Any ideas of why this bumper doesnt fit on my car?

artisticent · 02-19-2011, 11:50 AM

My car is is 1976 911 that I am converting to a 964 turbo body cab. The rear bumper is off and I need some idea based on my pics.
Thanks
Nathan

artisticent · 02-19-2011, 11:52 AM

Its lined up nicely to the flares but you can see it sticks out on the rear right side. Iv even tried another bumper and its the same.

Thanks

artisticent · 02-19-2011, 11:54 AM

By the way the gab is not the absence of plastic. It actually need to be pushed in but then it will be pushed beyond the flare lip.

scottb · 02-19-2011, 12:00 PM

A couple of thoughts...

1. What does it look like from a distance? Does the bumper look symmetrical? If so, then the problem probably is that when the bumper was formed, one side got a bit more fiberglass than the other.

2. Has the car ever been hit? Is it possible the front end is off a bit?

Also, you might post this in the bodywork forum. One of the gurus there might be able to help.

Joe Bob · Joe Bob's Garage

Fiberglass molds are not an exact science, in my experience they are rarely bolt on parts. They tend to need massaging, some more than others.

Who made the bumper?

artisticent · 02-19-2011, 12:15 PM

No telling who made it but 2 bumpers completely different brands are almost the same problem. Yes the bumper appears to stick out more from the car so its a problem I need to fix. The car looks straight but I havent closely inspected under the car for any crumple points.
Thanks for the suggestion on the bodywork section. Those guys know tricks lol

Nathan

rattlsnak · rattlsnak's Garage

Its not the bumper, its the flares being in the wrong place. I saw your other post also. When you put flairs on the rear, you ALWAYS mate the bumper to the body at the same time to make sure everything lines up to avoid this issue. There is no way you can 'eyeball' or measure the flairs and get them in the right spot without the bumper in place.

artisticent · 02-19-2011, 12:25 PM

Darn I was afraid of that. I got the car with them on already and now already finished the bodywork so Im not having them cut and re welded. Oh well. Kind of a bummer. I guess ill have to make it look as close as possible and live with it. Thanks for the info

Nathan

tcar · 02-20-2011, 11:39 AM

Yes, your R flare is not aligned correctly.

You may be able to grind enough off the R flare end of the bumper to make it fit better.

kiwiokie · 02-20-2011, 12:52 PM

Does the 964 have different tail light metal since the lenses and reflector are sloped rather than vertical?

giovanni86 · 02-20-2011, 12:59 PM

Quote:

does the 964 have different tail light metal since the lenses and reflector are sloped rather than vertical?

+1

john walker's workshop · 02-20-2011, 01:30 PM

winner! chicken dinner!

Scooter · 02-20-2011, 01:42 PM

Yum....chicken.

kiwiokie · 02-20-2011, 03:50 PM

Woohoo, got one right. Miracles never cease.

artisticent · 02-20-2011, 07:45 PM

Not quite sure what the 964 taillight metal has to do with this problem. Please explain. If its the flare that is incorrect, then that means the wheel wont look the same as the other side. Its well worth me having the flare cut off and rewelded if this is the case.

Thanks
Nathan

rattlsnak · rattlsnak's Garage

Quote:

Originally Posted by kiwiokie

Does the 964 have different tail light metal since the lenses and reflector are sloped rather than vertical?

Not the case here. No Chicken Dinner...

His other thread showed how one side of the front of the flare didnt line up correctly with the flare edge and now that he evened out that problem, now one side of the bumper around the tail light housings is pushed out. Look at both pictures, one side is lined up, one side is 1-2" back. Sorry, flairs are on wrong. That being said, I would get some fiberglass and add to the bumper to fill in that spot. It shouldnt be too noticeable when the lights are put on.

artisticent · 02-20-2011, 08:09 PM

Rattlsnak, thanks for the info, iv followed you're misc posts and your vehicle before. I think ill have the flare cut off and rewelded. The issue is not so much that ill never be able to walk behind my car again coz ill always notice it, but the wheel will look like its in a bigger space if the flare is wrong. That will kill me for the sake of a few hundred bucks to reweld and have it right.

rattlsnak · rattlsnak's Garage

Since you say 'weld' I assume they are steel flares that have been welded on. Its going to depend on how much they cut the body underneath if youre going to be able to move it or not. You should be able to see it they were butt welded or overlapped from underneath. If they are butt welded or they didnt leave much overlp, it may be difficult to move them. You might have to cut them off and add a fiberglass flare at worst case. Do the torsion bar hole cutouts line up correctly on both sides? There are actually 4 positions to line up on a rear flare, not just 3. The front lower area, the top center, the rear lower area, AND the top center distance perpendicular to a vertical line. If any of these 4 areas are off, they wont line up. Since both of yours are on already, take a close look and try to find out which one is off, (or both). From your pics, it appears that the right side is off, but its hard to tell without seeing it in person. Do you have wider wheels or spacers yet? This helps greatly when the wheels are pushed out in the proper place also.

artisticent · 02-20-2011, 08:51 PM

I will take those measurements tomorrow on the points. Yes they are metal but I wouldnt bother to replace with a fiberglass flare at this point. I ran in to the garage and pushed the bumper to the right and it ends up being exactly a half inch over in to the flare. that might be just little enough to get away with. Im back and fourth on the wheels. I did see an amazing set of HRE's today. The rear is 285/35/19. But I will end up with 18's most likely. Same size tire. This is a tough build to be doing on my own and originally intended to build to sell but now im building with the intent to keep it so im taking a little mor care.