Front Bumper Cover Es350 2009

rexbella · May 11, 2014

My wife confessed to striking a high curb and tearing a 4in cut in the bottom of the bumper.

It's an imperfection that can be dealt with in numerous ways other than turning the car into the mercy of my local body shop for probably $500-$800:

1) Glass mesh behind the crack and finish over and touchup paint.

2) Buy after market bumper cover $100-$350 and have it painted

.

How hard is it to remove and reinstall this bumper? Is there any danger of interfering with the airbag system?

gbhrps · May 12, 2014

rexbella,

I'm a backyard mechanic as well as a helper in an automotive collision and antique restoration shop. We are constantly removing, repairing and reinstaling bumper covers all of the time. If yours has just the tear that you describe, a repair and repaint is the cheapest way to go, as I'm sure Lexus will want terrifying amounts of dollars for a new one. And then it'll cost even more to paint it.

Removing one is a one man job, but after the repair and repaint its a two person effort. This ensures that you don't scratch the paint upon reinstall.

Its been two years since I removed my wife's last ES's bumper cover (04 ES330) for just such a job. Yours should be similar.

If there are all those plastic covers over the entire engine compartment, they come off first. Push the center of each plastic plug down until they snap and then lift them out. (To reinstall them, push up on the bottom of the pin until it comes clear of the top, insert into its hole and push the top down until it snaps into place FLUSH across the entire top of the plug assembly. There are 13 (?) to remove, and if you don't get them all back in the correct locations, you'll end up with 3 left over. Pull up the front plactic section and find the 3 places you missed.

Start the bumper cover removal by removing any plastic plugs and 10 mm bolts across the top of the rad support between the headlights. Then from under the front of the car, pry down the center of the plastic plugs and pull the entire plug out. There may be some more 10 mm bolts to remove.

Then at the seam between the fender and the bumper cover, right at the front wheel opening, there will be a screw or 10 mm bolt the screws straight up into the fender that has to come out. There may be some plastic plugs and screws along the inner wheel well that screw into the front bumper cover to be removed. You may have to remove them first to find that bolt that screws straight up.

At this point, with firm but gentle pulling (don't yank on it) pry the sides of the bumper cover out away from the fender and towards the front of the car. Do the same on the other side of the car. Pry the grill section of the cover away from the rad support, and then wiggle/pry the cover straight away from the bottom seam with the headlights. (You'll see plastic grips on the bumper cover that secure under the headlights that need to be freed up.

Once the cover is entirely free, reach in behind it and unplug the wiring connectors to the fog lights and you're done.

I suggest that you entirely remove the grill assembly and the fog lights from the bumper cover to get a far nicer paint job without masking and overspray. This is pretty easy to see how they're removed when you get it turned over on a bench covered with an old blanket.

After repairs and painting, cover all matting surfaces on the car and the bumper cover with masking tape. I guarantee that you'll scratch the paint if you don't. That's the headlight edges, the seam of the fender shared with the bumper cover, and those same areas on the bumper cover. All of the tape can be removed just before you palm push the bumper cover into its final resting positions, but leave it on until just before you seat everything for good.

As for repairing the crack/tear, there are special adheasives that are far better than fiberglass. They will cure to become part of the bumper cover, and yet remain pliable unlike fiberglass. You can get it an an autobody supplier, but most require a special grease gun type applicator that mixes the two tubes of chemicals together at the same time. In other words, its not amateur friendly or inexpensive.

I would suggest getting a body shop to at least make the repair for you, and depending on your expertise, maybe they should paint it for you.

Reassembly is just the reverse, just don't forget to hook up the fog light wiring before you pop the cover back on. Guess how I know to remind you of this? Good Luck!

rexbella · May 12, 2014

Wow. Now that's what I'd call a complete response; thorough and clearly written.

You've given me just what I wanted to mull over the options.

I'll let you know how this goes.

Thanks gbhrps!

gbhrps · May 12, 2014

rexbella,

You are most welcome. I might also add that the tear/crack edges really need to be filed/ground back at a 45 degree angle on both sides. This ensure that the adheasive gets into the seam to fully bond both edges. Obviously there will be some body work to do after the adheasive is cured to bring the seam area back level with its surrounding material.

As well, depending on the colour, you may find that the tear area can be " blown in", rather than painting the entire cover. Silvers just don't allow the same procedure and usually force you to paint the entire panel. Good Luck!

KBRX330 · May 30, 2014

Call your dealer body shop (or other dealer body shops around your area) and see if they have any specials fro bumper cover repair. Mine sometimes runs a $399 special to fix small damage and repaint them.

Travelmench · May 25, 2015

Can't believe what a major auto body repair shop here in Ottawa, Ontario wants to repair the front and rear bumper on a 2008 es 350. How adequate of a job can a repair shop do if they don't remove the bumper and don't repaint the whole bumper? The rear bumper has a series of small gouges in it that are about eight inches long, so would require some type of filler that would have to be smoothed out and painted. The front bumper has scratches on it where I ran over a curb; its on the bottom of the bumper, and isn't noticeable unless you bend down and look at it from bumper level. Can't see paying a minimum of $850 for each bumper. I was thinking of a few hundred dollars for both. Am I being unrealistic?

gbhrps · May 25, 2015

travelmench,

Depending on the paint tech and how deep the scratches are, good techs can fill the scratches and "blow in" the offending area. Blending of the paint will end up with a repair that you won't be able to tell from new, without having to repaint the entire bumper cover. I've seen it done many times in the shop I frequent.

Again, I say a good paint tech, not some backyard guy who hasn't been in the backyard for very long. As for cost. it comes down to how big an area is the repair, and the time and materials needed.

rexbella · May 27, 2015

I ended up getting a new painted bumper via Ebay. An outfit in Michigan asks for your VIN number to get the manufacturer's paint code. Their bumpers aren't official Lexus but they do assure that they are insurance company certified. Total was about $286 - painted bumper shipped to your door. I sweated it even tho their feedback rating is excellent - what if it's damaged from shipping? How about the paint quality and match? A lot of holes to match up-what if they don't?...

Turns out the packing was great - they used an entire roll of large bubblewrap. There was a slight underside scuff, but that occurred before it was wrapped, and once mounted it wasn't visible. Also there was clearkote over- spray on the bottom edge - again not visible unless one lays on the ground and looks up.

The grey color was a shade dark. Could this be due to 5 yrs in Arizona sunshine, I don't know. But almost no one can see the difference but me. The most critical aspect for me was the fit. Turns out all the holes and tabs fit perfectly, even in the difficult area of the grill insert points. I saved about $1200 off the quote by my body shop and I'm pleased with myself every time I walk out into the garage and look at "Bella". I'd definitely do it again...

As the job went, I took my time and photoed upclose all the assembly's and fasteners and snaps to ensure all went back together as intended. The car was on jack stands and there were moving blankets covering the floor underneath. This cushioned the new bumper, and kept dropped parts from bouncing all over the garage. I kept everything together in order of dis assembly so that when the time came to reinstall, I moved with speed and confidence.

I won't go into detail on 2 other issues - a broken vertical "spacer" -Lexus wanted $97 for - and fog light - $150 from the dealer. Both I easily repaired with plastic bumper scrap and rivets.

gbhrps · May 27, 2015

rexbella,

Good job! Glad it worked out for you.

rexbella · October 17, 2015

There's some interest in where the bumper came from...mbiauto on Ebay. I've noticed their price on painted bumpers has gone up $100 since earlier this yr.

At that new price level I would have complained about the clearcoat overspray, but would still recommend them.