Jeep Cherokee Blog

When looking at the uninstalled front Jeep Cherokee bumper from JCR Offroad it looks solid with good quality welds. The steel is thick and looks like it could withstand some serious beating. Although when I actually looked close I noticed some things that bothered me about this Cherokee bumper before I even installed it. The tabs that attach the bumper to the unibody of the Cherokee looked off center. I put the bumper on and sure enough it was positioned almost an inch to the side. I will accept this imperfection as it is not a huge problem and I will likely be the only one to notice it.

When installed this Cherokee bumper looks good and is completely solid. I think the hoops look great and the tabs are super thick. The mounting area for the winch looks strong and I like how it is depressed down a little into the bumper. I have already found the counter top like aspect of the winch bumper useful when working under the hood to hold parts and tools. Although that counter top is useful it is also quite a protrusion in the front. It sticks out really far. It will definitely affect your approach angle. This front Cherokee bumper mounts ok to the unibody. I was not completely happy with it. The tabs on the bumper that attach to the tie in bracket are not snug at all. It is too loose and when I put the bolts on it pulls the metal from the uni-frame outward which must weaken it somewhat. It will need some washers/spacers to fit snug. And since the tie in bracket is separate from the bumper there is a little play in the attachment of the bumper to the tie in bracket. This equates to the bumper has the unfortunate ability to sag downward a little if not installed with that in mind. I can see the Cherokee bumper sagging downward as well if the bumper is yanked on during a recovery. The three holes on each side that attach the bumper to the tie in brackets allow for too much movement.

I think this Cherokee bumper looks fantastic from the front but when you look at it from the side it looks good until you look at the side protection tubing. It just doesn't seem to match the beefy'ness of the bumper or the natural lines of the Jeep Cherokee itself.

This bumper is strong and solid. You won't need to worry about it breaking in a tough recovery. With the tie in brackets it is solidly attached to the uniframe. Although, I think it would have been a better build if they would have attached the tie in brackets to the bumper itself instead of bolting them together. That seems like a no-brainer to me. Detached there is just too much possible movement. I don't want to have to adjust my bumper after each time I get stuck on a trail. The Cherokee bumper should also fit more snug to the uniframe of the Cherokee. And finally, I think they should have gone with a wider tubing for the side protection to match the beefy'ness of the rest of the bumper.

I give this bumper a C+ for not fitting snug and being off center as well as the side protection looking weird.

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