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Adam, run with what you really want, this is not all that epic a modification, even if some vette shops would like to make it out to be,
Here is the ecklers 75-79 nose/bumper,
Even if you hired it done at a good body shop it shouldn't be too bad a wallet hit, this is more cutting some stuff off/out then cleaning up where it was cut,
If I was gonna pay a body shop I would first check a few import tuner type places many of those cats are fiberglass gurus....this job would be easy for them
Then get some aluminum bar stock and make a full grill to your taste.
I converted my 79 front end to an 80-82. Wasn't too bad, messy though. I came across the open grilled 80-82 blue car picture you posted. I had found some other pics of a black c3 with the same open bumper and I didn't like it from other angles. I'll try and dig those pictures up for you if you want to see them. I ended up just installing a plate cover and had it painted to match the car. Blends in well.
The guy who photo shopped the super clean, open front C3 bump below (a long time ago); owns 2F Performance in Phoenix who makes body kits for a bunch of different "Asian cars" (yes, I restrained myself, somehow) and he'd be willing to make these if he could get 5 pre-orders.
I'm still asking about price, but he previously sold a C5 clean front bumper for $750 so I'm definitely expecting that to be the maximum cost of entry, but we'll see.
SOOO... Anyone else out there looking to get rid of the bumperettes, do a little front-end weight mod, and then have a nice new clean-looking, better breathing front bumper installed?
(Yes, front license plates would be a "problem"; not that I care.)
Adam
Adam,
Here are some pictures I had found when I was digging into this bumper years ago.I decided against it. I was also thinking of it being fiberglass and if my bumper was to scrape pulling out of a sloped entrance it'd probably be good to have that center support for the plate. If you like it, go for it. I think it'd look better on a different color car.
I've spent the past two days pondering how to remove the license plate area from my '80 bumper. I'd be down for this, have you been able to get anyone else?
Originally Posted by NewbVetteGuy
Update!
The guy who photo shopped the super clean, open front C3 bump below (a long time ago); owns 2F Performance in Phoenix who makes body kits for a bunch of different "Asian cars" (yes, I restrained myself, somehow) and he'd be willing to make these if he could get 5 pre-orders.
I'm still asking about price, but he previously sold a C5 clean front bumper for $750 so I'm definitely expecting that to be the maximum cost of entry, but we'll see.
SOOO... Anyone else out there looking to get rid of the bumperettes, do a little front-end weight mod, and then have a nice new clean-looking, better breathing front bumper installed?
(Yes, front license plates would be a "problem"; not that I care.)
The only problem I see with it is what fills up the opening? If one is left to their own devices and get some mesh from a local home improvement center I think it begins to look like garbage.
if your thinking of airflow, I'd suggest putting a fan behind the material and seeing how much it slows down. Try putting a fan behind a screen door and see how much it restricts flow.
I will admit it could look very nice.
I've spent the past two days pondering how to remove the license plate area from my '80 bumper. I'd be down for this, have you been able to get anyone else?
There was exactly zero interest in this until now.
I finally got my car transported to Washington State and I found out that the only thing they actually DO care about on my car is having a front and rear license plate; couldn't believe it!
They don't care about emissions on old cars (not even a visual inspection), they don't even care about taxes- you can bring the car into the state tax free if it was a gift (and mine was) -you can get a classic car plate that's cheap AND you never have to renew it- it's good forever or until you sell the car. -I thought for sure since the state the car was coming from didn't require front plates (Indiana), they'd "grand father" me in but no luck there.
I now have a lot of much higher priorities than the front bumper - the 79 bolt-on rear spoiler is rather wavy these days and the rear bumper underneath with the spare tire removed is like giant parachute. -So I'm much more focused on the rear bumper than the front and now I've decided that if I end up doing anything with the bumpers I'm doing the Custom Images chrome bumper conversion- they're just gorgeous, IMO, reasonably priced and involve a lot of weight reduction in the conversion process.
I'm going to focus on my engine and suspension for a while- if I ever end up in a fender bender that would result in the car going in for bumper fiberglass work, THEN I'll tackle a chrome bumper conversion- otherwise I'm not going to think about bumpers any more until 2018 and I get the mountain of engine work out of the way. (Hell, I need to just get my parking brake to come off at this point...)
07-02-2016, 08:29 AM
