Sth. Manchester/Cheshire border
So I had the front bumper off the other day, and as one of the mounting brackets was a bit broken I had already bought a new one some time ago from ebay.
When I finished the job and remounted the bumper using the brand new bracket, I couldn't get the bumper to fit properly. The N/S was fine with the old bracket, but the O/S looked no better than it had previously with the broken bracket. The two smaller lugs wouldn't stay trapped in the wing, and the bumper wouldn't push in flush with the wing. I assumed I had either been a complete numpty, or I had bought a crap copy from ebay.
Sadly, I'd made a duff electrical connection behind the bumper meaning I had to take it off again. So to be sure I bought another bracket from the dealer (£23 - weren't they dearer than that?) and replaced the questionable bracket with the genuine one.
But same result.
Comparing the old broken bracket with the newer (now broken on removal) bracket they look a little different. The outline shape is different at the bottom, but the bit that matters is nearer the top. What I'm pointing at is a plastic spur that obviously will strengthen the bracket - but as its about 5mm deep it stops the bumper from fully inserting! So out with the Dremmel and I managed to remove most of them (there's two). It would have been a lot easier to do before fitting rather than in situ! But the bumper now sits flush with the wing.
The other failing with these new brackets, is that two of the lugs will not stay in the wing when supporting the bumper. With the bumper in place it appears impossible to reach the back of these lugs to push them forwards so they will catch on the wing. It occurred to me that if I drilled a small hole through the horizontal section of the bracket I may get something in to be able to reach the back of one of those lugs. I don't know what happened, but drilling the hole (in situ remember) must have deformed the lug sufficiently for it to catch hold. So, result - of a kind.
From these two picture you can clearly see the spur on the newer bracket and also that they are certainly not there on the older bracket.
So, questions...
1) Anyone else had this problem?
2) Have BMW found a new supplier to produce brackets at a lower cost?
3) Whose bright idea was it to strengthen the brackets (I'm not against that) by making changes without checking to see if it impacts the useability?
4) What do you reckon my chances are of getting money back for brackets that don't work?
(It's OK - I'm not expecting any answers...)
When I finished the job and remounted the bumper using the brand new bracket, I couldn't get the bumper to fit properly. The N/S was fine with the old bracket, but the O/S looked no better than it had previously with the broken bracket. The two smaller lugs wouldn't stay trapped in the wing, and the bumper wouldn't push in flush with the wing. I assumed I had either been a complete numpty, or I had bought a crap copy from ebay.
Sadly, I'd made a duff electrical connection behind the bumper meaning I had to take it off again. So to be sure I bought another bracket from the dealer (£23 - weren't they dearer than that?) and replaced the questionable bracket with the genuine one.
But same result.
Comparing the old broken bracket with the newer (now broken on removal) bracket they look a little different. The outline shape is different at the bottom, but the bit that matters is nearer the top. What I'm pointing at is a plastic spur that obviously will strengthen the bracket - but as its about 5mm deep it stops the bumper from fully inserting! So out with the Dremmel and I managed to remove most of them (there's two). It would have been a lot easier to do before fitting rather than in situ! But the bumper now sits flush with the wing.
The other failing with these new brackets, is that two of the lugs will not stay in the wing when supporting the bumper. With the bumper in place it appears impossible to reach the back of these lugs to push them forwards so they will catch on the wing. It occurred to me that if I drilled a small hole through the horizontal section of the bracket I may get something in to be able to reach the back of one of those lugs. I don't know what happened, but drilling the hole (in situ remember) must have deformed the lug sufficiently for it to catch hold. So, result - of a kind.
From these two picture you can clearly see the spur on the newer bracket and also that they are certainly not there on the older bracket.
So, questions...
1) Anyone else had this problem?
2) Have BMW found a new supplier to produce brackets at a lower cost?
3) Whose bright idea was it to strengthen the brackets (I'm not against that) by making changes without checking to see if it impacts the useability?
4) What do you reckon my chances are of getting money back for brackets that don't work?
(It's OK - I'm not expecting any answers...)
Attleborough, Norfolk
