2000 Alero Front End Question????

[TCHRISD]

I had recently gotten into a head on collision, not too bad but did pretty good amount of damage. I have just gotten the engine running fine and now am going to move on to the body work. Well I am planning on replacing the hood and front bumper. The hood appears easy (just 4 bolts and exchange w/ new one). I need help on taking off the old bumper and replacing it. Is this hard to DIY? Can someone help and/or give a little direction?

thanks,
chris

[BNaylor]

Doing work on the front end is not difficult.

Are you referring to the plastic bumper cover/skin? The actual bumper is underneath the skin.

Any inner fender or apron damage?

[TCHRISD]

Originally Posted by bnaylor

Doing work on the front end is not difficult.

Are you referring to the plastic bumper cover/skin? The actual bumper is underneath the skin.

Any inner fender or apron damage?

I am pretty sure it will have to be the entire bumper. There is some fender damage. I don't know if there is apron damage, what should I look for?

[BNaylor]

Originally Posted by TCHRISD

I am pretty sure it will have to be the entire bumper. There is some fender damage. I don't know if there is apron damage, what should I look for?

The apron is the part where the two front fenders bolt to and helps form the engine compartment. It has the strut mount tower. It is made to give away at any frontal impact therefore you may have damage beyond what you can see visually.

To remove the front bumper cover, remove all the push pin retainers at the top and bottom. Next you will need to remove the inner forward plastic splash guards at each fender. Retainers are a combination of trim push clips and bolts. At the front bottom of the bumper skin you will see 3 - 4 bolts on each side. They must be removed to unfasten the front of each splash guard to each fender. Once inner splash guards are removed you will be able to access the 3 bolts holding the bumper cover on each side to each front fender. After that it is all downhill. Once bumper cover is removed you will see the plastic reinforced impact bumper. And from there make any further assessment as to damage and what will need to be replaced. The other area if interest will be the radiator support and condition of the radiator and A/C condensor. All I can say is good luck!

[TCHRISD]

Originally Posted by bnaylor

The apron is the part where the two front fenders bolt to and helps form the engine compartment. It has the strut mount tower. It is made to give away at any frontal impact therefore you may have damage beyond what you can see visually.

To remove the front bumper cover, remove all the push pin retainers at the top and bottom. Next you will need to remove the inner forward plastic splash guards at each fender. Retainers are a combination of trim push clips and bolts. At the front bottom of the bumper skin you will see 3 - 4 bolts on each side. They must be removed to unfasten the front of each splash guard to each fender. Once inner splash guards are removed you will be able to access the 3 bolts holding the bumper cover on each side to each front fender. After that it is all downhill. Once bumper cover is removed you will see the plastic reinforced impact bumper. And from there make any further assessment as to damage and what will need to be replaced. The other area if interest will be the radiator support and condition of the radiator and A/C condensor. All I can say is good luck!

If the radiator support is damaged ,what would be your suggestion?

[BNaylor]

Originally Posted by TCHRISD

If the radiator support is damaged ,what would be your suggestion?

I would suggest doing as much body work you can to save money. On items like the radiator support or if any of the bumper support beams are damaged to include aprons then have a body shop do that work. How did the headlamps fair in the impact? Underneath the bumper cover will be a plastic header panel that the headlamps mount to. They normally shatter. You really won't know how bad the accident damage is until you get front end parts removed. After that an assessment can be made. I have all the GM part numbers so let me know if you need any. Good luck!

[TCHRISD]

Originally Posted by bnaylor

I would suggest doing as much body work you can to save money. On items like the radiator support or if any of the bumper support beams are damaged to include aprons then have a body shop do that work. How did the headlamps fair in the impact? Underneath the bumper cover will be a plastic header panel that the headlamps mount to. They normally shatter. You really won't know how bad the accident damage is until you get front end parts removed. After that an assessment can be made. I have all the GM part numbers so let me know if you need any. Good luck!

I was thinking about just going to get a entire bumper from a salvage lot.

The headlamp mount is a goner ,I am sure.

Would you suggest salvage parts to save money?

[BNaylor]

Originally Posted by TCHRISD

I was thinking about just going to get a entire bumper from a salvage lot.

The headlamp mount is a goner ,I am sure.

Would you suggest salvage parts to save money?

Absolutely. Nothing wrong with parts from the boneyard. Just make sure they match your year model. For example the hood for a 1999-2000 Alero is different from the 2001 and up Aleros. Good luck!