, we made a couple pilot holes in the corners of the section to be removed. This will allow an easier start with the air saw.
An air saw makes quick work of cutting along the Sharpie mark to remove the inner section of the lower bumper. Once it’s cut out, you can use a sander and clean up the edges.
The front crash bar was removed and will not be reused.
Next, the front crash bar mounts from both sides were removed.
The lower part of the inner splash guards also had to be trimmed to the bottom of the grille opening.
The bolts for the front AC line needed to be removed and the line pushed up and out of the way. This may vary depending on the winch you choose. For our application, we secured the line to the center support due to the head of our winch being larger.
The upper front cover panel was then removed to access behind the grille.
The front skid plate had to be removed temporarily.
We installed one bolt per side, backwards where the crash bar brackets once bolted. This allowed us to “hang” the new bumper, then secured all supplied bolts, including these on the side. All bolts utilized factory holes, so no drilling was required.
Side brackets were bolted to the new front bumper, which allowed for the now-cut side panels of the factory plastic bumper to be bolted to the new center section.
The main bumper brackets were then secured to the mounts the crash bar brackets came from.
A couple of the bolts were a little tight to get to, but with the help of some socket extensions, they went in easily.
With the bumper securely mounted, we accessed the winch remote plug and free spool knob from behind the grille through the top opening.
After the winch power cables were connected to the battery, a quick test was done to ensure proper operation.
The lightbar power wires were connected and run to our preferred switched power connection.
Before the top cover was reinstalled under the hood, an access hole was cut to allow us to reach the remote plug and free spool knob, yet still keep a factory enclosed look under the hood.
With everything buttoned up, the new front bumper not only looks good, but with the new lightbar and winch, will help keep the rig up and going in the woods.
With everything buttoned up, the new front bumper not only looks good, but with the new lightbar and winch, will help keep the rig up and going in the woods.
With everything buttoned up, the new front bumper not only looks good, but with the new lightbar and winch, will help keep the rig up and going in the woods.
With everything buttoned up, the new front bumper not only looks good, but with the new lightbar and winch, will help keep the rig up and going in the woods.

Sources:

Hart’s Emergency Vehicle Service
828-808-1854

CBI Off Road
866-522-0697
www.cbioffroadfab.com

Warn
833-727-8784
www.warn.com 

Baja Designs
760-560-2252
www.bajadesigns.com

Editor’s Note: A version of this article appeared in TREAD July/August 2024

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