In this thread from 3 years ago, I describe a minor accident that put my rear bumper out of joint.
My car is now 13 years old. I backed into a wall (relatively lightly) this morning, and was reminded of my bumper. I took a look; it’s completely unattached from the rest of the car right above it on the left side, except for this one screw or attachment or whatever at the very end (although the metal there is “raised” like a pimple, indicating that the impact of the accident “stretched” it a little).
Is this something I should bother to get repaired? Is there anything I can do myself, or ask someone to help me with? Even if the bumper’s useful life is over (as suggested in the linked thread), I’d rather have a bumper than not, especially if it’s going to fall off in the middle of driving (due to my backing into the wall this morning or whatever).
Like jz78817 said lo these three years ago, it sounds like the part that’s about to come off is the bumper cover, not the bumper itself. It’s basically just a chunk of plastic held on with screws. It’s actually intended to be somewhat flimsy so it will break away in a low speed crash (like say backing into a pedestrian), whereas the big chunk of metal behind it is the “real” bumper that will protect you in a more serious crash.
So, no, you don’t have to get it repaired, but I would suggest you at least see what it would cost. It might not be too expensive for a body shop to do it. It’s also probably not terribly difficult to do yourself-- googling, it appears to just be a matter of removing screws although possible the mounting holes might have been damaged in the crash. You can buy a replacement off the internet for pretty cheap (or a fancy-pants aftermarket one, if you must), or else possibly even cheaper from a local junkyard.
If I may go on a slight tangent, these days most cars don’t die from major drivetrain failures, but rather a slow descent into clunkerdom that ends up with a lot of little problems leading to the decision to junk the car. When you stop fixing things you don’t “have” to fix, you start thinking of your car as a disposable POS, and the next time something expensive or multiple expensive somethings come along that you do have to fix you’re a lot less likely to fix it if your car has a sagging headliner, busted shocks, missing hubcaps, etc. Not replacing the bumper cover is pretty much just a cosmetic issue, but it’s a good first step down the path to clunkerdom.
Or clear tape if you don’t want to bother matching the color. You could probably attach it to the brackets underneath with sheet metal screws and washers. There are fasteners made specifically for doing this, but I don’t know where to get them other than trying an auto parts store.
I replaced the bumper cover on my daughter’s vehicle after she backed into someone. I drilled a few new holes near the old attachment points where necessary. That, and judicious use of JB Weld, has held nicely.
Replacement bumper covers are not that expensive, but having them painted to match the car can be.