Subaru Forester rear/front bumper build (pics)

FozRoamer

Adventurist
I have been lurking for a few months now and started to really like the content I found on this forum and the overall community. I thought I would share a few pics of my Forester build as of late. I have been working with Leadfoot Offroad in La Verne on some bumper designs. They are an amazing high quality shop that does quality fabrication and they are one of the few who was willing to work with me in regards to my Subaru build. I am def a unicorn when it comes to build like this but they are becoming more common on newer subbies as people get into more outdoor overlanding type lifestyles.

Rear bumper was completed a few months ago and the front bumper is currently at the shop getting built. The winch plate is heavily reinforced and connect to vehicle using 1/4" steel plates and the winch sits on a 1/4" steel plate as well. The winch in the pic is used for mock reasons as mine will be similar but synthetic. I know a lot of guys who don't run Subarus have a lot of respect for them and thats awesome. Most of the time I am out traveling or on the trails I get nothing but love. I just found that I wanted to build something different but was very capable and rather unique.

Edit*: Here is my complete mods list (for the most part) if anyone is interested.

Rear Bumper Subaru Forester

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@Scott Thats awesome. Really been blown away by how capable they are for Overlanding rigs. The only challenging part is there not being a lot of aftermarket options in regards to building offroad type rigs...they exist but they are just limiting.
 
Nice. Neighbor followed me all over the OBX sand in his 2016 this weekend. Was very impressed with how well it did. Respect.
(I'll be sending him the link to your build.)
 
@Gallowbraid that is amazing..something my lady and i have talked about doing for some time. I think deep down this is one of the reasons I am getting this rig ready to go. I need to escape the rat race for a year or two and figure out a different path in life being a software engineer just isn't my passion anymore..haha
 
Nice work!

Keep an eye on the hinge spindle. My buddy made bumpers for Jeeps using a similar looking spindle. One of the Jeeps he mounted one on had the spindle crack and the whole spare tire/rack assembly fell off on the highway. We determined that it was the rack shaking/oscillating that caused the metal fatigue of the hinge spindle.
 
Really impressive work with the rear bumper too. Particularly how well it's blended into the OE bumper cover pieces. It looks factory and I love seeing work that looks that good. :clang
 
Great looking rig! Is there any room under the rear to tuck the exhaust up a bit? Or maybe a run smaller resonator/ muffler?
I would not be overly concerned with the swing out hinge. Those tires a relatively small. The people who have issues are typically running 37+ tires. I assume your jerry cans are only full when on an extended trip.
 
Great looking rig! Is there any room under the rear to tuck the exhaust up a bit? Or maybe a run smaller resonator/ muffler?
I would not be overly concerned with the swing out hinge. Those tires a relatively small. The people who have issues are typically running 37+ tires. I assume your jerry cans are only full when on an extended trip.
yep..working on new exhaust..currently have too many projects going on at once..its on the list..i know the rear mufflers look pretty bad, not to mention doesnt help my departure angle.
 
Finally got my rig back from Leadfoot after two grueling weeks. Some nice goodies were added :)
-Winch plate is mounted with reinforced with heavy duty 1/4" steel plates and winch sits on 1/4" steel plate.
-The front bumper is 1/8" steel, Hi-Lift jack compatible, dual D-Rings for recovery.
-The winch is a 9500lb synthetic Smittybuilt.
-The roof rack is a custom low profile stainless steel material. I will be getting this powder coated next week.
-The rear bumper add-ons: Treds 1100 recover mount rack for attached to rear tire, foldable camp table, swing arm stop was also installed that stops the swing arm from freely swinging open.
-New Magnaflow exhaust (got rid of the hideous dual OEM mufflers)
-New 30" LED light bar from GG Lighting
-New front LED square lights (amber) from GG Lighting

Any questions...just ask. Weight for front bumper is about 125 lbs with everything. The new stiffer King Springs aren't budging under the added weight.

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Looking good! Amazing how little these little beasts change from generation to generation.

Oh, and I blame you for inspiring the switch to a swing-out on our Foz. :D
 
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