Not my weekend (bodywork problems) :-(

[Forestgreen]

Oh dear, my beloved 75 is feeling decidedly poorly after a particularly bruising weekend. First I come to the car, parked in the road, to find a long scrape, maybe 6 inches long, an inch wide, of paint missing from the side of my front bumper together so it's down to the black rubber/plastic, with a tint of red paint from the culprit. Noone admitted it of course.

Then at a roundabout yesterday the person behind me thought I'd started pulling out before I actually had, and drove into where she thought I'd been moments earlier, and where I still was as I was still waiting to go. Cue a jolt to the rear bumper and a crack in the plastic along the top of it (her car was untouched). I assume that means a new bumper.

So a few questions - is there a "how to change saloon rear bumper" anywhere, is it a simple enough job for a non-techie? Bear in mind being a Connie SE there are parking sensors - do they have to be changed too, mine are all working perfectly? And should I wait for one to come in the right colour (dark green, need to check the code) or should I get the nearest one to me and have it resprayed? I suppose if I do a respray I could get the front bumper resprayed at the same time? Any recommendations for a garage in Birmingham that could do a decent job, and how much should I be looking at paying?

Thanks in advance, Forestgreen

[FROGGY]

Why are you going the DIY route?
The person who ran up your rear should be paying (or their insurance company).
All this should be at no cost to you. Rear-ended, no arguments.
Micl

[Stew gough]

My brother is in the bodywork trade if thats any help but i agree the repairs sjould not be at your cost.

[Forestgreen]

Thanks. Other driver offered to pay and for the sake of a small crack in the plastic bumper I'd be worried about having the car written off let alone the effect on my future premium.

[Stew gough]

Probably looking around £120 - £150 to repair amd paint

[chrissyboy]

Originally Posted by Stew gough

Probably looking around £120 - £150 to repair amd paint

and the rest ,about £230/£250

[marinabrian]

I totally understand where you're coming from in regards to insurance write off
How about THIS
Or if not, perhaps THIS
Or THIS

Choice of the three most popular dark green colours, I'm assuming it's not Moonstone green, in which case THIS would probably be just the job

Avoid insurance route, and I probably think the third party would be happy at say £200 to forget it ever happened

Brian

[Forestgreen]

Thanks so much for the advice and pointers to bumpers on Ebay. Just wondering,

1. should I get a bumper with parking sensors or would I keep the original sensors and have holes drilled in the bumper if I got one without? I should add that all four parking sensors I have seem to work perfectly so it would be a pity if I replaced them with a tidy bumper whose parking sensors didn't work properly.

2. is it better to get one in any colour from a nearby breaker and have it resprayed, or should I wait for the right colour, with parking sensors, in good condition - that might mean a lengthy wait? When I had a look at bumpers on Ebay in general lots of them seem to have scratches and scrapes and I might be waiting a while for a perfect match. I keep meaning to check the exact colour code but from my username you can tell it's a shade of dark green.

[Stew gough]

If you get a bumper without. The parking sensors there will be witness markson the inside where the holes should be as one tool would mould both varients of bumper , inserts were changed to form or not form the holes so either bumper will do if you are prepared to drill the holes

[Forestgreen]

OK so my car's dark green colour code is HFF and there are a few rear bumpers some with some without sensor holes on the bay. Will any one of them do (I have a Mk 1 75 2.5) ie will the Tourer or MGZT rear bumper and any engine type be an identical match, or does it have to be 75 and saloon, 2.5 engine?

Supplementary question, should I buy the chrome trim separately or will it be easy to remove from my existing bumper without snapping anything?

Cheers - Forestgreen