So. After many a Michigan winter, my Honda Accord is showing signs of rust. In fact, my back bumper has begun to dangle slightly on the passenger side. Much as I’d love to replace said bumper, I have some other things I have to do first, like get new brakes and tires and go to the dentist and maybe buy some food, so right now, I’m rigging it. The bungee cords are holding the bumper in place quite nicely, and they add a much-needed splash of color to my otherwise boring car, but they’re making it rather difficult to keep my trunk shut. (I got rear-ended some time ago, and it’s never quite latched right since.) Is there a way for me to have both a closed trunk and a bumper that’s where it should be?
Oh my GOD that is too weird! my 92 Accord EX had the passenger side bumper start to dangle 4 days ago! I looked in the wheel whell and it appears the little bit of rust I thought was there on both sides of the car actually went back a little further than I thought and the metal that the retaining clip is connected to rusted out 
I don’t know what I’m going to do to fix it though. I sure as heck cant just weld a piece of metal in there.
As for the trunk, it seems to me that a new latch would be relatively easy to replace. I’d check out a junkyard, even with a totalled car, the chance that the trunk latch is still good seems awfully high.
The dangle is not connected to the trunk it sounds like, so I don’t think you are going to get a one thing cure. For the bumper you need to find some way to get the retaining clips to stay in place and if there is no metal there to clip to…well I’m stumped with the same problem
The latch isn’t really the problem, though. After the accident, the back end was slightly mushed in, so the trunk doesn’t quite close on the driver’s side. As long as I could force the other end down, however, the trunk stayed mostly shut. But the bungee cords are hooked inside the trunk on the passenger’s side, so now that end won’t shut either. It’s that little gap on both sides of my trunk that makes it fly open every time I hit any sort of a bump. The latch itself seems unaffected.
I guess what I really need is an alternate method of holding my bumper up until I can afford a real repair. I’m thinking maybe wire or Bondo. Any advice?
(By the by, my Accord is a '91. Still runs pretty well for its age.)
actually, the way you’re describing it, it does sound like the latch is the problem. Not so much that the latch is defective, but that the latch and the receiver aren’t lining up correctly. otherwise, they’d “lock” together.
can’t you tie it to anything else other than the bumper?
Many years ago I was rear ended causing a similar problem with my trunk. Shortly after that I began to notice that I was getting carbon monoxide fumes while driving. Opening the windows only made it worse. It turned out that the exhaust was being sucked into the car from the slight gap left when I closed my now bent trunk. Make sure that’s not happening to you.
lolababy - I’m not sure I can hook the bungee anywhere else. I might be able to link the two I have together so that they stretch from bumper to bumper, which would certainly keep the trunk closed, but it seems like it would be a good deal less secure.
bnorton - Thanks for the warning, but my trunk has been like this for a while now, and I haven’t noticed any fumes getting into the car. I think my muffler just hangs too low for that to be a problem.
Could you post a picture?