Bumper removal

[Sir Goofy]

While trying to remove the plastic part of the back bumper I was loosening the the bolts underneath and stopped after 3 because they were snapping. I figured the first 2 might be expected but after the third one I inspected it to see that there was a decent amount of good metal under the rusted bolt. Is there something I'm missing with the bumper removal?

[micah202]

While trying to remove the plastic part of the back bumper I was loosening the the bolts underneath and stopped after 3 because they were snapping. I figured the first 2 might be expected but after the third one I inspected it to see that there was a decent amount of good metal under the rusted bolt. Is there something I'm missing with the bumper removal?

no, unfortunately you're discovering that which is not uncommon ,,the bumper tube, and the brackets rust to nothing,even on a vehicle that shows no other rust!


The bolts on mine freed up allright, but the brackets themselves were toast, there was only enough material left to use as a base for a welder to build up with some solid chunks of steel.

G'luck with rethreading those bolt mounts on the frame,, perhaps it's a good idea to learn and practice the job on a workbench before working on the bumper mount bolts, you'll only get one chance there. I -imagine- you'll need to be able to extensively heat the are to help free up the stubs for removal

[Burntboot]

SG - Are you trying to remove the cover while the assembly is still on the vehicle? or did you snap the big bolts that mount the assembly to the van?

Either way, saturating the daylights out of everything with quality penetrant and letting it soak for several days can help.
When I use heat to remove rusted hardware, I much prefer to quench with cold water (after heating)prior to attempting removal.

[Sir Goofy]

Yes I'm trying to remove the cover assembly without removing the bumper. I had a little back end impact and it raised the bumper to the point where its difficult to close the back hatch. I want to get under there to see if I can pound the bump out.

[Burntboot]

Understood.

That being said, without seeing pictures, I would have to suggest that pulling the bumper off as an assembly is still the best route.
Then you can evaluate what else needs to be done to effect necessary repairs.
It's a lot easier to deal with things on the bench than attempt to pull the cover while the assembly is still on the van.
It was never intended to come apart in that manner, so what looks like the "easy" way, really isn't going to be.

If you get it apart and find the bumper reinforcement is trashed, procuring a used assembly will make most of the pain go away with relative ease.
Rebars were never intended to be repaired (from the perspective of being bent at least) they are considered to be a sacrificial part.
I would only consider trying to repair one if it were rusted out, not bent.
BB

[timsrv]

My old Tercel had a "dent" in the rear bumper from backing into a pole or something. I fixed it by pulling the bumper cover loose from the bottom and stuffing shop rags up in there. It filled the void nicely and after a coat of black spray paint you couldn't tell it had ever been damaged. I got lucky on that though. On the van, the rear bumper cover is already too close to the rear hatch, so if the bumper is bent up at all you're going to have a challenge to deal with. I've actually trimmed the corners off the hatch on most of the vans I've had simply because I get tired of pushing the edges of the bumper down every week or so. Tim

[bikerjosh]

Ok, so on the front bumper you have to pull the cover off, before you can remove the steel structure? Rear was pretty easy to pull and then separate the cover/foam from the backbone.
thanks

[boogieman]

nope, remove the amber lights, 4 bolts from the bottom and 2 more from each side and mine pulled straight out..

edit, actually dont have to remove the amber lights theres a gang plug for each side so they can be left in place...

[boogieman]

im planning some sort of custom brush guard bumper and eliminate some of that overhang...

[James Zueger]

I found that if you drill two small holes in the floor directly above the rear bumper bolts that go up thru and soak them with penetrating oil it makes the job much easier because they are the ones that get rusted up real bad.

[89van]

Hello all,



My bumper was trashed on my 1989 van wagon by a previous owner. I located a replacement bumper assembly cheap and decided to attempt the repair.



I was able to remove the complete bumper assembly by removing four 17mm bolts along the bottom of the bumper. These attached the bumper to uni-body of the van. There were four more 12mm bolts, two on each side. These bolts attach angled brackets to the uni-body. The running light bulbs and turn signal bulbs also had to be removed/unsecured from the lenses. It was not hard to do and the removal took less than 30 minutes. The bumper assembly is also not that heavy, probably 20-30 lbs. total. Installation was the reverse, everything lined right up and the install also took about 30 minutes or less. The bumper assembly cost $35.00, totally worth it.

Thanks man, this helped me take off mine!!!
Do what he said and you should be good to go for anyone in the future!