Front Fascia Removal/Repaint

[Roadkill]

I need to get my front fascia repainted after a nasty mishap with a bird at high speed. I have searches the archives about front fascia removal and was wondering if i could get further information on how to remove the front fascia without removing all the small clips. There were a couple posts that stated the front fascia could be removed by detaching the entire front bumper assembly? (4 bolts or something?) can someone please go into more detail on this?
Thanks!

 

[Viper Wizard]

Roadkill,
If you want? Give me a call and I can walk you through it. I just had another one off today to change the left eyeball.

 

[ViperRay]

Hey, no fair Chuck, gives us all some instruction. I've been wanting to install some brake ducting but have not wanted to deal with the clips.

 

[Viper Wizard]

Hey, no fair Chuck, gives us all some instruction. I've been wanting to install some brake ducting but have not wanted to deal with the clips.

I hate typing! Call me. That goes for anybody!
"Spell-Check" does NOT come into play.

 

[SNKEBIT]

Yeah Chuck,,,,,, fess up,,, spill the beans, I have to do this also this winter........ we want pics too

 

[Viper Wizard]

Yeah Chuck,,,,,, fess up,,, spill the beans, I have to do this also this winter........ we want pics too

Last week i cudnt sperl mer-kan-ik, now i r 1

 

[Roadkill]

Thanks Chuck,
I will give you a ring tomorrow!!

 

[Jerry Dobson]

Hey guys, I have done it many times and have taken pictures of the entire process.

Don't take the "Christmas Tree" style clips out. That method works but then you end up with a floppy front facia. I like leaving the fiberglass bumper attached.

I am the same as Chuck, I hate typing that much. I will have to do a write up.

Jerry Dobson

 

[ViperJohn]

Roadkill,

maybe you could post the instructions in the "How to" section after you complete this task. I would also like to see this done. I scrapped the snot out of my front end recently.

 

[dansauto]

?? so you want to pull the whole bumper assy off with the facia? All that added weight will make it harder to manauver. The xmas tree plugs are cheap and available at any auto body jobber. Don't reuse (thats what will make the facias loose as these plugs get weak when pulled out) Just take a pair of side cutters and pull them up then cut the heads off and push the rest back thru the hole. It is way over kill to take the whole bumper rebar off. You only have those xmas tree clips and a couple bolts along the wheel well and under then its off! 10 min job!!

 

[SapphireGTS]

Instructions:
1. Take off all the bolts you see that are attached to facia.
2. Remove pop in fastners from the top part of the mouth and the bottom of the mouth.
3. The facia will slide off. Dont forget to disconnect fog lights.
4. sorry I dont have detailed pics but this is what it looks like once its off

You must be registered for see images

 

[Tomer]

If my purpose was to try to adjust the front fascia/headlights/hood, does this require removal of the fascia?

I plan to take a pic of my headlight to show its position, does anyone have a close up of the headlight in a well fitting fascia/light/hood?

In short, I can't tell if the headlight on my car is out of position, or the
other components...I suspect the headlight it too low, since the line between the hood and the fascia is OK, and the hood is in line with the round curve in front, in other words, I don't think it should go up or down, then it would be above or below the surface of the fascia...

Tomer

 

[Jerry Dobson]

If the alignment is perfect, you can pull the plastic fasteners. In many cases, you are removing the front facia for alignment problems so it needs to stay attached to the bumber.

The front bumper is very light.

The headlights have shims under them. You can raise them. Yes the front facia needs to come off. You can reach them thru the fog lights but it is a pain.

Look at the doors and side sills compared to the hood. Is the gap correct? Then move forward. The front of the hood can go up or down. Then set the headlights up and down. Then you can align the fascia. It is very time consuming.

Look at the gap between the hood and fascia looking down on it. Is it uniform from left to right. The front frame horns have plastic shims. You can move the fascia forward and back.

The big problem is getting the headlights correct. You can get to the bolts after you remove the fascia but you don't know exactly where to set them until the fascia is on = Catch22. Trial and error and you will get it perfect.

Even the factory has trouble getting it right. Look at how many Vipers have hoods rubbing the headlights. Look at the gaps that vary from side to side.

The four bolts are hidden. Two in the front grill opening and two behind the plastic air deflector on top of the radiator (remove this). Then of course the small screws on the wheel wells and the bolts underneath.


Jerry Dobson

 

[Tomer]

Thanks Jerry, that sounds like a great description...This has been bugging me too long, so I think during a rainy December or January, I will tackle it...I will have time, so as long as I don't scratch anything, I am good to go!

Tomer

 

[Roadkill]

Update.. I got my front fascia back today.. It looks great.. Maybe I'll get my hood repainted Thanks a lot to Chuck Tator for the walkthrough on removal. I opted to just yank the fasteners as it needed a repaint and I couldn't easily get to the upper bolts on the front bumper. Removal took 30 minutes and I wa being careful.. Installation took more than an hour and a half but we were being very careful to not scratch up the new front end.. The new fasteners are a royal #$%#$ to put back in.. luckily i had a friend with strong thumbs. I've included a couple picts of the during and after phase. Sorry that the camera is dirty (dust spots)

You must be registered for see images

You must be registered for see images

You must be registered for see images

 

[dansauto]

yes new plugs can be a bugger to push thru the holes. I sometimes use a body hammer with a big flat face (not to pound, but more leverage to push) How bad was it scratched up and how much did it cost to refinish? If the paint is cured good, you can tape some foam or bubble wrap on the cover so you don't scratch it will installing.

 

[Roadkill]

I used a drop cloth and had a friend help me so that it didn't hit the ground.. not so much for weight but due to the bulkiness. The paint was cracked on the lower fascia from hitting a bird. There were numerous rock chips in the paint as well. The shop did an awesome job.. stripped off the old paint (made sure the new paint was to factory specs for thickness) and repaired some scrapes on the bottom side. The job cost me $300 out the door and that was with me taking the fascia in. It would have been another $100 to have the shop remove/replace the fascia Night and day difference! I used a narrow block of wood to push some of the fasteners in with but others had to be done with the thumb.. heh, my thumb is still sore.

 

[dansauto]

good price, esp. if they stripped it. Two or three coats of urthane paint probably is ok, but they are correct in the thought that if you put too much on it will chip alot easier! looks like they scanned it and got the color match right too!