Bumper Covers for 1976 Corvette

[Edward I.]

The bumper covers on my '76 Corvette are cracking and splitting badly. Has anyone replaced bumper covers, and did you use Original Equipment Manufacture? or reproduction "Flexy Glass" bumper covers?

I'm the original owner and it is s still 95% original. Has 16,700 miles and the body looks great, except for the bumper covers.

Also, can anyone recommend a qualified Corvette body shop in southwest Florida who can handle this issue. Would appreciate any input.

[Tom H.]

Re: Bumper Covers for 1976 Corvette

I replaced the front bumper on my 73 last year and used an original.

[Steven B.]

Re: Bumper Covers for 1976 Corvette

I am original owner of my '77 and replaced the rear bumper cover with an original in '81. The install is something you can do yourself with a little patience and contorting. Steve

[Edward I.]

Re: Bumper Covers for 1976 Corvette

Thanks for your input. Several body shops in Naples, Bonita Springs and Fort Myers tell me they could do the job of replacing the bumper covers but that I would have to get the covers for them. My question now is - which manufacturer or catalogue offers the best replacement cover that looks like the original? Where did you get your "originals" from?

Color matching is another story. Thanks again for your responses.

[Steven B.]

Re: Bumper Covers for 1976 Corvette

Edward, the flexible glass product is marketed by Eckler's. 'Don't know why the body shops could not order for you, unless they are talking only about originals or they are unfamiliar with Eckler's. All knowledgeable Corvette folk know about Eckler's. I got my original back in the day from GM Parts. Hard to find NOS today. Steve

[Joe L.]

Re: Bumper Covers for 1976 Corvette

The bumper covers on my '76 Corvette are cracking and splitting badly. Has anyone replaced bumper covers, and did you use Original Equipment Manufacture? or reproduction "Flexy Glass" bumper covers?

I'm the original owner and it is s still 95% original. Has 16,700 miles and the body looks great, except for the bumper covers.

Also, can anyone recommend a qualified Corvette body shop in southwest Florida who can handle this issue. Would appreciate any input.

Edward-----


The front bumper cover is still available from GM under GM #345495. However, the GM list price on it is $790. This is not the part number of the original cover but is a replacement that will SERVICE your application.

The rear bumper cover was originally GM #368618. It was discontinued many years ago and replaced by GM #380000. The latter has been discontinued for quite some time.

[Mike E.]

Re: Bumper Covers for 1976 Corvette

The "Corvette" emblem on the rear bumper of early '76 cars was smaller and recessed into the bumper. The later design continued till the end of the 1979 model. I'm not sure exactly when the change over occurred. I had a late May car and it had the larger emblem. Perhaps some of the C3 guys might know. This thread goes into a bit.


Mike

[Edward I.]

Re: Bumper Covers for 1976 Corvette

Joe,
I was at my local Chevy Parts Dealer yesterday - the front bumper cover is no longer available thru GM but that possibly Eckler's or some other Corvette parts catalog
has one in stock . You're correct about the rear cover which means I have to make a chose between Fiberglass or Flex Fiberglass replacement cover .

Is the "Flex"Fiberglass that much easier to fit and will any replacement cover be a big deduction in points if I ever decide to have the car scored ??

[Paul J.]

Re: Bumper Covers for 1976 Corvette

Color matching is another story. Thanks again for your responses.

You can get pretty darn close to the color if your painter has the patience to get it adjusted and blends the panels. If you care about having the original paint on car, you might not want to blend the panels.

[Edward I.]

Re: Bumper Covers for 1976 Corvette

I'll probably not blend the paint when I get to that stage of this cover relacement because my original paint looks real good - no spider cracks just the flaws from the factory. I had some body work done up north on an Audi and the body shop did a perfect match probably because of the modern paints that are used today.
Thanks Paul - nice Caddy

[Joe L.]

Re: Bumper Covers for 1976 Corvette

Joe,
I was at my local Chevy Parts Dealer yesterday - the front bumper cover is no longer available thru GM but that possibly Eckler's or some other Corvette parts catalog
has one in stock . You're correct about the rear cover which means I have to make a chose between Fiberglass or Flex Fiberglass replacement cover .

Is the "Flex"Fiberglass that much easier to fit and will any replacement cover be a big deduction in points if I ever decide to have the car scored ??

Edward-----


The front bumper cover must have been very recently discontinued. There might still be one in dealer stock somewhere. I doubt it because this is not the kind of part that dealers will stock but you never know.

I don't know very much about the various replacement bumper covers. However, I would expect that most will carry a significant point deduction in judging. Others I'm sure will know more on this.

Forget used bumper covers. You already have a used one. Any used one you buy will likely either be in the same state of deterioration as the one you have or soon will be.

[Edward I.]

Re: Bumper Covers for 1976 Corvette

Is there any '76 Vette +or- a few years, that still has their original urethane bumpers , in good condition , on the car. If you do ,what did you do to keep them from cracking and generally looking god awful ???