Deer decided to remodel by Mountaineer

[OregonJeff]

I hope you are all having a better car day than me!
Going down the road at 50 mph, just getting started on a long drive, when a white tail doe ran out of some brush from an elevated area and directly in front of my 1997 Mountaineer. No injuries, except to the instantly dead deer. She was basically broadsided; impact knocked her clear off the road.
The grill, headlights, bumper, etc are trashed. Obviously, most if not all of the front trim and plastic is going to have to be replaced.
No damage actually made it through to the now visible radiator, frame's fine, no alignment issues.
I am not going to total the vehicle out; it is an heirloom to me, and I really like it.
That said, I'd like to get a more substantial front bumper set up, maybe something with some lights and a push bar. Nothing like my stinger on my Jeep, of course, but some metal up front. Since I'm going to be spending money, I may as well upgrade.
1997 Mountaineer V8
Any suggestions?
Thanks in advance!

 

[Rick]

I know that Jeep Cherokee front bumpers can be modified for the 1st gen Explorers. Not sure if they will also work, or look good on a 2nd gen. Hopefully someone else will be able to clarify.

Here is a link to a bumper one of our member fabricated:

2nd gen Front bumper build

Started building a front bumper today, what do you guys think? Rear bumper is shaped the same way and I wanted to stay close to it. It is a little longer then I'd like but I have a body lift and I wanted to keep the frame hidden and the body line tight.

www.explorerforum.com

 

[OregonJeff]

I know that Jeep Cherokee front bumpers can be modified for the 1st gen Explorers. Not sure if they will also work, or look good on a 2nd gen. Hopefully someone else will be able to clarify.

Here is a link to a bumper one of our member fabricated:

2nd gen Front bumper build

Started building a front bumper today, what do you guys think? Rear bumper is shaped the same way and I wanted to stay close to it. It is a little longer then I'd like but I have a body lift and I wanted to keep the frame hidden and the body line tight.

www.explorerforum.com

Thanks!

 

[410Fortune]

Ranger bumpers can also fit the gen ii explorer by moving the mounts holes up 2”. Some welding required

I have some 96/97 mountaineer front grills if needed… getting to be very rare parts. Hard to ship…
But I do have 4 of them now so I could let one go. Once was recently given to me by a buddy so share the wealth

 

[OregonJeff]

I removed everything that was broken, except the headlight/blinker plugs. The clips on those all broke, but I'll leave those on until I get replacements.

 

[OregonJeff]

Ranger bumpers can also fit the gen ii explorer by moving the mounts holes up 2”. Some welding required

I have some 96/97 mountaineer front grills if needed… getting to be very rare parts. Hard to ship…
But I do have 4 of them now so I could let one go. Once was recently given to me by a buddy so share the wealth

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Thanks! I'm sourcing parts now and I will be in touch.

 

[RangerX]

Long time member and great fabricator RockRanger makes and sells a winch type bumper specifically for Gen2’s, please search for his thread, its just what you want.
Edit- here’s the thread For Sale - Second Gen explorer front winch bumper

 

[OregonJeff]

Thanks! PM sent to RR.
Jeff