Reviews for Quadratec QRC Front Winch Ready Bumper for 18-24 Jeep Wrangler JL & Gladiator JT

I really like this bumper - I was leaning towards a shorty but I chose this bumper for both it's features and price point. Because of the latter, my expectations where not that high.

I gave the bumper four stars mainly because of the poor packaging and because of one really terribad design flaw (see below). The Styrofoam blocks self-destructed during shipping and the bumper drove through the end of the box and the end of the bumper had minor cosmetic damage as a result.

The install was difficult and took several attempts to successfully mount the bumper - however, I think this is a Jeep issue and not an issue with the bumper although I believe that the tolerances in this bumper's mount points are incredibly fine -- you have to get things lined up perfectly and then you're going to have a struggle getting the back-side bolts in.

One pro tip -- on JLs, there's these extra braces bolted to the frame that provide extra reinforcement to the mount bracket that runs perpendicular to the frame. Mine had gotten kitty-wumpus and some light application with a sledge got them mount-holes re-aligned back to where they should be. I drilled out one hole before I realized what was going on -- once I got the frame supports (there are four) back in-alignment, mounting the bumper was easy (with two people) and getting all the bolts inserted required some finessing.

I also got to give props for the instructions - great photos, great detail. With one exception - and I have to call BS on Fig. 25 and the instructions telling you to stick the 2.5mm allen wrench behind the fog-light mount into the hex-screw... Unless you have the hands of an Oompa-Loompa, you're not sticking anything back there. I'd like to give the design engineer a couple of light taps with my trusty 2lb sledge to get them to re-think that non-solution. So, yeah, 1/3 of your fog-light mount points are hand-tightened.

I'd like to see the matching rear bumper come-out for the JL soon...and I'd also like to see them release a front skid-plate for this bumper.

I think it's a good looking bumper especially for the price! It doesn't protect the sway bar disconnect as well as I would like but the factory sheet metal cover wasn't either. Had a small ding on top of the center tube but it doesn't really bother me

Overall looks great very heavy duty and warn 12.5 Xeon mounted easily.. But only 2 of the 4 outer holes line up, the other 2 are a half hole off. I removed and reinstalled multiple times to get alignment. I see lots of 5 star ratings.. so maybe I just got a bad one.

Holy fitment batman! If struggling and fighting stuff into place is your bag then this is the bumper for you. I have wanted this bumper for years but for various reasons I went with others on my past Jeeps. The stars finally aligned and I was able to procure this bumper for my new Jeep. My son and I spent about 6 hours fighting this thing on. You need to tap the screw holes for the fog lights as the included screws absolutely will not thread in otherwise. And lord be with me, getting the fog light hardware installed is a job intended for elves or other impish creatures as an adult finger doesn't fit where you need to guide nuts, bolts and washers.The real fun is getting the bumper attached to the Jeep. While the Jeep engineers thought far enough ahead to have slotted holes on the bumper horns, the engineers for this bumper made sure everything aligned to the extents of the slotted holes so there is no wiggle room. Now this wouldn't be an issue if the bumper was to appropriate tolerances. However, mine has one of the threaded inserts offset from center just ever so much. This caused several failed attempts at getting that bolt in the hole insofar as the bolt cross threaded and required tapping the hole and running a die over the bolt. Eventually, by pulling the opposite side of the bumper nearly all the way off there was just enough clearance to get the final bolt in. If you've got tools and time, have at it. If you need it to "just slap on there," find something else.

11/14/2024. I installed this bumper on a 2021 Jeep unlimited Rubicon. The bumper is definitely sturdy built for protecting the front of your vehicle and it adds appeal to the looks. However, the reason for only 3 stars is as follows: 1) The bumper I received had a 3” long dent running length wise down the left side of the 2” diameter grill guard and another 1” dent running cross wise on the right side. The black textured powder coating was not scuffed in these areas and the shipping container had no visible signs of abuse during shipping. This leads me to question the manufacturer’s quality control. The bumper was well packaged. I will mention that I did not contact Quadratec for a replacement, because I needed to get the bumper installed in time for a planned trip. 2) The design for installing the factory fog lights or any fog lights is ridiculous. Small screw and nuts which are hard to use and handle. Replacing the fog lights will also be a nightmare. Plus there is provision for securing the wiring harness. 3) Mounting the winch was also a nightmare. Some reviewers recommended mounting the winch to the bumper prior to installing the bumper to the vehicle. This problem could be resolved if the manufacturer would just add holes allowing the use of a socket wrench with an extension to access the two bolts towards the rear of the mounting plate area. Overall, this bumper needs some design changes before I would recommend it.

This is the second QRC bumper that I installed. The warn winch and bumper installed fairly easy. However, the factory LED fog lights gave us fits. I was unable to locate a tech support phone number. I used the chat option and closed it after almost 30 minutes. We had to drill out the mounts and fab brackets to install the lights. The included brackets did not work and I was unable to wait several days for tech support to answer my email. I still like this bumper, but the dogs need more engineering. 24 Wrangler Sport S.

It's a heavy duty bumper I love that part of it. The only complaint I have is the install. The fog lights swap was a holy hell nightmare with the supplied nuts washers and Allen wrench bolt. There was no room hardly for the back bolts on the winch plate. Other than those two complaints it's a very very sturdy bumper that's heavy. It dropped the front of my jeep an inch with my badlands winch install. I just wish they had a easier install for it.

Looks great and high quality, but disappointed. Also, the Quadratec stealth winch fits like a glove. I really like the combination of the two.

Install was simple except for transferring the fog lights. Instead of messing with nuts and bolts in tight spaces, get some self tapping screws to reinstall the fog lights in the QRC.

The big disappointment was when I discovered that we couldn’t use the factory skid plate. The description states that the QRC bumper is not compatible with the factory Rubicon steel bumper fog lights and the Warn Zeon Platinum winch, but it does not mention the factor skid plate either. I’ve looked at a few third party skid plates and they too are not compatible.

Again, the bumper is great. I love the look. I just wish they had mentioned the compatibility issue with the skid plate more clearly. If I would have known that going into the purchase, I would have gone with something else. I do like the look, so I’m keeping it and will probably just trim the factory skid plate.

I love the look of this bumper. Huge upgrade from the plastic one from the factory. I am giving this bumper 3 stars because of quality issues. The first one I recieved was not welded correctly and ended up underneath the fender and rubbing on the plastic. Quadratec was kind enough to ship me another one for free, which was awesome. The second one was much better and fit as should EXCEPT for one minor issue: The threads where I had to attach a bolt were not cut correctly and it stripped out one of the bolts. Not a huge deal, but it just goes to show that QC is an issue.

It looks good and seems to be decent quality but there were some issues with installation. First, the bolts did not line up with the factory mounts so some drilling was needed to get it installed. Second, it is nearly impossible to get a torque wrench on the bolts when installing a winch, they are too far back. Winches such as the Badlands 12K winch sits so far back, the power cable pushes on the grill. Third, the description fails to mention that the Gladiator Rubicon factory skid plate is no longer compatible due to it hitting the winch mount. The website does not mention this incompatibility issue.