Rear Bumper Bulge Fix

[KFH]

I had this on my car. The problem is that it was not assembled correct. Jack up the car, remove the wheel, then remove the three screws and one bolt in the wheel well. Pull the bumper away from the wheel well far enough to see the tabs. One or two of the tabs are not seated properly, they need to be bent back forward to line up, and then the bumper just pops right into place. I had to fix both sides, left side had one tab bent, the right had two.


Here are the bulge pictures from the original post.

[Hicompression]

Pics? or it didn't happen.

[GreendaleSRT4]

Originally Posted by Hicompression

Pics? or it didn't happen.

He has me working on it.

EDIT: I took a look at the pics I took on delivery day, and sure enough - the bulges were there all along!

[levi1922]

glad to see you got it fixed!

[Xmicro_SS]

I told camero it was not assembled correctly................

[GreendaleSRT4]

OK, I know what the problem is, but I had limited success, as I think it requires a GM body shop to "really" fix it. The issue is that there are 3 slots for 3 plastic snap-tabs to fit into. The problem is that the bumper bottoms out on the car frame before the snap-tabs can seat themselves.

My write-up is below. I take no responsibility if you decide to try this on your own.



You will need:

* Jack
* 2x4
* 22mm socket w/breaker bar
* T-15 Torx screwdriver
* 7mm or 9/32" socket (deep preferred)
* jack stand (not used, but placed for safety)

First, jack up your car just enough that the wheel is still on the ground so you can break the lug nuts loose. Then, place the jackstand next to the jack for safety. NEVER trust a jack.




Remove the wheel. Careful - it's heavy!



Remove the (3) T-15 screws, then the 9/32 (7mm) bolt. Careful not to scratch your paint while removing the bolt.




Now, you should be able to gently "pop" off the bumper side and see your issue. Note the bumps where the snap-tabs were pushing up. They weren't seated properly at install.



Here are those goofy snap-tabs. (sorry for the bad photo)



I tried to reshape the bumper "bumps" with my hand. It's pretty pliable. I then added 3 pieces of tape to indicate where these slots are, so I know where to press during reinstallation.



I snapped the bumper back into place. I could only hear 2 "snap" into place. The slot closest to the wheel would not go in. This is where I left it and will have the dealer look at it.

I reassembled the hardware and wheel, and got semi-decent results.

[CanadianCamaro]

Your dealership's PDI should have caught this. Or better yet, your own personal PDI before it leaves the dealer. Still, good to have a solution.

[KFH]

I'm talking about a bulge behind the wheel, I circled the problem area.

[Andro]

I would have took it back to the dealer and have them fix it.

[GrnMchin]

You have two tabs that need to be pulled out one is the top torx screw tab the other is just below it or above. Remove the bumper as described above . The two tabs need to be in front of the black plastic support structure that the bumper attaches two. After have my GFX done I had the same issue then saw the problem was the tabs I speak of where behind the support causing the bulge. Hope this helps

[camero]

I just posted the fix I heard about from KFH in the other thread but I'll put it in this one too in case they don't get merged!

Originally Posted by KFH

Hey, I had the same thing on my car. The problem is that it was not assembled correct. Jack up the car, remove the wheel, then remove the three screws and one bolt in the wheel well. Pull the bumper away from the wheel well far enough to see the tabs. One or two of the tabs are not seated properly, they need to be bent back forward to line up, and then the bumper just pops right into place. I had to fix both sides, left side had one tab bent, the right had two.

WOW, you were right! I fixed it! Thanks a Million!!! Someone should tell the guys in Oshawa in a few weeks so they can be more careful when they put on the bumpers. I only had to take the top bolt and the upper star-head screw out though, and I didn't even have to jack up the car or remove the tire either.
While I had it apart I took some pictures in hopes that I could help someone else.

These pictures were all taken from above looking straight down at the two tabs that are supposed to go into the two slots but were kindof behind them instead forcing the side of the bumper outboard. The top one looks like it got a little nicked by being in the wrong position.

[GreendaleSRT4]

I'll have to check that out. Looks like there's 2 issues going on here.

[Epitaph]

I'd be more worried about the Demon's reflection!

I'm just wondering - is this a problem with everyone's or just a few? I'd think it's most people's since there's no difference in the rear panels, right?

[GrnMchin]

Don't thinks it's a issue, mine happened when installing the bumper and it's easy to miss and will install that way just fine, but leave the bulge. Super easy fix 3 torx and one 7mm bolt pop out pop in done. Didn't even remove the wheel.