Man-A-Fre's Toyota Land Cruiser 4+Plus Bull Bar and Light Force Lights Review

The old rusty bumper didn't look good on the Land Cruiser. It also didn’t bolt into the bumper brackets on the frame. It wasn't safe.

After many years of service, it was time to replace the funky 80’s tubular chrome bumper on the Toyota Land Cruiser. Since the front bumper really sets the look of the rig, it was important that it be solid, strong and off-road worthy. After doing some research, we came across 4+Plus products from Man-A-Fre.

Just the fact that the bumper was made by Man-A-Fre, one of the oldest and most trusted Toyota Land Cruiser parts businesses had our attention. To our surprise, Man-A-Fre had just developed a new bumper design for the 40 Series Land Cruiser. It definitely has an aggressive look that screams “off-road”.

We called Man-A-Fre about their 4+Plus 40 Series Winch Mount Bull Bar (Part# 52100-4008). The sales people confirmed its fitment for our 1970 Toyota Land Cruiser and also had it in stock--making it really easy to buy.

Steve Hayes, Sales/Marketing Mgr. Man-A-Fre

We decided to drive up to Simi Valley, CA to Man-A-Fre headquarters to pick up our new bumper. We wanted to meet the folks at Man-A-Fre and see first hand what other things they had in the works.

Steve Hayes, Marketing/Sales Manager at Man-A-Fre, met with us and gave us a tour of the facility. As soon as you walk in you can tell these guys are serious about Toyota Land Cruisers. No glitz and glam, just good solid heavy-duty off-road parts. We like that.

Man-A-Fre specializes in all Land Cruiser series (FJ40, FJ60, FJ80, FJ100). They have even adopted the new Toyota FJ Cruiser since it’s a tribute of sort to the early 40 Series Land Cruiser.

It’s rare now-a-days to see the big boss getting dirty. Al Colebank, owner of Man-A-Fre wrenches away on a FJ60 diesel conversion.	Inside the Man-A-Fre shop there are many Toyota Land Cruisers being supped up for the trails. These are some serious Toyota 4x4s.

When we walked through their shop, we caught owner Al Colebank wrenching away on a FJ60 diesel engine conversion—which apparently are gaining popularity in the Land Cruiser community.

BUMPER TIME

Now that we had the new 4+Plus bumper, it was time to start working. The bumper came nicely packaged with all the necessary hardware for the installation.

Taking a closer look at the 4+Plus bumper revealed how well constructed it is. The main bumper is built from ¼-inch steel plate and the upright supports are made of ½-inch thick plate. The brush guard is made of 2 ¼-inch DOM tubing. Reinforced “D” ring mounts are also part of the bumper.	Last but not least, the winch mount; the 4+Plus bumper has predrilled holes that will work with most planetary style winches (Warn, Ramsey, Mile-Marker, etc.). The entire bumper is finished with black powder coat for durability. The 4+Plus bumper weighs in at a solid 70 lbs.

The installation was pretty straightforward. In our case, there was some prep work needed since the previous owner had welded a ½-inch steel plate on the frame for a winch mount. It just took some grinding and beating the heck out of it with an 8 lb. sledge.

Using a small grinder with a 4.5-inch wheel is great for cutting through welds and steel plate. Everyone should have one in their arsenal of power tools. They are little workhorses.	Sometimes brute force is needed to make things happen. We took an 8 lb. sledgehammer to the piece of steel plate that was in the way of our new bumper. It also works for anger therapy.

Once that was out of the way, we cleaned up the frame a bit and sprayed on a coat of black Krylon semi-gloss with rust protection (This inexpensive treatment goes a long way, especially in these old rigs).

When we test fitted the bumper, it was evident that the mounting brackets on the Land Cruiser frame needed some adjustment. The sledge hammer once again came in handy that day.

Once the bumper mounting brackets on the frame were aligned, the 4+Plus bumper went on perfectly.	The fitment was good and the high-grade bolts fastened nicely, making this bumper a true bolt-on application.

LIGHTS

The bumper looked naked without any accessories, so we got some off-road lights to fill the void. We chose the Light Force 170 Stikers because of its unique features. All Light Force performance lights can be adjusted to spread or focus the light beam by turning the housing—very similar to a Maglite®. Since not all vehicles and drivers are the same, having this function really makes it easy to customize your beam.

The 12V 100 watt Xenophot® bulb combined with the high quality finish parabolic reflectors make Light Force performance lights really shine. The bulbs are rated for 2000 hours of use.	Spot and Combo filter colors are available for different purposes. The amber filter reduces glare in fog or dusty conditions--perfect for off-road. Also available are clip-on filters that change the beam pattern to: spot, combo, wide, or dispersion.

Another thing that makes Light Force performance lights great is their hi-tec polycarbonate composite construction. The material is much more durable and lighter than conventional metal housings. The complete 170 Striker assembly we used only weighs 1.23 lb. per light.

Turning the housing on the Light Force Striker gives you a Wide, Combo, or Spot light in seconds.	Light Force also has wiring kits available that are extra long for Truck and 4x4 applications. They come with a switch, resistor protected 40-amp relay, waterproof blade fuse holder, all required terminals and instructions.

The ultra tough polycarbonate lens is light and won’t break like glass. With the added protection from the clear clip-on filter, this off-road light is virtually shatter resistant.

Toyota Land Cruiser (FJ40) with 4+Plus products bumper from Man-A-Fre. Equiped with 170 Striker performance lights from Light Force.

The Light Force 170 Strikers installed nicely and really made our new 4+Plus bumper from Man-A-Fre come alive. We really like the total package look. Now all we need is a winch.

FINAL THOUGHTS

Overall, we are really happy with the final result. Our Toyota Land Cruiser now has a bumper that actually mounts to the frame and bumper brackets. Its burly build will add protection to the front of the vehicles during unexpected trail crunches. The Light Force off-road lights have the power to light up the road when we go on night runs or dusty trails. They also look great.

Having these upgrades really make the Toyota Land Cruiser look better and ultimately add to the 4x4s safety features.

4+Plus bumper from Man-A-Fre
Rugged and aggressive look. Fabrication of the bumper is high quality. Good fitment. Made in the U.S.A.

Light Force 170 Striker
Beam adjustment by simply turning the light housing gives you a Wide, Combo, or Spot light in seconds. Strong and lightweight polycarbonate construction. The lights are very bright.

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