New Front Bumper Mods

[Trigga-T]

so i had that kandy red grand am with the kandy man airbrushed and im redoing it because it got scratched up alil bit and i rearended someone. so in the redo stage i decided to modify the front bumper and im gettin the ram air hood. heres the pics of wut i did so far. i cut the lil vents on the sides of it and cut the middle opening piece and plastic welded the plate filler in.

[Exodus]

Interesting, it'll look similar to my avatar. :p

[SikMindz]

Hmm..didn't realize that you could weld plastic to p/u.

Looks good so far.

[Elderas]

make sure you weld it good so it doesnt crack, which i have a feeling it might.

[WeibSunder]

Wow, your gonna have fun sanding, priming and bondo-ing.

Won't cutting out the center plastic pillar much weaker?

If it all works out it's going to look good.

[GrandAmGT1996]

Seems like it should turn out pretty good....the only thing is, you might want to come up with a way to reinforce the part where you cut the middle section out (on the lip thing) because it might be a little weak. (Sorry for the poor description)

[WeibSunder]

That's what I'm thinking, that it will turn out to be a weak point. If it was me I would slide a piece of think metal in that bottom part or even a small metal rod and then fiberglass it in on the back. Because if you attempt to go into a steep driveway or anything of the sort it will hit and either break or put a nasty crease in it.

[Gizm0815]

you cant weld plastic..do u use a wood burner to just melt it to the bumper? i would have thought some fiberglass and bondo would have worked easier but im not a body guy nor painter so i dont know. just looks like a real odd way to make it work.

[Mirage85]

you cant weld plastic..do u use a wood burner to just melt it to the bumper? i would have thought some fiberglass and bondo would have worked easier but im not a body guy nor painter so i dont know. just looks like a real odd way to make it work.

Yes, you can weld plastic, they even make plastic welders. Its not welding the same way you weld metal, but its the same idea.

I agree, I think cutting out the middle was a big mistake. There is a GAGT at work, and they pulled to close to a curb or something and snapped that part off, and now it almost hangs low enough to hit the ground. It might seem sturdy now, but give it some time and it will start to bow.

[AaronGTR]

Yeah, that center section will be a weak point and will likely bow or break unless you put something in it as reinforcement. Maybe a long piece of fiberglass or aluminum. McMaster-Carr has bonded honeycomb aluminum sheets that are extremely stiff and light that I've found make good reinforcements for body panels.

[ancona46]

that thing is definetly gonna sag like an old lady's tits

[WeibSunder]

Wait till the sun hits that dark paint...it's gonna get soft and start to sag like everyone is saying. I still say to go to Home Depot or Lowes and get a thin piece of metal or a light metal tube.

[tenspeed]

Get 5 foot of copper pipe and a can of expandible foam. Put a slight bend in the pipe and foam it in place. That should hold it.

[Elderas]

^good idea right there

i also didnt even notice you cut the middle out

and yes you can weld plastic as proof above :)

you should cut out those little side vents too while your at it.

[WeibSunder]

Do you think with the expandable foam that if the least little bit of moisture got in there and froze it could dislodge the foam and he would lose his pipe?

Would fiberglass be better?

[WeibSunder]

And looking at the pics again, won't he need to fiberglass the notch he cut out of the bottom lip anyway?

[GrandAmGT1996]

Get 5 foot of copper pipe and a can of expandible foam. Put a slight bend in the pipe and foam it in place. That should hold it.

I think we have a winner

[notsoaveragej0e]

you should cut out those little side vents too while your at it.

I thought he did?

http://www.grandamgt.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=24966&d=1179348310

[Hodge]

thats doPe

if i had a way to work with body work (and was good heh dreamin), i'd get rid of all the ****ing waves somehow ****ing hate the GA waves. the dude that made them is my cousins fiances dad... small world

gotta have a coors sitting next to the bumper, only way u can do it haha

[Grreen99GT]

elderas owned:



hahaha, just playin

[Bryan]

As long as you reinforce that like everyone's said it might be pretty sweet..even sweet with grill inserts. Keep us updated.

BTW your car's looking good with all that body work/painting I'm just unsure about the airbrush thing. Nice job.

[Trigga-T]

thanks for the responses and suggestions. imma answer some questions. the airbrush stuff is gonna be gone cuz im repaintin the whole car. its gonna be kandy orange and pearl white 2 tone. but yes i cut the vents out, yes u can plastic weld and yes i already thought about reinforcing it. i went to school for body work at a college for 2 years and im very grateful i did because i can do this **** whenever i want lol. and i do alot of custom ****. i will keep u guys posted on this project. when is the GA meet i wanna come there. if anyone lives around and needs any work let me know.

[GrandAmGT1996]

Orange should look sweet

Glad to hear the airbrushed stuff is going though

[Trigga-T]

ok heres some new pics of the bumper in primer it needs a lil more work then its done. im also gonna start molding in the trans am hood scoop thats like our sd one.

[cardude007617]

wow thatll look cool when its done

[Tank]

ok heres some new pics of the bumper in primer it needs a lil more work then its done. im also gonna start molding in the trans am hood scoop thats like our sd one.

Real nice, what did you use to firm up the finder. Always thought of doing it but never got around to it.

[Mirage85]

ok heres some new pics of the bumper in primer it needs a lil more work then its done. im also gonna start molding in the trans am hood scoop thats like our sd one.


Looks good, Im not sure if I like it or not yet that the one piece in the center is cut out. Molding in the front plate filler came out really well. Looks like you need to cut out for the molding to go all the way around the front now though, just looks likt something is missing since it just stope where it meets the plate filler. regardless, nice work on that area!

[Elderas]

I thought he did?

http://www.grandamgt.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=24966&d=1179348310


I actually ment the little divider thing inbetween them.

but its too late now :)

[stillriza]

i like it. very nice. your GA will stand out from the rest

[PhantomLover007]

Looks good so far man. I'm not used to seeing it w/o the center brace though. Looks a little weird to me, but i'm sure it would grow on me. I had always wondered why they didn't just make the bumpers w/ holes where the indentations are on the sides so you can put grill inserts in them. I like it alot better like that. Wasn't too fond of how the plate insert was either. Should have all been one piece. Might have to try doing that.

[Bryan]

Wow, I like it. Nice job bro.

[ryanbgb22]

i like the plate filled in alot, im sure the rest will look really good once its painted as well.

[2002GT]

with a crazy paint job coming up, please tell me youre gonna get aftermarket wheels?

[sickfish]

so let me clear some things up for all the non-body fender/custom techs on this "automotive forum"
first off let me say that just because a bumper is plastic does not make it polyurathene, iam sick of everything i see people think its polyurathene, look on the back of the piece and locate the "iso code" this will tell ya the correct type of plastic you have
second i dont care what any one says "bondo and fiberglass does not stick to plastic!!! that`s why companies like SEM, WORTH, 3M, FUSOR make plastic repair material made to repair plastic, you know the type of plastic you are working with and use the correct material for the plastic the repair will be as good as the factory plastic i know i do it day in and day out and have been for 15 yrs so i know my plastic so don`t try to tell me iam wrong when iam not
thrid------plastic welding is a great method of repairing plastic and is a correct way shaping plastic, i use mine daily and i know what plastic won`t wled and what does what he did is not incorrect it is correct and if he used a plastic repair material on both the inside and out of the plastic that piece will hold for the life of the car and will even hold in a impact
all the worthless comments made by people that are clueless need to maybe stop and read and ask questions and stop posting useless info and topics that you people are clueless about
thank you and good night

[WeibSunder]

so let me clear some things up for all the non-body fender/custom techs on this "automotive forum"
first off let me say that just because a bumper is plastic does not make it polyurathene, iam sick of everything i see people think its polyurathene, look on the back of the piece and locate the "iso code" this will tell ya the correct type of plastic you have
second i dont care what any one says "bondo and fiberglass does not stick to plastic!!! that`s why companies like SEM, WORTH, 3M, FUSOR make plastic repair material made to repair plastic, you know the type of plastic you are working with and use the correct material for the plastic the repair will be as good as the factory plastic i know i do it day in and day out and have been for 15 yrs so i know my plastic so don`t try to tell me iam wrong when iam not
thrid------plastic welding is a great method of repairing plastic and is a correct way shaping plastic, i use mine daily and i know what plastic won`t wled and what does what he did is not incorrect it is correct and if he used a plastic repair material on both the inside and out of the plastic that piece will hold for the life of the car and will even hold in a impact
all the worthless comments made by people that are clueless need to maybe stop and read and ask questions and stop posting useless info and topics that you people are clueless about
thank you and good night

Nobody cares...but anyway, Trigga-T, you aren't going to fix the little cut out pieces that taking out the center pillar made?

[Ajaxus]

so let me clear some things up for all the non-body fender/custom techs on this "automotive forum"
first off let me say that just because a bumper is plastic does not make it polyurathene, iam sick of everything i see people think its polyurathene, look on the back of the piece and locate the "iso code" this will tell ya the correct type of plastic you have
second i dont care what any one says "bondo and fiberglass does not stick to plastic!!! that`s why companies like SEM, WORTH, 3M, FUSOR make plastic repair material made to repair plastic, you know the type of plastic you are working with and use the correct material for the plastic the repair will be as good as the factory plastic i know i do it day in and day out and have been for 15 yrs so i know my plastic so don`t try to tell me iam wrong when iam not
thrid------plastic welding is a great method of repairing plastic and is a correct way shaping plastic, i use mine daily and i know what plastic won`t wled and what does what he did is not incorrect it is correct and if he used a plastic repair material on both the inside and out of the plastic that piece will hold for the life of the car and will even hold in a impact
all the worthless comments made by people that are clueless need to maybe stop and read and ask questions and stop posting useless info and topics that you people are clueless about
thank you and good night


you really should read an entire thread before flying off the handle...alot of the problems you have with posts have already been corrected by other members, in a polite fashion. not to mention the fact that the thread creator mentioned his credentials, having recently finished a school that taught him to do this, and mentioned that what he did is indeed possible and correct..he more or less agreed to your every point.

that aside, the car's lookin good man..can't wait to see the results of the next paint job :)

[tjc13]

What's going on with the overspray on the radiator and other pieces that look like they are black on my car?

[Mendoza]

I dig the car and the project i just don't like the overspray. Granted overspray can be fixed but it's just so much easier to mask everything off or shoot it off the car.

[GrandAmGT1996]

I'm a little late, I was actually coming to this thread to ask for updates but I missed the update already apperantly lol. Anyway, it looks really good...the overspray looks bad, but I'm pretty sure you will fix that.

[Trigga-T]

yea im gonna fix the over spray. the car is going black with this crazy flake i found that prolly wont show up on here. im waiting for the trans am scoop with the exhaust vents in the back to come in and then it should be ready for paint after i mold it into the hood.

[Bryan]

Do you mean you're putting Trans Am hood scoops on there? I think I read it right..?

[Ajaxus]

yep, he'd be talking about the WS6 warbird scoops

[Bryan]

:thumbsdow

[timberwoof]

that would just look too gaudy.

[Trigga-T]

this is the hood scoop im putting on. im gonna mold it in.

[notsoaveragej0e]

So no more candy man, all black now?

[Woody87]

I like that you took out that vertical "thing" in the front middle of the bumper, I've always wondered what it would look like. can't wait to see the final product

[Bryan]

that would just look too gaudy.

x100. :(

[PhantomLover007]

that would just look too gaudy.


I'm kinda with ya man. The question is, how much more different would it be from the SC/T hood?

[Trigga-T]

i dont think it would be much different than the sc/t hood. i like this scoop alot and i want my hood to be different cuz so many people have the same one. imma cut the hood and make it functional also so we'll see how it looks once i get it in the mail.