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Cracked front bumper :(

Discussion in 'Gen 3 Prius Care, Maintenance & Troubleshooting' started by Husam, Feb 19, 2015.

  1. Husam

    Husam New Member

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    Unfortunately i was going a lil fast in a turn and turns out the snow was turned into ice due to the really cold temps today (-3 F) and i hit a snow bank head on :(.

    My car is a '14 lease and i'm not sure how much i'll be charged for this damage.

    This is what happened :(
    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]
    [​IMG]
    [​IMG]
    Also, f%!@ the traction control.

    Anybody know if i can just fix the crack some cheap way? It's only about an inch in length.

    Thanks.
     
    #1 Husam, Feb 19, 2015
    Last edited: Feb 19, 2015
  2. valde3

    valde3 Senior Member

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    Most of the bumper plastics can be plastic welded. If you do that correctly it will be just as strong as new and will only look like scratch (that can be painted with touch up paint). Bumper cover (probably) needs to be removed to repair. Proses itself depends on type of plastic which I don’t know but it should be written on the back of it.
     
  3. Okinawa

    Okinawa Senior Member

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    I had about a 2 year old 1998 Camry. I was going extremely slow preparing to enter my driveway. I started sliding, like you, hit a frozen snow bank beside my driveway and the front bumper cracked, much larger than your's. I bought some auto plastic glue that you mix in equal parts and glued it together when the weather turned warm. I then touched it up. The broken parts fit perfectly together. It was not perfect but it looked good enough. Your car is a leased car. I would imagine you will have to get a body shop to do a pro job on it otherwise when you turn the car in you may have to pay for the damage. These lousy plastic bumpers will crack like glass when the temp is really cold.
     
  4. Mendel Leisk

    Mendel Leisk EGR Fanatic

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    Today's "bumpers" are in fact flimsy, fragile fairings, painted black plastic that shows EVERY ding, barely able to hold itself together and stay connected to the car. On the other hand: they don't rust, and they're not an integral part of the car.

    Maybe if folks just do rudimentary patch up it'd shame the manufacturers into designing a half decent bumper?


    image.jpg
     
  5. Okinawa

    Okinawa Senior Member

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    I agree with that. When another car barely touches you or you hit something, no matter how small the hit is, if you just barely feel it, you are going to have damage. When we pay a lot of money for a new car and that happens we all know the feeling we get.
     
    matt b. likes this.
  6. Husam

    Husam New Member

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    Thanks for the replies guys, I guess they have to be this flimsy so they wouldn't hurt pedestrians. Oh well..

    I'm going to take it to a friends body shop to see what they can do. I don't wanna patch it up for a few bucks just to have the dealer bill me for a bumper after i end the lease.
     
  7. valde3

    valde3 Senior Member

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    Plastic welding the crack will get it to look like just a scratch. Then it depends on painter and lease company policy on what to do after that. Touch up paint or partially or fully painting the bumper.
     
  8. frodoz737

    frodoz737 Top Wrench

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    This is no brainer work for a good bodyshop. As it's a lease, maybe you need to talk to the dealership as they are the one's that will do the lease return inspection and determine your added fees/penalties.
     
  9. Okinawa

    Okinawa Senior Member

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    That's probably what the dealer will do unless it is a professional repair job.
     
  10. Husam

    Husam New Member

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    I went to a professional body shop, and guess what? $750! as they want to replace the whole bumper

    I might buy a used one off ebay in the same color and just install it myself, since i'm not wasting money on a car i'm not keeping.
     
  11. Okinawa

    Okinawa Senior Member

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    Frodoz has a good point. I would follow his advice.