Bumper sag or never let a 16 old borrow your Thing

VW's aircooled mini SUV. Great for riding in the country, or cruising the beach.
Totone
Posts: 1
Joined: Sun Nov 30, 2003 6:09 am

Bumper sag or never let a 16 old borrow your Thing

Post by Totone »

HELP!!!!!!!!!! My beloved Thing looks so sad. I know I did a dumb thing and my poor Thing is suffering from a decision I made....I let my Boss' just barely 16 year old, with not a bit of automotive education, drive it till it drops son. :roll:

Some of you know me from my posting under DieselDr. Well, DieselDr is gone both online and in real life and I am totally on my own now. :D

Now I have a big problem with the bumper. The bracket which holds the front bumper has torn away from the apron and the bumper is sagging. When you look at the Thing it kinda is smurking at ya and saying, "Ya done it now." Now where do I start? Do I order the front apron and bracket for the bumper or do I locate a good welder and see if it can be repaired? Any suggestions?
User avatar
Bob Ingman
Posts: 2869
Joined: Mon Mar 19, 2001 12:01 am

Post by Bob Ingman »

Dr. you can probably take any number of approaches. To begin with get it lined out again. Use a floor jack on the bumper and bring it back into position. This in itself will bring a big relief. Then see what you must do to keep it there. Perhaps a visit to the local hardware store will reveal away of affixing it. Look in the shelf bracket section and see if there is a suitable unit that can be bolted to the bumper then either bolted or welded to the body. Best of luck. Bob Ingman
PS- and by the way I have a Thing today because I was foolish enough to have purchased one for a sixteen year old. After that did not work out I became the inheritor of the car. First project? Front bumper repair and replacement. It was beyond sagging. It was pounded off!
Capn Skully
Posts: 400
Joined: Mon May 05, 2003 5:56 am

Post by Capn Skully »

I have a front bumper and complete front end sheet metal in good condition. TN. wouldn't be that hard for me to deliver from Louisiana. Send me a PM or an email if interested.

A good body shop or welder could cut out the sheet metal you need and weld it in place on your car.
Post Reply