Sagging Front Bumper :(

[HighRev85]

I'm not positive that this question has been answered before, so here it goes:

I have a sagging front bumper. At the front, I'd say there's a gap of about 6" and it doesn't look attractive. I was wondering what, exactly, holds the plastic bumper to the frame/subframe of the car and how you go about adjusting it.

And I apologize if the question seems stupid, but I'm kinda clueless when it comes to cosmetic/body problems

Thanks for the feedback!

 

[SolidState]

here is the diagram I got from the 1995 ford CD.



OTMH, there are 4 bolts and 14 push fasteners to remove the front bumper cover. I'd start by removing the bumper and inspecting for any underlying damage.

 

[platoribs]

I've just repaired the front bumper on my 93. The parts invloved are 1) Fascia, 2) header (holds the light assemblies and anchor point for the top of the fascia) and 3) bumper the thingthat takes the hit.

The bumper is mounted to the front clip with a couple of shock absorbers. Three bolts going into the car and three going into the bumper. When you hit something the bumper usually jams these mounts into the sheet metel and deforms it some.

What happened to your car to cause this gap, surely you didn't come out one day and just notice a 6" gap all of a sudden?

Once you get these parts positioned and mounted correctly wrap the fascia back aroung everything and snap in a few new plastic buttons to hold it on and your done.

Sounds like you took a hit and will have to dismantle all this stuff, find out where the damage is, replace what can't be salvaged and reassemble. That is what I did and after all was back in place the fascia, while it didn't fit perfectly, fit lots better than before.

Or of course you could simply look at the image above for all these answers.

 

[Bluestreak]

Do you have a picture?

 

[etc1006]

As I have just removed mine front end for the core support pull... I couldn't for the life of me figure out where you could have THAT much sag... Are the push pins there on the upper side of the lower opening(#7 in pic)? On top of the b/c where the hoodlatch is(#4 in pic)? Thats the only kind of part I can think of pulling anything down. Either that or your bumper itself is busted...

 

[HighRev85]

Yeah, stupid me, I didn't proofread my post:

Correction: it sags about .8" - 1.2" and it's been that way ever since I bought the car.

Plateoribs, you make a good point. I never really considered a front end hit...that would make a lot of sense.

And it seems easy enough to fix...so the consensus is that the shock material has deformed from something or the bumper itself is deformed. I'd probably put my money on deformed shock material.

Again, thanks a million guys.

 

[etc1006]

If you do pull the b/c... AZ has a pack of 15 of those plastic plugs (#4 & #7)that you most certainly will break a few. Ask me how I know. It was around $3. They dont seem to have the huge "Help!" section anymore, just some stuff. I liked this better, This section has alot of specific fastenters with better prices and larger quantities for the $. They also have those reuseable plastic rivets with the philips screw head for the same price.

 

[platoribs]

Yeah, stupid me, I didn't proofread my post:

Correction: it sags about .8" - 1.2" and it's been that way ever since I bought the car.

Plateoribs, you make a good point. I never really considered a front end hit...that would make a lot of sense.

And it seems easy enough to fix...so the consensus is that the shock material has deformed from something or the bumper itself is deformed. I'd probably put my money on deformed shock material.

Again, thanks a million guys.

In my repair I'm still about .5" low on the drivers side.
This is due to the deformed metel the bumper mounts to (part of the sheet metel surrounding the radiator hole. I plan on backing out the bolt on the bottom of the bumper, slide a washer underneath the metal mount, and run the bolt back in. This should cantilever the whole bumper up a skosh, hopefully enough to bring everything back into line.

Best Luck getting it just right!

 

[coldsho]

how well do u think those side supports hold the bumper, mine were ripped off and ill be putting on my new bumper soon. i might end up just screwing the bumper to the car and covering eveythign with bondo.

also does the bumper support do much, seems its the clips that do most of the work, id liek to remove as much of the support as possible, for lightweight aplications

 

[platoribs]

The fascia is only intended to cover up the two other parts (header panal & bumper). If those parts aren't mounted and positioned correctly the fascia will not line up right and cover like it's supposed to. The little clips do nothing except keep the fascia from flying off at some inconvenient time. If by the side mounts your referring to the galvanized sheet metal parts on the side near the wheel well, I think you want those back in place to keep everything from wobbeling in the wind at 100+ MPH, IMO!

If you can't find the push buttons for the fascia try using zip ties.

 

[HighRev85]

Thanks for all the help. Now that I'm home for Thanksgiving, I'll be giving that a go sometime this holiday weekend. It doesn't nearly sound as hard as I imagined it to be.

 

[coldsho]

oh super, i dont have the side mounts anymore, frcefully removed by afriend f mne, tis is gonna be an adventure.