Can anyone tell me about this step bumper? (Aftermarket?)

[RaysnCayne]

Hey all,
Can anyone give me any info on this step bumper? I'm assuming it's an aftermarket one.
If it is aftermarket, I'm puzzled as to why such a product existed if most Squares came standard with decent step bumpers to begin with? This one might be a hair more stylish, but it definitely isn't any better (structurally speaking) than the factory step bumper. Is it possible guys bought used squares with sport bumpers back in the day and replaced it with a more useful step one? (Gasp!)

 

[HotWheelsBurban]

Hey all,
Can anyone give me any info on this step bumper? I'm assuming it's an aftermarket one.
If it is aftermarket, I'm puzzled as to why such a product existed if most Squares came standard with decent step bumpers to begin with? This one might be a hair more stylish, but it definitely isn't any better (structurally speaking) than the factory step bumper. Is it possible guys bought used squares with sport bumpers back in the day and replaced it with a more useful step one? (Gasp!)

Many of the lower trim level square body trucks came with no rear bumper from the factory. This option continued well into the GMT 400 era; my '97 Crew Cab has this option on its RPO code sheet. It got a close to factory looking one, dealer or upfitter installed before purchase though. Our '78 GMC Sierra shop truck had no rear bumper from the factory, just a license plate bracket and light on one of the rear frame horns. We put a white painted one on to match the front; then after a bad wreck that caused it to need to be over half rebuilt, it got the color matched Sport padded bumpers. Our '81 GMC Sierra shop truck had a "factory" silver painted step bumper; many of these had the dealership name and city or town engraved on the face. This one did not...after some of the problems with the truck and the dealer, I don't believe my Dad would have considered advertising for Frank Gillman Pontiac/GMC. They had a bad reputation in the Houston area, and the only reason we bought the truck from them was because it was the ONLY one in the Houston area that was equipped exactly how we wanted it. Dad would've preferred the 350 over the 305, but we'd have had to special order a truck and we needed one right then. And that "puny" 305 Dual Jet worked just as hard as our 350 QJ trucks....

 

[ali_c20]

This looks like an oem bumper to me. It's stamped out of 1 piece which requires heavy tools.
The aftermarket step bumpers I've seen have the middle part where the trailer hitch is separate and the top diamond plates are welded on.
I don't know if the style of the step bumper has changed between 73 and 87/91.
I'm sure someone with more knowledge can clarify this.
My 74 oem step bumper and picture of a bumper that says it's oem:

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[bucket]

This looks like an oem bumper to me. It's stamped out of 1 piece which requires heavy tools.
The aftermarket step bumpers I've seen have the middle part where the trailer hitch is separate and the top diamond plates are welded on.
I don't know if the style of the step bumper has changed between 73 and 87/91.
I'm sure someone with more knowledge can clarify this.
My 74 oem step bumper and picture of a bumper that says it's oem:

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Top two pictures, I'm not sure about. At least for the US market, it's not OEM. The bottom picture, the bumper looks to be the same stamping as the bumper in question. And it's not an OEM bumper, it is aftermarket. In my experience, that particular model did not hold up as well in minor bumps, compared to a GM original bumper. Being that it's a 1-piece stamping, they seemed to have used thinner steel. The original GM step bumpers were not stamped as one piece.

 

[ali_c20]

I would really like to see some pics of the factory mounted step bumpers.

 

[RaysnCayne]

Top two pictures, I'm not sure about. At least for the US market, it's not OEM. The bottom picture, the bumper looks to be the same stamping as the bumper in question. And it's not an OEM bumper, it is aftermarket. In my experience, that particular model did not hold up as well in minor bumps, compared to a GM original bumper. Being that it's a 1-piece stamping, they seemed to have used thinner steel. The original GM step bumpers were not stamped as one piece.

Mine's aftermarket then. It's definitely thinner steel and has less brackets (just two) than my old, rusty, OE step bumper.
I'll try to steer clear of minor bumps!

 

[RaysnCayne]

Many of the lower trim level square body trucks came with no rear bumper from the factory. This option continued well into the GMT 400 era. Our '78 GMC Sierra shop truck had no rear bumper from the factory, just a license plate bracket and light on one of the rear frame horns. Our '81 GMC Sierra shop truck had a "factory" silver painted step bumper.

I guess that doesn't surprise me in the early years. But I'd think by the late 80s/early 90s, the NHTSA would've required OEs to have some sort of rear crash protection. (Unless it was a fleet deal that was getting a special-purpose bumper before it hit the road.)

Mine came from the factory with a silver-painted step bumper. But it's rusted out, so I plan on replacing it with this aftermarket one that I think is a little bit more stylish.

 

[bucket]

I guess that doesn't surprise me in the early years. But I'd think by the late 80s/early 90s, the NHTSA would've required OEs to have some sort of rear crash protection. (Unless it was a fleet deal that was getting a special-purpose bumper before it hit the road.)

Mine came from the factory with a silver-painted step bumper. But it's rusted out, so I plan on replacing it with this aftermarket one that I think is a little bit more stylish.

I don't think rear bumpers became standard equipment on trucks until '97 or around in there. Full size and S10 both.

I'd be interested to know when light truck rear bumpers were required by law... or if they even are required now.

 

[bucket]

I would really like to see some pics of the factory mounted step bumpers.

These are GM bumpers. Notice the outer bracket bolts too. There were aftermarket bumpers that looked similar, but only utilized center mounting brackets.

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[ali_c20]

This forum is just great, one can always learn something new.

 

[bucket]

This forum is just great, one can always learn something new.

Something I forgot to mention before, I'm betting that there were a lot of low optioned trucks that got aftermarket rear bumpers installed at the dealer level, when the trucks were new. Which means that there may still be a lot of "all original, I bought it new off the dealer lot" type trucks that have non-GM bumpers installed. And they of course assume they are a GM bumper.

 

[TotalyHucked]

^This. I've had this conversation with so many people, just cuz it was sold new with that bumper doesn't mean it was "factory". My '85 and our '76 were built without a rear bumper but sold "new" with a dealer installed one on it. The giveaway is if there's a small, metal tag bracket with a light on it mounted to the rear cross rail. If it's there, your truck was sold without a bumper, if it's not, either it had a bumper from the factory or someone removed it.

 

[Old Guy Bill]

I brought that dealer point up in another thread, I believe it was about mirrors.
Dealers put on all kinds of things on vehicles in those days, lots of folks probably thought they were "factory"

 

[bluex]

I thought for sure there is a thread on this somewhere that @Keith Seymore posted in saying no step bumper was factory installed. I wanna say it was all squares but maybe at a certain year they started.

Or maybe I heard it somewhere else, possibly about 67-72 instead.

 

[bucket]

I thought for sure there is a thread on this somewhere that @Keith Seymore posted in saying no step bumper was factory installed. I wanna say it was all squares but maybe at a certain year they started.

Or maybe I heard it somewhere else, possibly about 67-72 instead.

I can see that being a '67-'72 thing. Only step bumpers I recall seeing on them have been aftermarket.

Iirc, at least two of my trucks have the chrome step bumper option on the SPID.