I decided on Thursday to do something about my bumper.
As many of you are well aware, the TR7 seemed to have at least three
types of bumpers:
- A shiny plastic bumper fitted to DHCs, and TR8s - can be colour coded
to the vehicle (I'm not sure about which cars were).
- A dull matte finish bumper that fits well, and doesn't droop. Fitted
to early TR7s (FHCs).
- A dull matte finish bumper that fits terribly, droops, and doesn't
even seem to conform to the contour of the vehicle. Fitted to late FHCs?
I have this last bumper on the front of my '79 DHC. 8^(
I'm pretty sure that PO put it there as the back bumper is the glossy
type that probably should be on the front also (at least my research
seems to indicate this).
After removing my bumper to see about fixing it, I examined it over
carefully. THIS SUCKER IS HEAVY! The thing probly weighs in around 100
Lb, and is comprised of layered steel. the corner pieces also have large
hunks of steel attached to them that appear to be acting as weights
(dimensions are 4"X1.5" on one end and 4"X.75" on the other)... No
wonder it's so heavy!
Looking at my '76 and my '79, the front bumpers are directly bolted on
to the frame of the car and do not have the corner weights. Comparing
this to my '79 DHC reveals that it uses a rubber mount (shock absorber?)
inbetween the frame and the bumper. I have resoned that the weights
function to balance to bumper (front to back) so that it isn't nose
heavy. Unfortuneatly, the extra weight seems to be too much for the
rubber mount, and withe time, the whole bumper sags. This yields the
horribly fitting bumper which we have all seen from time to time on
TR7s.
I had a thought:
The mounts didn't change between the new and old bumpers, so why not
round up an older bumper and mount it directly onto the frame of my
newer car?
The only other change that would seem necessary would be to the plastic
wrap-around trim strip between the bumper and the nose of the car. The
later models had the bottom edge exteded to cover the gap that was
created by adding the rubber mount spacers.
Unfortuneatly, the car would no longer be concours (but it would take a
TR7 expert to notice this 8^) ). The advantage would be that the nose of
the car would be a little lighter, plus the bumper would no longer
droop! 8^)
The main obstacle that I'd have to overcome would be to change the matte
finish into a gloss finish (of the black plastic bumper cover).
Does anybody have any ideas of how I'd go about doing this?
My first thought is to remove the plastic from the metal bumper, and
then take it to a plastic works shop. They would then be able to buff
off the matte finish with a buff wheel and compound. Sound feasible?
Are their any easier ways of accomplishing this effect?
The other possibility is that I build new mounts (solid?) and reattach
the old bumper, but then it would still be mismatched.
Your input is greatly appreciated!
Greg.
--
Internet: gall@ultrix.uleth.ca
"You miss too much these days if you stop to think"
By a famous Irish poet and philosopher, Bono of the band U2, circa '91.
'76 Triumph TR7 V8 (Buick 350) Fixedhead Coupe.
'77 Triumph TR7 4spd, A/C Fixedhead Coupe. _ /| A
'79 Triumph TR7 Auto Drophead Coupe. \`o_O' C
'78 Mazda RX7. ( ) K
'73 FIAT 128 Coupe SL 1300cc. U !
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