Front Bumper Replacement On 97 Es300

Lexus876 · September 15, 2008

So I made the horrible mistake of forgetting about a particular blindspot while backing out of my driveway and knocked my front bumper partially off of the car. By partially I mean the left side (driver's) was detached but the right side (front passenger's) was still attached. The lights on the bottom were not disconnected from the car and still work fine. The only thing I need to replace is the front bumper.

How much will it cost to replace the front bumper approximately, does anyone know (including painting it and labor)? Would it be cheaper to buy the parts myself and let them fix it or what? I can fix it myself it's just the paint job I am concerned about. Any help is greatly appreciated, thank you.

gbhrps · September 16, 2008

Unless the bumper cover has been badly mangled, they can be repaired by any competent body shop. The deciding factor is the amount of repair time needed to get the bumper cover back to its "ready to paint" stage, versus the cost of a used bumper cover (found on eBay, or at a car recycling yard). At that point, its the cost of paint, the labour needed to prepare the cover for paint, and the actual painting labour. The paint, prep and painting will vary from shop to shop, but here where I call home I can get the job done by a small independent for $400 CDN or less. Good Luck!

Lexucan · September 16, 2008

Unless the bumper cover has been badly mangled, they can be repaired by any competent body shop. The deciding factor is the amount of repair time needed to get the bumper cover back to its "ready to paint" stage, versus the cost of a used bumper cover (found on eBay, or at a car recycling yard). At that point, its the cost of paint, the labour needed to prepare the cover for paint, and the actual painting labour. The paint, prep and painting will vary from shop to shop, but here where I call home I can get the job done by a small independent for $400 CDN or less. Good Luck!

^^ Good info! In June I accidently damaged my front bumper cover by driving the front end of the car over an abnormally high curb while parking in a parking slot. :angry: I took it to an independent shop and they repaired the damage (cracks in the plastic) and repainted it for $300 CDN (under the table) :)

Lexus876 · September 16, 2008

Unless the bumper cover has been badly mangled, they can be repaired by any competent body shop. The deciding factor is the amount of repair time needed to get the bumper cover back to its "ready to paint" stage, versus the cost of a used bumper cover (found on eBay, or at a car recycling yard). At that point, its the cost of paint, the labour needed to prepare the cover for paint, and the actual painting labour. The paint, prep and painting will vary from shop to shop, but here where I call home I can get the job done by a small independent for $400 CDN or less. Good Luck!

Well I found out today that the undercoverings also need to be replaced, because the screws that held them in there, ripped through the plastic :( Body shop quoted me $865 (US). I figured I can do the repairs myself, but just need the bumper painted and the undercoverings to do so. All I am concerned about is that the paint color matches my car. Can't seem to find the undercoverings anywhere on an auto parts website. Does anyone know where I can find some undercoverings?? Bumper wasn't mangeld, just knocked off partially. Guess I should have taken pics before my dad and I fixed it temporarily( as in put some plastic ties in places to hold it in there, which works amazingly well).

Thanks for all the help!

gbhrps · September 17, 2008

Lexus876,

Repair your existing lower engine bay covers. They are only on the car to clean up the air currents under the car at highway speeds. They don't have to be pretty to do that job, and if you wish, they don't even need to be on the car, as they affect its performance by only a small margin. Its your call. Use the plastic that quarts or 4 quart motor oil comes in, or margarine tubs. You might even use the plastic from black containers if you have any. Cut inch wide strips to go over the ripped areas of the cover, drill through the cover and the plastic repair piece, and pop rivet the the two together. Put the repair strips on the top of the cover (closest side to the bottom of the engine) to keep them from showing from under the car when its on a hoist. With enough rivets you can make a permanent repair that will cost you only your time and pop rivets. I've used this same method to repair plastic fan shrouds and even vandalized plastic mail boxes. If you use white plastic, a spray bomb of semi gloss black trim paint will hide the evidence from all but the very close inspection. Good Luck!

Lexus876 · September 17, 2008

Lexus876,
Repair your existing lower engine bay covers. They are only on the car to clean up the air currents under the car at highway speeds. They don't have to be pretty to do that job, and if you wish, they don't even need to be on the car, as they affect its performance by only a small margin. Its your call. Use the plastic that quarts or 4 quart motor oil comes in, or margarine tubs. You might even use the plastic from black containers if you have any. Cut inch wide strips to go over the ripped areas of the cover, drill through the cover and the plastic repair piece, and pop rivet the the two together. Put the repair strips on the top of the cover (closest side to the bottom of the engine) to keep them from showing from under the car when its on a hoist. With enough rivets you can make a permanent repair that will cost you only your time and pop rivets. I've used this same method to repair plastic fan shrouds and even vandalized plastic mail boxes. If you use white plastic, a spray bomb of semi gloss black trim paint will hide the evidence from all but the very close inspection. Good Luck!

Thank you , thank you, thank you! Well I will do that after I get my car back from the repair shop. Someone rear ended me today, and the insurance company is only paying for the rear end. Sucks how bad things always happen after my birthday :(

dscabicky · September 30, 2008

I am in the process of putting a new front bumper on my '90 Ls400 (hit by an uninsured motorist.) Cost including a used bumper will be about $500 and a fair amount of my labor. It's very difficult to get the paint right if you are not an expert. My solution: Do the best I can and cover the whole hting with a $100 bra..

SAFRO.COM · September 30, 2008

i really want a new bumper, it has a few scuffs on the side, and my buddy purposely drove slowly into my rear bumber when we were stopped at a light, he thought it was funny, **** GRRR. well he didnt do much but put 2 nice bolt marks in the rear bumper. Is there a way to have my 2 tone car turned into one tone? have a pro paint the bottom panels, or am i stuck with wut i got?