1976 Front Bumper Replace

[ed_in_pa]

Hi I just bought a 1976 L48 White Coupe. It has 51,000 original miles. Elderly neighbors owned it but they have both passed away in the last 2 years. No one new they had it (except for me) because it rarely left the garage. It is in great shape except for the front bumper cover. It has cracks in it and I would like to replace it. I just need a little advice on how to go about this. I know there are repro urethane, oem urethane and tru-flex replacements. Which one should I use? Also, if I go with the tru-flex, how much body work is needed? Should these be painted before or after installation? What problems might I encounter when I remove the old one or for that matter install the new one?

Thanks,
Ed

 

[76okievette]

Hey, ED sounds like you got a great car, I also have a 1976 with 42,000 miles on it and I think its a great car. Sorry I can't help you with your question. I would recommend that you get your self a couple shop manuals they give pretty good instructions. Also I am sure you will get some advice from here, this is the greats forum for help working on your car. I will pay special interest in this because my front bumper cap also needs to be replaced. I will look it up in my shop manual tonight and let you know what it says. Paul

 

[tx73vette]

Congrats on your Dar it looks great... I have a 73 I had to replace the front cover on mine a few years ago. I took it to a body shop and the guy said that I should use the GM original instead of the Tru-Flex or the Ecklers OEM one he said that those take a lot of work to put on and to line up. He painted it (I think after he installed it) He ordered it from GM it took a few weeks to get it but it kept my car original. The guy who did it said that on such a nice car thats what he would do if it ewas his. The price was about $600 dollars and the one in the Ecklers was about the same. So I hope this helps you sort this out. Good luck and enjoy your car I can send you pictures of the car if you like just let me know you can e-mail me at tx51dm@aol.com.

Daniel

 

[Thumper]

Replacing the front bumper cover is a breeze. When I first got my 76, the front bumper cover was almost non-existent. I removed the grilles and the lower valance which allowed me to reach all of the little nuts that held it on. I transferred the mounting brackets from the old cover to the new one (a factory one that I picked up at a Lone Star Corvette Club swap meet for $100). The only thing that I was really careful about was watching the surface of the bumper as I tightened the nuts to keep from overtightening and causing waves. The best way was to get all of the nuts started and then tighten each one a little bit at a time until they were secure and the surface was still smooth. Hopefully your mounting brackets haven't rusted, but you can purchase new ones from several vendors.

You will still have some waves, but they shouldn't be readily noticable. Mine came out nearly perfect. The True Flex and fiberglass covers are supposed to eliminate the wave problem, but you sure wouldn't want to bump anything with them. I was lucky enough to buy my cover already painted the same color as my car. I would have the cover painted (needs flex agent) before installing it. I did mine in an afternoon.