Driving without the front bumper

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EJ333

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Are there many Coupers out there that routinely drive without their front bumpers to accentuate the look of their front air dams ? Or is it just too risky ?
 
EJ333 said:
Are there many Coupers out there that routinely drive without their front bumpers to accentuate the look of their front air dams ? Or is it just too risky ?
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I have no experience with this but I must say. Unless you are parallel parking the risk isn’t much greater than driving with the bumper. The bumper wasn’t even capable of handling a 2.5mph impact until 1973. That plus the vulnerable shark nose means that the bumpers are an accessory at best. True, they are the fuse that sends impacts to your frame instead of the body, but they aren’t going to do anything in an accident.
 
Bo Gray's 'Gertie' is his daily driver and runs no bumper.

Not sure who owns the blue no bumper car, could be Tod Bryant.

Doug Dolan's air dam is faired into the body so he's not able to run a bumper.

Scott & Fran Hughes CSL

Brendan's tribute Gosser, as with most race CSLs have no bumper.

Do not know who owns the white CS

Pretty sure the silver CSL is Scott & Fran Hughes.

Golf Yellow CSL is Terry Sayther's

Lastly is my car, Athena, before the bumper was reinstalled.

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Just to stir the pot a little:

I agree with what others have said about the aesthetics of bumpers, as well as the fact that 1960's era bumpers are just chrome trim that will add to - not lessen - damage in the event of an accident. However...

What would an insurance adjuster say when inspecting the damaged front end of a bumperless e9? I've never had that experience, but my concern is they might try to weasel out of paying the claim, since the owner had "knowingly and willfully removed Federally-mandated safety equipment, which is specifically disallowed under section 145.6.13-A of the policy". Anyone have further insight on this?
 
My $0.02: If you go w/no bumper, but w/a CSL spoiler, mould it in w/some Duraglas and get rid of the rivets/screws (usually hidden by a bumper).

e.g.:

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Belgiumbarry said:
indeed a chrome ornament ... nothing more. Unless you want to feel the end in your garage. Better is a tennis ball bumping the wind shield :D
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It is my experience that in big European cities (Paris, Madrid, Munich), a it is not uncommon for drivers to parallel park with sometimes a very light touch on the car in front or behind. In those cases I think the bumpers provide worthwhile protection. I’ve seen an occasional light tap at car shows where the parking setup is tight. Again, even the pre-73 bumpers will help and should not be damaged by the light tap. I agree with all that the bumpers are useless in an accident.
 
Been bumperless, front and back, for years. It hasn't been an issue and appreciate the weight loss. I dont live in the big city anymore, or deal with street parking or commuting much in the E9 these days. Folks tend to give it and classics a wide birth in the jungles out of respect I guess these days. Fine by me , respect your elders and keep your distance ;)
 
I have been struggling with this decision myself as a part of my recent restoration almost completed. I had purchased and restored bumpers and remove my larger European 1974 versions. At first I had hoped they could configure in a fashion said that they were easily removable myself but it turns out that was much harder to do than anticipated for reasons I am not sure. I will probably ride with the chrome bumper for a bit and then consider taking it off or more likely removing all the rubber on the bumper and covering so it is 100% chrome.

By the way, I purchased the CSL air dam from Coupe King that has square inserts presumably for fog lights but I have never seen them used for anything. I am seeing a bunch of different variations of air dam some of which I think I like better but too late for me now. Any idea what the square boxes are for?
 
scottevest said:
removing all the rubber on the bumper and covering so it is 100% chrome.
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I like that idea. The 2000CS came that way - it gives a more vintage look the black rubber cladding on the 2800 and 3.0CS. You will need to weld up the mounting holes for the metal channels that secure the rubber, polish and re-chrome.

I believe the aftermarket, stainless e9 bumpers come with no holes for the mounting strips, so they would provide the look Scottevest is proposing out of the box.
 
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I’ve said it before, the chrome bumpers on our coupes look like braces on a supermodel, cute but distracting. I’ve removed many a bumper (usually on 74’s, so no big deal) , but it does make me think about where I park.
 
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