Cracked, dented, punctured, and scratched. These are all ugly things that can happen to your car bumper. More accurately called a “bumper cover”, these decorative plastic components hide the metal structural bumper components underneath. Bumper covers are easily damaged (whatever happened to those chrome bumpers that really could take some bumps?), and the best way to fix yours depends on your situation, your abilities, and the kind of bumper damage you’ve got.
Fix #1: Repair the Scratch
Scratches happen, but shallow ones that don’t go all the way through the paint are easily eliminated with buffing. This goes for shallow scratches anywhere on your car, not just bumper covers. Any auto body shop or detailing center can buff out scratches for you, and this often works well. Costs typically vary from $50 to $200. You can also buff yourself using an electric automotive polisher along with the finest grade of auto polishing compound. A variable speed 6-in. random orbit woodworking sander fitted with a buffing pad also works great as a polisher.
Fix #2: Replace the Bumper Cover
If you’ve got a crack or puncture in your bumper that’s more than a few inches long you’re going to want to replace it entirely. The damaged bumper cover comes off by releasing hidden fasteners and clips around fenders and neighboring parts. Once the cover is removed, then a pre-painted new cover can be snapped on. Sounds simple, but there are three challenges you need to know about.
- Replacement bumper covers aren’t cheap, especially if you go with a cover made by the original equipment manufacturer (OEM) and factory pre-painted to match your vehicle. You can certainly find aftermarket bumper covers for less money, but you’ll almost certainly have to have it painted to match your car, boosting the final cost.
- Getting the old bumper cover off without damaging the surrounding bodywork isn’t easy because all the fasteners and clips are hidden.
- Even with an economical aftermarket bumper cover, it’s not that easy to create your own matching paint job.
