Removing Bumpers; Any Advice?

[BenV 0]

I have a 1.8 diesel that i am switching bumpers with another 1.8 diesel due to the bumper being cracked in an accident and i need some advice on how to remove the bumper from the donor without wrecking the bumper, bolts and the nut

[chipstick 382 1 Cars]

Take your time and hope for the best to be fair.

 

Front or back?

[Tom Fenton 1,541]

My advice would be, be prepared to shear off or have to cut off most of the bolts/fixings and then you will not be disappointed. Sorry it's not what you are wanting to hear but from experience it is pretty likely this is what you will find.

[Anthony 1,002]

Easy not to damage the bumper, but undoing the fixings is potentially a much tougher cookie if they haven't been touched in 20 odd years.

 

Lots of penetrating oil and consider a sacrifice to appease the God of French Tin.

 

One on each side and two on the front (roughly in line with the inner edge of the headlights) on the front bumper, all 13mm nuts.

 

One on each side, two inside the boot, and two in the centre behind the numberplate on the rear bumper, again, all 13mm nuts.

 

Remove with the valances attached, and then fight with the no doubt rusty fixings securing the two together once it's off the car.

[chipstick 382 1 Cars]

Vice grips will be a good assistant.

 

I've always personally found the valance to bumper bolts always more of a pain than the main fixings.

 

Rear bumper wise I leave the bracket on the bumper and remove that from the car.

 

[SurGie 54]

If your very careful with a drill then it can be done. Use some masking tape on the bolt head that you cant remove due to rusted in nut, then get your self a quality cobalt drill bit and drill till the top of the bolts comes free.

 

This only applies if the other methods on removing the nuts doesn't work. Dont turn too hard to remove the nut though, you dont want to do any damage to the bumper edges.

 

Being methodical and taking your time should stop you doing any damage to it, this comes from my own experience.

[OllieBo'ness 1]

I was careful removing the back but the brackets were to rusty to be worried about, if you have a bit of steel hanging around it doesn't take long to fabricate new ones.

[BenV 0]

i think im going to have to make up some new front bits for the front brackets (just the corner bit if you know where i mean) and weld it on as the ones on it at the moment are rusty as hell

the ones on the donor car aren't bad though so i could use the existing corner and weld that on?

[Henry Yorke 269 3 Cars]

front panel bolts: I have never really had a problem with these

 

Front bumper wing bolts: Penetrating oil, wire toothbrush on the threads to clean them up as much as possible, socket on the end and a good pull. It will either shear off or start to come lose. If it comes lose then do a bit, wind it back, clean it up again and wind out some more and then wind back etc etc. The worst case is to get half way down the bolt and then the outside end starts to spin and ruins your bumper. If you can get molegrips on the outer part of the T bolt then it helps.

 

Shearing off is the best option though! Bolts are a couple of quid each