They tried to fit OEM parts instead of the aftermarket ones. The OEM parts wont fit...the aftermarket bumper was made to upgrade pre-1990 C4 vettes to the late C4. Take it back, tell them to pull their head out of their ass and order the right part.

 

Wicked90,
That's exactly what I thought. The stupid ins. adjuster insisted on a factory
bumper, as opposed to an aftermarket one. The shop has had it for over 3 months, and when I go down to pick it up (he called and said "your Corvettes done"), the pass side was pathetic. Where it bolted to the fenderwell it was almost touching the hood, then if you followed the seam between it and the hood going towards the front, there was almost a 1/2" gap!!! I said, is that all the better you can do? Anyway, I left it there, told him to get the stupid-a$$ed adjuster down there to look at it, and call me when it is RIGHT. The driving season is virtually over anyway, so I don't care how long they have it now, I am so pissed off.

Anyway, thanks for your input. Do you have a recommendation as to where to buy an aftermarket bumper? There is one on fleabay, supposedly 100% satisfaction or your $ back, but I think Ecklers or Mid America would be safer.

Anyone else upgraded to 91-96 front bumper who would like to chime in, please do so. thanks.

Rich k

 

Careful, if you get the one on ebay, make sure it was for pre-91 corvettes.
You can get them from eckler's mid-america, corvette america, vanacor, tracy performance, and ACI. And guess what? I think they're less expensive than OEM.

Mechanics pissed me off so much on a regular basis I became one. Now I drop by for estimates just to see which ones are straight up.

 

Thanks Wicked90,
I was looking at ACI, and it looks like they make good stuff. I am still haggling w/the ins. adjuster, demanding they buy an aftermarket one. His last words today were "let me talk to my boss, and get back to you". Yeah, right. Maybe tomorrow. I printed out 5 pics of well matched bumpers, plus the Ecklers ad and gave them to the body man today. I told him "this is how a Corvette should look", and told him to show them to the dumbass adjuster. I will keep you posted as this thing unravels. Thanks for your interest.

Rich K

 

Just questions...

If it had '92 facias... were the side moldings updated too? Or were they mismatched?

The new nose... is it easily flexible when you press on it or hard as a rock?

And, how bad was the accident that warranted the new nose? Do you have some accident photos?

 

The reward is mine man, I LOVE hearing about mechanics squirming...

 

Front Bumper non-alignment

I am still having trouble sorting this problem out. If there is anyone out there with a 91 to 96 car who would make a measurement for me, I will know why the OEM part doesn't fit. With the hood open, I need the outside to outside measurement from one corner to the other, where the corners of the hood meet when closed. Put another way, if you followed the top of the bumper at the wheelwells along the flat horizontal surface toward the front, right there where the bumper starts the round transition upwards, outside to outside. Thanks to anyone willing to do this for me so I can get this resolved.

Rich K

 

I have an 89 Roadster .... If you match up the fascia corners to the hood corner height, the middle is too high, and just the opposite if you match up the middle of the fascia with the hood, the corners are too low. Is there a way to adjust it to be RIGHT?
Rich K

P.S. I was told fiberglass ones from Ecklers, etc. fit much better. Anyone know that to be true?

I changed my '89 to a '95 FACTORY front bumper. It fit fine. The bodies of the two styles are the same. You do not need to measure! Your shop needs to know what they're doing to get it right. See my customizing my '89 thread for a pic of my front bumper.

Where the inner structure bolts to the frame, there are up/down and side-to-side adjustments. Where the facsia attaches to the inner structure, you can also alter the gap line (up/down & in/out). I believe this can be accessed with the hood open -- along the top edge of the bumper. This adjustment can get your gap parallel and/or level with the hood.

I assume you went to the correct inner structure and aren't trying to fit a late facia over an early inner structure. You should not have to order an aftermarket bumper. You should have to get an experienced shop mechanic who's familiar with these older cars to get the alignment right. Younger guys may not figure it out. And, they are a pretty big pain.

They probably did not fit the bumper to the car before paint. Ideally, this is what should be done. IF the bumper cannot be adjusted to fit -- with a good gap -- the bumper can be shaved to get one.

In my opinion, you have an issue with the shop, not the part. But, then again, I can not SEE what the issue is. NO PICS!

-Gregg

 

I'm no expert but I've been following this thread. I had similar problems with my bumper cover after an accident. Long story short, I'll be repainting the bumper again but this time I'm gonna try to get the gap better. It's a $$#%^&**! I spent alot of time before and it still wasn't right. I do know that Chevy changed the mounting method of the bumper, the old parts are not available.

 

Everyone who sells the bumpers list them as 84-90, and 91-96. I was going to order the one with C5 lights and mild spoiler, but it's only made for 91-96 and I was told it wouldn't fit. Just my .02

 

I changed my '89 to a '95 FACTORY front bumper. It fit fine. The bodies of the two styles are the same. You do not need to measure! Your shop needs to know what they're doing to get it right. See my customizing my '89 thread for a pic of my front bumper.

Where the inner structure bolts to the frame, there are up/down and side-to-side adjustments. Where the facsia attaches to the inner structure, you can also alter the gap line (up/down & in/out). I believe this can be accessed with the hood open -- along the top edge of the bumper. This adjustment can get your gap parallel and/or level with the hood.

I assume you went to the correct inner structure and aren't trying to fit a late facia over an early inner structure. You should not have to order an aftermarket bumper. You should have to get an experienced shop mechanic who's familiar with these older cars to get the alignment right. Younger guys may not figure it out. And, they are a pretty big pain.

They probably did not fit the bumper to the car before paint. Ideally, this is what should be done. IF the bumper cannot be adjusted to fit -- with a good gap -- the bumper can be shaved to get one.

In my opinion, you have an issue with the shop, not the part. But, then again, I can not SEE what the issue is. NO PICS!

-Gregg



Gregg, Sorry about not having taking pics yet. I work Thurs and Fri and they are closed long before I get there. Sat I'm heading down there and raising hell. I have $2000 in the bank from the initial appraisal, so he can fix it or lose more than half of the cost of the job.

If you mean a 91 to 96 inner structure, the shop ordered everything for the the late model fascia, or so I was told. As far as fitting it before painting, I assume they didn't or they would have contacted me about it, then the adjuster to see what he would do about it. As of now, they are trying to make me settle for what is the worst looking Corvette front end I have ever seen. I am not going to settle for such a horrible job, and told the adjuster that. But, it looks like it is the shop who is at fault here because they simply can't figure it out.

I called Varacor who handles aftermarket everything, and talked to Diane (co-owner with her better half for over 20 yrs), who is one heckuva great lady. She measured the fascia in the front corners, also how high it was from the floor, then measured a hood which was there because it hadden't been picked up yet. The fascia and hood measurements were the same. It is hard to measure my hood on the car, but I am going to try. It should be the stock hood, but as luck would have it, I called the guyt I bought the car from, and his # is disconnected!! Oh yeah, Diane also agreed that the ploy fascia should be workable, by someone tugging and someone ratcheting. That will be told to the baod man Sat also. Can you think of another or better approach? Thanks for replying, and genuine concern.

Rich

 

Can you think of another or better approach? Thanks for replying, and genuine concern.

Rich

Take your car to another repair shop. (Several more if necessary). Search until you find one who says they can fix the problem and ask for an estimate. The bodyshop employee who worked on my car has been in a bodyshop for 20 years. That's probably what you need (to find someone who's familiar with the alignment on C4 vettes).

Ask your estimator and/or current shop to credit the amount necessary to get it fixed somewhere else (and provide your new estimate).

If the bumper needs to be shaved, it can still be removed and done. Then it would probably need to be reshot and reinstalled. The price could be most of what you've already paid.

If it only needs adjustment, the new repair bill might not be terribly high.

-Gregg

BTW: I've seen Vanacor's and Toledo Pro installations besides mine. I did the measuring thing before I bought my new bumper and before I bought my high-rise hood (purchased at different times). You don't need to worry about measurements. Factory and aftermarket C4 hoods and bumpers are ALL made the correct size. THAT IS NOT THE PROBLEM!

 

DanZ51,
I am starting to think the shop doesn't have a clue as to how to do it right. So, as I said above, I will hold out the $2000 til I am satisfied. Period. Thanks for your input.

Wicked90
I don't know a thing about C5 conversions, although I saw a photo of one and it looked pretty good. The shop should have dry-fitted it but I am sure they didn't, so, too bad for them, tweak it or remove it and get another. I am getting impatient.
Thanks for you input too.

I will keep posting whenever I pin them down.

Rich K

P.S. It could only happen to me, I swear.

 

Everyone who sells the bumpers list them as 84-90, and 91-96. I was going to order the one with C5 lights and mild spoiler, but it's only made for 91-96 and I was told it wouldn't fit. Just my .02

The bumper fascias have to be different because the inner structures are different. The driving lights and side markers are not located in the same place. They are correct by listing the two segments of years. However, you can exchange bumpers between the early and late years as long as you exchange fascias and crash structure underneath.

If you're talking about the rear bumper with C5 lights, it will fit as long as you also get the crash assm that goes underneath. Take my word for it. It will work. I've done it.

-Gregg

 

DanZ51,
I am starting to think the shop doesn't have a clue as to how to do it right. So, as I said above, I will hold out the $2000 til I am satisfied. Period.

The smartest thing posted yet!

 

Gregg,
You make a good point. I'll work on that tomorrow, and hopefully they will have the good sense to go for it. I can't see why they wouldn't, but I have to plead my case right.

Thanks also for the BTW. It eases my mind knowing positively it isn't the parts.

Rich

BTW They did a job on my car another time. Almost the same thing, except that it was aa minor bump into the bench in my garage (by my son), but they had to remove it and reinstall and did a fine job. That's why I picked them this time.

 

Here are two more pics that demonstrate how well late model bumpers fit on early model vettes....

Note: There is a very slight imperfection in the gap on the driver's side. That is due to very slight warping in my salvage bumper. A new part would not have this. You don't even see it in person.

Gregg

 

Your car is BADA$$ !!!...love the pipes. I will keep you all posted, and thanks for the help. Much appreciated.

Rich K

 

fascia

Gregg, I shot a bunch of pics, but don't know how to post them, or email them to you w/out your address.

Rich K

 

Gregg, I shot a bunch of pics, but don't know how to post them, or email them to you w/out your address.

Rich K

There are a couple of ways to post pics. This forum makes it very easy. Go to "My Corvette Photos". Click on the phrase "Upload Corvette Photos". Use the browse buttons to select new images to upload (from your computer).

You can also get an account from a free hosting website like photobucket.com. Then follow a similar procedure.

After uploaded to either place, you just need to post a link to them. (See the insert link icon in the edit post window. It's the world with a chain link).

-Gregg

 

There are a couple of ways to post pics. This forum makes it very easy. Go to "My Corvette Photos". Click on the phrase "Upload Corvette Photos". Use the browse buttons to select new images to upload (from your computer).

You can also get an account from a free hosting website like photobucket.com. Then follow a similar procedure.

After uploaded to either place, you just need to post a link to them. (See the insert link icon in the edit post window. It's the world with a chain link).

-Gregg

To Gregg and all else concerned, I posted some pics in "MY Corvette Photos" section, but don't know how they turned out because for some strange reason my computer isn't showing ANY pics. go figure.

Rich K

P.S. Now I have found out they did upload. You can see how far of a mismatch these parts are, but if you also look at the pre-wreck photos (once they upload, just did them moments ago), the other fascia didn't match the corners perfect either, but at least it was the same height as the hood. So, is the hood at fault? I'm stymied.

 

Do you know if you got a GM bumper or aftermarket urethane version?

91-96 factory front bumpers appear slightly narrower than the hood. This is true on all cars I've look at. Yours is no exception. The pre-wreck fit is better than the post-wreck fit as you've noted. Your pre-wreck fit is about as good as it gets.

I do wonder if your newer bumper is slightly smaller than the last one, but that's not the only problem.

From what I can see the new bumper is mounted somewhat low. To make it fit right, they may have raised the center up which might have pulled in the sides. Ask about shimming it to move it further away from the hood. (This would increase the bumper to hood gap slightly). If it were raised and shimmed, the center of the bumper would need to be lowered a little (where it attaches to the crash assembly). If possible, the center of the bumper could also be moved back to minimize the increase in gap which would also make the entire gap more parallel. I can't be sure, but this might relax the sides a bit so they'd fit better. (Prefitting the bumper is where the bodyshop could have determined if the bumper fit right before painting and/or decided if shaving was necessary. This is where the shop is to blame)!

I'd look around town and measure your bumper against other 92-96 specimens. This will eliminate the possibility that your new bumper shrunk more than usual during manufacture. Stick the tape measure down in the bumper to hood seam and measure from side to side. If this is the problem, ask for a different front bumper (salvage, aftermarket, or new). Don't use the same source because their mold might be failing.

The bumper should be mounted in the center of the hood. It will appear slightly short on each side but as you stand back, it will look correct. The bumper brings the shape of the car to a point and kinda needs to do than anyway. The problem in your case is the SLOPE of the bumper vs. hood edges are different. Your new bumper looks more sloped than the hood at the corners. (In other words, your hood sticks up too muchs at the top of the corners). This could happen if the bumper is stretched in any way because of the installation (or if it shrunk during cure).

If you can compare your bumper to a factory model around town, you'll know -- for sure -- whether the bumper or installation is to blame. I don't see how it could be a problem with your hood because your pre-wreck fit seemed O.K..

-Gregg

 

fascia non-alighment

Well Gregg, you see it the same as I do, but you forgot the pass hood repair that I may not have noted. It clearly bows out, thus making that seam impossible to be correct. That will be pointed out tomorrow when I make yet another trip to the body shop. The bumper was hurt right there about i/2" x 1", just below the gel coat. Some over zealous "body man" put too much filler (mud), so it bows out and will have to be fixed.

I understand the center of the fascia has bracketry to raise or lower it. (isn't that why it is called a fascia?) If it was lowered the necessary 1/2" to 3/4" or so, the ends would have to push out and then match the hood lines better. Makes sense to me. Now I wish I had taken it to a Corvette repair shop, but they had the paint match dead on already.

Will keep you all posted for sure.

Rich K

P.S. In answer to your 1st question, it is supposedly a GM fascia. It measures exactly the same as the aftermarket on that I mentioned earlier in this thread. Yesterday I took along a nylon measuring tape and the body man and I measured the bumper. It was also the same. So, it has become clear that the fascia is either defective, or the shop doesn't have it adjusted right to shape the corners like the hood. Sorry for becoming repetitive, but this is like a "funny farm" at this point, and I am going to have the last laugh because I still have the $2000 check from Nationwide. haha

 

Well Gregg, you see it the same as I do, but you forgot the pass hood repair that I may not have noted. It clearly bows out, thus making that seam impossible to be correct. That will be pointed out tomorrow when I make yet another trip to the body shop. The bumper was hurt right there about i/2" x 1", just below the gel coat. Some over zealous "body man" put too much filler (mud), so it bows out and will have to be fixed. Rich K

If you're talking about a repair to the pass front corner, I see the abnormality. Looks like it needs to be shaved and reshot.

I thought about it a little more and looked at the pics again..... Because the bumper is mounted too low, the sides are being pulled down to fit. In other words, the bumper is angled down at the nose and up at the rear. This requires the sides to be pulled down to attach it to the wheel wells! There are two tell-tale signs of this.

1) The top of the fascia angles down more sharply than the hood.
2) The gap between the bumper and the hood is not parallel on the sides. And, it's wider at the front.

If the bumper were sitting (unmounted) and you bent the (floppy) ends down, the top surface would also pull down on the sides (and flatten out). That's why the newer bumper doesn't fit as well. Mostly, it needs to be raised up. (And, the hood needs to be fixed on that corner).

That should get it for you. Even your current shop should be able to do this once it's explained clearly. (Unless they're just not interested).

-Gregg

 

I doubt they will want instructions from me, but they are qoing to get em anyway. I still got the ransom, and I ain't budging. Thanks for your assessment.

Rich