How To Repair A Torn Bumper Cover

Fix a cracked bumper comprehend

Fix a cracked bumper

So you hit the parking ramp barrier and now yous have a cracked bumper? The trunk shop wants a fortune and you want to fix a cracked bumper yourself. Yous've searched the Net and watched all the youtube videos that show you how to gear up a cracked bumper yourself. DON'T DO THAT! If you follow the instructions in those videos you'll be wasting your time and energy. All the posts and videos show the same thing; using epoxy and Bondo to fix the crack. Those products won't last and they're incompatible with the plastic used to make the bumper embrace. Epoxy and Bondo are rigid materials. Merely your bumper encompass is made from a flexible plastic. If you use those products, they'll break off the instant your bumper flexes. The crack will open up up over again and you'll take to redo the repair from scratch.

What you need to repair a cracked bumper

If yous want to repair your cracked bumper the right manner you'll take to spend some coin on a fissure stitching tool and a special plastic welding kit. A plastic welding kit contains a hot iron that will cook the bumper plastic but not destroy information technology. You'll as well have to remove the bumper from the vehicle, then you should have admission to a shop manual to locate all the bumper cover fasteners. Try alldata or Mitchell (meet the links below). Side by side, accept a moment to sympathise bumper structure.

Agreement bumper construction

The bumpers on modern vehicles are made with three pieces; the bumper cover (which is the role that cracked), the energy cushion (which probably also got damaged during the impact) and the impact bar (the actual bumper). Hither are illustrations for a front and rear bumper from a 2015 Toyota Camry. You can encounter that the bumper has three components: bumper encompass, free energy absorber, and the touch on bar.

toyota bumper

Three-piece bumper construction

The bumper encompass material is made from flexible plastic. But automobile makers use a diverseness of plastics to class their bumper covers and the filler plastic y'all use to repair the crack must match the base material. If you utilize any other type of filler to fix a croaky bumper cover, it won't last. It volition just crack off. Here's a list of the nigh popular materials:

fix cracked bumper

Rear Toyota bumper

TPU TPUR = Thermoplastic Polyurethane
Information technology'southward used in bumper covers, soft filler panels, gravel deflectors, rocker console covers.

TPO, EPM or TEO = Polypropylene + Ethylene Propylene rubber
Information technology's used in bumper covers, valence panels, fascia panels, air dams, dashboards, grilles.

PP=Polypropylene (polyolefin)
It's used in bumper covers, deflector panels, interior moldings, radiator shrouds, inner fenders

PC + PBT= Polyphenylene Ether + Polyamide Bumper covers

If you use any other type of filler to ready a cracked bumper cover, it won't concluding. It will simply crevice off.

Do some Internet research or use a shop manual to make up one's mind the type of plastic used in your bumper comprehend.

Steps to ready a cracked bumper

The advice on the Internet shows how to patch the bumper cleft past first removing the bumper and applying 2-part epoxy covered with fiberglass textile or drywall mesh. Trust me, that method won't work. Here's why. Drywall mesh isn't strong. Don't believe me? Simply effort pulling it apart with your fingers. The mesh comes apart in your fingers. If you're going to use whatsoever kind of bankroll material with the crack repair, at to the lowest degree cull a stronger fabric like fiberglass textile or stainless steel screen. They offering lateral support that drywall mesh doesn't.

Stitching the crack from the backside is the start footstep in the crack repair. At that place are ii ways to do this and both require you to remove the bumper from the vehicle.

Stitch a cracked bumper with hot staples

The hot staple method is the fastest and most long-lasting. Commencement by clamping cleaning the cracked edges with a wax remover. And so close the gap between the two cracked sections and clamp them together using modest wood blocks and a vice grip type locking pliers or wood clamp.

Side by side, load a staple into the heat gun and press the trigger. Await

Astro Hot Staple Gun 7600

Astro Hot Staple Gun 7600 Kit

for the staple to get red-hot and plunge information technology into the centre of the scissure to a depth of no more than than half the thickness of the plastic. Allow the staple and plastic to cool earlier releasing the staple from the gun. Repeat the operation by alternating the staple rotation direction. Once you've stitched the cleft, cut the protruding staple legs with a side cutter.

Find the Astro 7600 Hot Staple Gun Kit for Plastic Repair Kit on Amazon for virtually $xc. Information technology comes with the heating gun and an assortment of stitching staples. See this video beneath for usage.

Fill the croaky bumper from behind with plastic welding rod

Just like with hot staple stitching, yous must remove the bumper cover from the vehicle to stitch the fissure with plastic welding rod. Instead, purchase a plastic welding kit like the Polyvance 5700HT Mini Weld Model vii Airless Plastic Welder. The kit comes with all the types of bumper cover plastics commonly used by car makers
6027 HT Standard Welding Tip
6031 Tear Drib Airless Welding Tip
200 Watt Ceramic Core Heating Element
2045W Reinforcing Mesh
6124WB Stainless Wire Castor
Starter Pack (15 ft) of round Polyurethane Welding Rod
Starter Pack (15 ft) of round Polypropylene Welding Rod
Starter Pack (fifteen ft) of round ABS Welding Rod
Starter Pack (fifteen ft) of circular LDPE Welding Rod
Starter Pack (15 ft) of circular TPO Welding Rod
Starter Pack (15 ft) of round Nylon Welding Rod
Starter Pack (4 ft) of circular Polycarbonate Welding Rod
Starter Pack (15 ft) of flat FiberFlex Universal Welding Rod

Follow the instructions in this Polyvance video showing how to stitch the behind of the bumper with stainless steel screen and groove and fill the front side using FiberFlex filler cloth

Prime number with a flexible primer

Once yous complete the plastic repair and the surface is sanded smooth, apply an

SEM 39133 flexible primer

automotive-class flexible primer similar SEM 39133 flexible primer (semproducts.com).

Paint the cracked bumper with automotive paint with flex additive

Locate a professional car trunk pigment supplier that has the adequacy to load your paint into an droplets tin along with a flex agent. That will allow the paint to flex and not crack off like ordinary touch up paints.
©, 2019 Rick Muscoplat