Bumper Conversion

[eurotrash]

So, After sitting on this set of bumpers for ever, I finally went for it. I have a euro center section for the rear, but I will have to purchase a new rubber bumper first.. the fasteners on this one are toast and would just destroy the thing if I tried to remove it. So we just threw on the seam covers and dug in..

We started at the back of the car, and got 75% done the first go round.

1. Get the junk out yo trunk.

2. Remove all remnants of the diving boards.

3. Remove the side trim.

4. Clean the residue off the paint.

5. Remove the four body plugs for the new bumper bolts.

5.1 There was material on the body that had to be ground down, just above the seams of the new bumper on the inside edges of the big bumper shock holes. This material didn't allow the new bumper to travel up tight enough to the body for my liking. I ground it down with a wheel and then dabbed paint on the bare metal with a brush.

Now, there was added material in the square tails for structural support, so as you probably know, holes must be made. I used a 3/16 bit for pilot holes, then a one piece 1" hole saw (in conjunction with a 90 degree drill adapter for the gas tank side. Cut the shank of the hole saw down as short as it can go and still bottom in the 90 degree adapter.

6. Use a long, strong punch through from the outside of the car, through to the inner support area to be drilled. Get the BFH and give it a whack to dimple the metal where your holes will be. Be careful not to get too low in the slot, you will pay at hole saw time.

7. From the out side, drill the pilot holes for the hole saw.

8. Use the hole saw on the inside to get out to 1".

9. Tape the fender washer to the new bumper bracket bolts and insert them though the body. I used appropriately sized rubber washer on the out side of the body to bush the bracket. They also serve to hold the bolts in place.

10. Set one bolt back into the hole a bit (so it doesn't get in the way or pushed back on accident), and one all the way out. Put a socket/extension on the bolt that is all the way out and have it waiting for assembly.

11. Have a helper on one end and lift the bumper into place. Using the waiting socket, start the bolts and tighten them hand tight..

12. Position the bumper level to the body line across the back, just above the bumper. From studying many pictures, including the Italian Schwartz car on Ebay(see picture), I have decided that the bumper should be about 1/2" below the body line. This height will come into play when its time to get the bumper ends in line with the remaining side trim.

13. Time to get the ends square and mounted proper. This is critical because if the ends are pointing up or down, it destroys the whole look.

I used wide painters tape on the side of the car to help locate the correct angle of the bumper ends, as well as where to drill the hole for the end support bolt.

Stand back a good 20 ft from the car and have a helper hold the bumper end and move it up and down until you are content with its angle in relationship to the rest of the rubber knee line moldings. You may have to adjust the overall height of the bumper to get it all to come together. Once you have found the magic combo, Lock in your bumper brackets, and have your helper draw a line on the tape across the top of the bumper. As well, mark the center of the mounting tab.

Let the bumper end relax down, loosen the brackets if need be, and mark the spot for drilling 14mm below the line for the top edge of the bumper, and below that center mark.

Now for the part that makes anyone but Blunt cringe, drilling a hole in a perfectly good quarter panel. Judging by a fender that I have with the hole in it for early bumpers, use a pilot bit followed 3/8" (or metric equivalent) drill bit and make the holes. The larger diameter hole allows a bit of slop for final adjustments.

If it helps, mine finished off with the ends of the bumper just lining up with the front hole left by the knee line trim.

I found some great temporary solutions at home depot of all places. Plastic snap-in locking hole plugs. The sizes range from 1/8" to 1". They have a very low profile cap and are paintable. I ordered a bottle of 024 from paint scratch.com (THEY TAKE FORRRREVERRRRRR) to hit the plugs with until I can afford a complete and proper repaint and weld it all up.

*UPDATE*

I recieved the paint and got busy on the hole plugs. The back of the car took 12 of the 3/16" variety, and 4 of the 5/16".

On the inside I sealed the deal with a wad of silicon sealer around each one to ward off water sprites. And then I added 1" chrome plugs to the inside bolt holes to finish them off after painting the bare metal.

It all turned out pretty darn good for a temp solution from home depot! And while I was at it, I had the tail pipe reworked. MUCH better. I was just an unfinished project by the PO.

So on to the front..For now its just stripped and waiting, but this is what I have so far.

Here is the shock:

Here is its replacement: 1 3/4" tail pipe from Pep Boys..

This will be fused with an early bumper bracket to accept the early bumper in the stock location on the later car..

More later..

5/21/10

Got a little more work done, the big push comes tomorrow. If the dang rain will stay away!!!

5/22-23/10

The big push came.

I had to shorten the tubing and trim off the sides of the rubber shock surrounds to accept the early brackets into the frame..I'll break it down.

1. Mark the tubing to protrude about 1/4" out from the top of the rubber sleeves, while flush at the back. Mark the hole locations on the tail end for the big mounting bolt. Pull them out and cut/drill as needed.

2. Trim the original brackets to 3.5" from the last bend. Mount them to the bumper and adjust them to the outsides as far as possible

3.Cut the rubber sleeves 4" deep on the out sides and leave as much as you can of the circle to keep the support for the tubing. But you must cut off the entire side to make the next step possible..

4. Insert the sleeves with the tubing, Thread in the large mounting bolts, and then install the bumper with the trimmed original mounts. The flat brackets go on the OUTSIDE of the tubes. Use a floor jack to support it in the center so you can move around and get it positioned properly. (I ended up at 2.5" off the nose of the car at the INSIDE edge of the over riders.) Getting the bumper level with the floor jack will have the flat brackets aiming down, but there is room in there next to the sleeves due to the trimming off of the out sides. Once you have the bumper positioned to your liking, put painters tape on the fender at the bumper ends and mark on the tape where the bumper edge falls Then mark a line on the flat bracket, at the end of the tubing. This mark is how you will line up the parts for welding (or drilling bolt holes) to get the proper distance from the nose..

5. Remove the parts and either weld or through bolt the tubing and the flat brackets together using the marks on the flat brackets for reference, and with the parts in parallel. The next step corrects the angle..

6. Install the assembly onto the car. Install the large mounting bolts (Depending on your math, you may need to heat and twist the assembly to get the bolt holes lined up). Once this is complete, and the bumper is on the car, it will be angled down. So, with the floor jack under the center of the bumper, apply a bit of pressure (it will be fine, really. Don't be shy). Heat the flat brackets at the folds and let the weight of the car bend the bumper up into place until level.

7. Move on to drilling and mounting the end bolts..

OH. And don't lose your balance while squatting down around hot parts.. you never know what you'll grab to catch yourself..

My Friend Noodles at Cornfield Customs helped with some welding and bending..

The finished product..

(I hammered out that dent..)

Next was trimming the original shock covers and drilling the end bold holes. I used my iPhone app to level the ends at the same measurement as the knee line trim..

I got it level and marked the top and center of the mounting slot. Then measured 7/8" down for the holes..

The final product on the car is great!! The bumper is right at 2.5" from the nose at the insides of the bumperettes..

Its a go!

[pureaudio]

Looks good, did you happen to take some shots of the holes you drilled before you put the bumper on? Definitely planning on doing this to mine eventually.

[rover1]

Looks pretty awesome! im always amazed at how heavy those 5mph bumpers weigh.

[eurotrash]

Thanks guys. More pics and detailed info later. I am waiting on the bumper end to body bolt sets from Steve, then I just need to find the time to finish! This new job thang is for the birds!

[saaron]

WHOA! You did it! I love the look of the later cars w/the euro bumpers - so excellent. That thing is looking amazing - such a great car.

Scott

[eurotrash]

Updated, 3/30/10

[eurotrash]

More updates..

[austinmf]

I swore I saw someone selling rear brackets for a euro bumper conversion but I cannot find the thread...

Anyone know where I can get a kit to mount my rear euro bumper?

[carpainter]

I do not have the square rubber inserts .  I have seen another mod like this which uses 2" square metal tubing to go in the big square holes on the car.