This doesn't look good...

[e34.535i.sport]

Noticed the rear bumper had dropped a fair bit this morning and gone away from the rest of the body so to speak... (That rust spot looks much worse on camera by the way!)

http://img37.picoodle.com/img/img37/4/7/13/f_Bumperm_255efc7.jpg (http://www.picoodle.com/view.php?img=/4/7/13/f_Bumperm_255efc7.jpg&srv=img37)

Had a gander underneath and it doesn't look good (or feel good for that matter!). It's rusty as hell but the bar through the middle is solid after you chip away the rust... However I can move the bumper around by hand quite easily so I'm guessing I'm going to have to replace this 'buffer' -

http://img33.picoodle.com/img/img33/4/7/13/f_Bumper2m_a752941.jpg (http://www.picoodle.com/view.php?img=/4/7/13/f_Bumper2m_a752941.jpg&srv=img33)

I'm not sure what you call it but I know it's going to be a pain to remove correctly because I cant even make out where the nuts are anymore - it's crumbling as soon as I touch it too!

If anyone has any good ideas for me or even links or anything that might be helpful then it would be much appreciated... I am assuming at the moment that I am dealing with #24 on this diagram... Anyone????

http://www.realoem.com/bmw/showparts.do?model=HD12&mospid=47382&btnr=51_0619&hg=51&fg=15

The weird thing is that the other side looks fine and is nice and tight. Tempted to take it to a shop for this one because it looks like a PITA but money is tight at the moment so I guess I'm in for a fun time!


Many many thanks in advance for any thoughts/advice.

[whiskychaser]

Cant really tell what bit that is but I dont think it would drop all on its own. Bumper isnt marked but my guess is the idiot who parked behind Ferret's car may have parked behind yours too:(

[repenttokyo]

could be previously repaired accident damage - it often rusts much faster than stock.

[E34-520iSE]

Those buffers are a doddle to remove - don't worry about it. Once the bumper is off you'll be able to remove and replace the rotten buffers with simple tools. I bet mine were more rusty than yours, and they came off easily! I had to remove mine to fit my Westfalia tow kit, which does away with the buffers.

Good luck!

Shaun M

[E34-520iSE]

There's a few E34's on ebay.co.uk right now getting broken up. You should be able to get one (or two) for a few quid + post. Sadly that's a part I haven't got in my stockpile!

Shaun M

[timandbim]

Those buffers are a doddle to remove - don't worry about it. Once the bumper is off you'll be able to remove and replace the rotten buffers with simple tools. I bet mine were more rusty than yours, and they came off easily! I had to remove mine to fit my Westfalia tow kit, which does away with the buffers.

Good luck!

Shaun M
+1 easy peasy in my case i just screwed a new piece of metal to the good part of the bumper and drilled holes for the mounting bolts. took a nasty hit a month ago and it's still on tight. get it offa there!

[Ferret]

Before you panic about this, I'd check whether your bumper nuts/bolts are done up tightly.

If they slack off they can cause the back of the bumper to sag slightly.

Get the biggest flat blade screwdriver you can find and carefully lever the centre rubber strip out of the back bumper. Come in from the edge and slide the driver under it, then lever off.

You need a 15/17mm socket and a breaker bar if I remember correctly to get these off/on! They need quite a lot of torque.

[e34.535i.sport]

Hey thanks guys that was really helpful! I'm just about to ring the dealer to see how much they are there - if too expensive I'll get some used ones!

E34-520iSE/timandbim - Cheers for that I didn't even think of ebay! Hopefully there'll be some goodn's there!

Whisky/Repent - I did get slightly shunted about a year ago by a learner who stalled whilst stopped at the lights behind me! Checked it then but all seemed well... May be delayed damage!

Ferret - Thanks a bunch I'll try that now as a temporary measure I think, but it's definitely goosed!

Will report back asap!