Bent 1ga Laser lower Front Bumpers

[dredman1]

Hi,

I thought my car was the only one with this problem, but after looking at some of the other Laser pics on this site I realise I'm not (see below).

Dsm Day At E Town 011 - my laser DSMtuners Gallery
my car - a nice look at my new DSM DSMtuners Gallery
Chris's images - tranny swap way to cold outside to do it DSMtuners Gallery
the front - Windshield is cracked. Paint is faded/dirty. Left lower headlight is cracked. Need to de-moss the windshield. :} DSMtuners Gallery

Didn't mean to embarrass anyone by using their pic, but just wanted to highlight what I mean.

These pics seem to suggest it's a common problem for the Lasers. Any other Laser owners out there have this issue? I did a search for this, but came up empty. I was wondering:

(1) why does it seem to commonly happen to the Laser as compared to the Talon or Eclipse
(2) if it's a simple fix to "bend" it back into place. E.g. just apply pressure to straighten it (maybe stand up on it).
(3) how to prevent it from happening again.

Thanks.

 

[1992awdlaser]

Mines not like that.

 

[Black94DSM]

Isn't there supposed to be a factory lip on these models ? Every picture you posted up is missing the lip, maybe it needs to be there to retain structural rigidity ?

 

[dredman1]

Nope - mine didn't come with a lip (and there's nothing on the bumper that suggests there was ever a lip, such as the Talons).
My bumper looks exactly like the ones in the pics above.

 

[92Lazer]

mine too. I have a '90 laser, and it doesn't have a lip either.

 

[DSMboostin15]

Mine didn't come with the stock lip either and it was bent like the ones in the pics. I was able to find a great one at the junkyard after months of searching. When I put it on, I had to take some vise grips and bend the metal brace that holds the bumper straight. Has been straight ever since.

 

[dredman1]

DSMboostin15, my entire bumper fits fine and is lined up on the car, but just the bottom of the bumper is bent like it hit something (which I know I never did).
Is the metal brace that you bent which "holds the bumper straight" part of the bumper? Or is it something that actually holds up the bumper (the bumper support??). Where exactly is it located?
Any advice you can give me I'll be grateful for...

 

[DSMboostin15]

Yes, it is part of the bumper. If you look at the following pic, the red lines are the metal parts that hang down from the crash beam. They fit inside the molding of the bumper cover, helping it to retain it's shape. The one that you are concerned about is the one that runs along the bottom, near the ground. Take a pair of vise grips or pliars and bend it until it looks straight. Be careful, as this is thin metal that is most likely rusty. Make small adjustments to it, every so often slipping the cover back on to check for fitment. It is a tedious process that will take some time. Don't get discouraged if it doesn't look right at first. The bumper cover will eventually fit the contour of the new bend. Bolt the cover back on, making sure that there are plenty of bolts that connect the bottom of the cover to the metal brace you just rebent. This will ensure that the bumper cover will not return to it's original form. I feel the reason that many get this arc is because the metal is very thin and if you hit a curb, the metal will bend, causing the lower bumper cover to arc up. I've seen this on many DSM's with this style bumper. I hope that this helps.



Ryan

 

[dredman1]

^^^ thanks a lot for the tip! Will give it a try and see. BTW, your car looks great - really clean

 

[DSMboostin15]

You're welcome. Thanks for the compliment, but the one thing you can't see in the pic is the somewhat large rust hole in the driver's side door. I have to look at it every time I get in the car.