Chrome bumper or not?

[Mister 4x4]

Call me crazy but I bought the 71/72 urethane bumper too. I gave the vendor a very cheeky offer and surprisingly they accepted. So I'll get this one sprayed up and see how it looks too. So I've got 3 bumpers now . . . :-/

And you're whining about $50+shipping for a pair of bumper fillers?! ::tease::oke:

:whistling:

 

[Thin Lizzy]

Told you I'm going a bit crazy. Who needs 3 bumpers! Ok, I'll get the fillers and stop moaning.

 

[Mister 4x4]

Told you I'm going a bit crazy. Who needs 3 bumpers! Ok, I'll get the fillers and stop moaning.

Just playin' with ya, Brutha.

Personally, I think you're better off with the "new" urethane bumper painted to match. If you go with the chrome bumper, it'll break up the front end even more... which, having the body-colored rear bumper says to me that you need to continue the trend to the front.

Just my opinion. Whatever you decide to do is going to look great - it's an awesome car! ::thumb::

 

[Thin Lizzy]

I think you're right, but I'll put it on when I want a change. I still recon my existing 73 bumper will look the best, but a few (anal) people in the UK have pointed out that the bumper is wrong and devalues the car. Still it's nice try out different looks.

The car is going into the body shop in a month, so I'll get them to spray up the urethane bumper and see how that looks. I'll post some pics when it's done.

Just trying to find the correct bumper bolts at the moment.

 

[Thin Lizzy]

So the Scott Drake bumper bolts arrived today. I undid the bolts for the 73 bumper and it wouldn't come off. After some investigation, I found the bumper has been glued to the sub-frame beneath it! Why someone would do that is beyond me. The only way to remove the bumper is basically wreck it, as the glue is tougher that the urethane bumper. So now I've got to decide how much I like the 73 bumper!

 

[Mister 4x4]

Well, from what I've seen - it still looks good. Surprisingly good, considering it's a '73 bumper on an earlier car.

If you were to leave it on the car, it would still look great! But, with all the options you have at your disposal, it's going to look awesome no matter what. ::thumb::

 

[Thin Lizzy]

Thanks Eric! Yes, I agree, it does look ok as is. And there's no rush to do anything .

 

[Carolina_Mountain_Mustangs]

Did they glue the cover to the metal inside the bumper or glue the bumper mounts to the frame?

Everyone thinks the 73 bumper is much better but the only requirement for the 5 mph crash was that the headlights did not break. They are a pain to keep looking good once they have the cracks in them. Make sure the body shop uses the 3-M repair material made for the rubber bumpers & not body filler of fiberglass. The area under the headlights that is blacked out is very thin and almost impossible to make back right without adding something underneath to support that area.

My personal opinion would be to go with the original bumper for 72 less headaches, lol.

David

 

[Thin Lizzy]

They glued the cover to the metal frame. Guess I could removed the frame and replace it with a new one.

 

[Carolina_Mountain_Mustangs]

They glued the cover to the metal frame. Guess I could removed the frame and replace it with a new one.

If you can find anything new for the 73 bumper you are very lucky. The energy absorbing mounts are very scarce and I have not see a new bumper inner or outer in years.

David

 

[Thin Lizzy]

They glued the 73 bumper on to a 71/72 frame. I'd replace it with another 71/72 frame, if I can find one.

 

[Thin Lizzy]

Does anyone know where to get hold of a 71-72 front bumper reinforcement panel please?

Something like this:

 

[L.C.Gray]

Ok... Just getting into this, but... I learned something.

I was really thinking I wanted to change my 73 to chrome bumper and chrome around the fenders and across the hood, but reading this it might not be possible.

 

[Thin Lizzy]

Ok... Just getting into this, but... I learned something.

I was really thinking I wanted to change my 73 to chrome bumper and chrome around the fenders and across the hood, but reading this it might not be possible.

It can be done, but it looks kind of odd with a 73 grill IMO:

 

[Thin Lizzy]

So do I go for my car as it is or 1972 stock? What do you think? My car looks great from 5 yards, but don't get closer. It's going into the spray shop in 3 weeks and I'm still undecided .

So here's a pic of what's wrong. I really would appreciate your opinion please.

The front grill is broken around both headlamps and a PO has put headlamp rings of a different car on it. The grill is also broken around the return to the bumper. The wing fender extensions different widths as a PO has got the filler out and made them wider! They've also filled in the

So I've bought a new Mach 1 grille, nos headlamp bezels, new wing fender extensions and a NOS 71-72 urethane bumper.

So what do you think? Will it look better with the stock 72 additions?

I've also bought a chrome bumper. This is what my car will look like with it on. Is this any good?

Thanks for your opinion.

 

[Carolina_Mountain_Mustangs]

If you don't put it back right everyone will be telling you it is wrong. But it is your car so do what you think looks best. If you have a NOS rubber bumper I would use that for sure they are hens teeth. Chrome ones are everywhere. My opinion I am sure there will be others.

David

 

[Thin Lizzy]

Thanks for your comments. Yes, a few people have told me it's wrong and the front does look a bit of a mess up close. Yes, finding the the NOS 72 urethane bumper was a stroke of luck. Maybe I just go with that.

 

[Mister 4x4]

Screw 'em - your car looks GREAT! ::thumb::

Honestly, I don't hate your '73 bumper. It's one of the few cars with a big bumper that doesn't look as 'out of place,' IMHO.

Since you have all options at your disposal, here's what I would recommend: put on the correct urethane bumper and have it painted. You can always switch over to the chrome bumper if you wish without having to reconfigure much if anything.

Based on the end-cap seams being filled, I gotta wonder how much body work is under there. That would explain the '73 bumper on your car (they didn't have anything else handy to replace a damaged front bumper with, perhaps).

Please tell me you went with another Deluxe Grille, though. Switching to a standard grille would be a 'downgrade,' IMHO.

 

[Thin Lizzy]

Yes, I bought another deluxe grill. It's got to look mean still! The new fender extensions I've just bought are much thinner than what I have. There must be a good 1/4 inch filler on the outside face. I've got a nasty feeling they might have filled the wing too, to blend it in. Then it'll get expensive.

 

[Thin Lizzy]

So after getting the NOS 71-72 urethane bumper sprayed up and fitted on to the bumper brackets, I thought I try and fit the bumper support to it. So I removed the bumper support from the 73 Urethane bumper and drove 100 miles to a specialist to get it shot blasted. Then spent much time putting primer and hammerite on it.

So today I went to fit it. It doesn't fit! It looks exactly the same but the holes don't line up and the ridge on the leading edge has vertical lips with screw holes.

This is a 71-72 bumper support.

So a total waste of time! Guess I could try and modify it some how.