Your opinions on bumpers

[Jefe]

I would like to get your expert opinions on bumpers.
I am in the process of buying a '78 spider that seems to have the wrong bumpers, as in not originally for a Spider.
Plus they are ugly!
Many years ago I had a '74 with the chrome bumpers.
Then I had an '81 that had the bumpers made of two tubes.
But I've seen lots of photos of Spiders with no bumpers.
What do you all think? What should I do?
Thanks! I look forward to benefitting from your experience!
Jefe

[18Fiatsandcounting]

What should I do?

You should do what you like. But, I'll give you my thoughts, as I always do.

Looks:
I don't like the "bumper-less" look; it always looks like something is missing (and there is: the bumpers). I prefer the classic elegance of the early chrome bumpers.

Weight:
Going bumper-less has the advantage of less weight, while the early chrome bumpers add tens of pounds. Contrast that to the later steel tubes which add hundreds of pounds. Removing the steel bumpers will shed a lot of weight, but it will also cause the body to ride higher over the wheels unless you compensate with the springs. Unless you ride around with a dead body in your trunk, but far be it for me to suggest that.

Crash resistance:
With no bumpers, it you hit anything at any speed, it will damage the paint at a minimum, and likely more than that. The early chrome bumpers provide a very slight amount of protection, in that if you you hit the wall in the garage while parking, you won't damage the bodywork. This only applies if you're moving very slowly, and anything faster than that will damage the chrome bumper. The big steel bumpers will provide some protection against "hits" of a few MPH, but not much more than that.

-Bryan

[FiatRunner]

Just like what Bryan said, you should do what you like best...

You can buy the smaller chrome bumpers new from a few vendors online. Example: https://autoricambi.us/chrome-bumper-conversion-kit/ These seem very pricey to me, but I'm sure that they would look great and fit nicely.

I would check the Classified section of this forum to see if anyone is selling a set of early bumpers. I wouldn't be surprised if someone was.

There is also the option of removing the bumpers entirely, and this would save plenty of weight, but there are definitely some disadvantages to this.

[TheBender]

Bryan covered the plus and minus well. And as the others have said, your car so do what you like. Personally I’m currently bumperless on my 78. If I ever change I would do the conversion to the early chrome. Since you didn’t post a picture, not sure what yours has currently (possibly a single tube from shock hole to shock hole? I’ve seen that recently and not a fan). All in all, good looking fun cars.

[TX82FIAT]

I really like the look of the car without the bumpers to see the body style lines. I installed chrome VW T Bars that contour to the body line angles in the front and back. With that said, the body is about an inch higher and I park away from other cars. In the end, it is your car, do what you want.

[Jefe]

Thank you for your inciteful and cogent responses!
I had not even thought about the weight, although it's not really a factor for me since I won't be racing.
I kind of like the bumperless look, but as Bryan said, it does still look like something is missing. (Maybe it would look better if the holes were hidden??)
I definitely prefer the classic look of the old chrome bumpers.
Sounds like there's not really a problem with fit, but out of curiosity, which bumper was stock on the '78s? (The tag says 02-78.)
I truly appreciate the input!!

[Zoofly]

I have a '78 that has the back dated stainless steel bumpers. Really happy with the look.


IMG_2253 by [url=https://flic.kr/p/2n5A4HL]IMG_2255 by [url=https://www.flickr.com/photos/147567837@N04/]

[18Fiatsandcounting]

...but out of curiosity, which bumper was stock on the '78s?

The big steel two-tube bumpers started in 1975 onward, so that would be stock on the '78. 1974 and earlier had the curved chrome bumpers, although 1974 had rather large rubber block-like protrusions on the front and rear bumpers (not very attractive). 1973 and earlier had the simple chrome bumpers and some years had two "bumperettes" with a rubber strip on the outward face, two on the front bumper and one on each of the rear bumpers.

-Bryan

[Jimb]

I have a '78 that has the back dated stainless steel bumpers. Really happy with the look.


IMG_2253 by [url=https://flic.kr/p/2n5A4HL]IMG_2255 by [url=https://www.flickr.com/photos/147567837@N04/]

Those look great. However, unfortunately it loses a bit of that clean look when you have to install a fromt licence plate

Jim

[Matt]

I have a bumperless '77 with lowering springs, and I really like the look. I do find that the chin spoiler helps make the front of the car feel complete, and not like it has a....weak chin.

I also run it without a front plate here in MA. I zip tied the plate to the grill when I brought it in for inspection, but otherwise I've had no issues (granted, that's only in 8 months of driving thus far). For what it's worth, my neighbor is a police officer, and he said that he typically won't notice or ticket for a missing front plate on it's own, but if you get pulled over for something else, it's a fun "add on".

[TheBender]

There are a lot of options to fill in the holes if you don’t like them. Gritt racing has a very clean look set of filler and turn signal. You can add the rubber Bumperettes. I added some VW turn signal housings and some rubber sanding blocks (hey they work haha). Here are the original bumpers and what I have updated.

[Jefe]

Wow! Sanding blocks!! Now that's ingenuity!
The more I think about it, the more I'm sure I want the old-style bumpers.
Here in Florida we don't have to use front plates, so that's not an issue.
Zoofly, those stainless bumpers look fantastic to me.
Can I ask where you got them and how much?
Also if the install went smoothly.
(I've seen some posts warning about stainless bumpers out of Vietnam.)
Thanks again to all!

[Zoofly]

Can I ask where you got them and how much?
Also if the install went smoothly.
(I've seen some posts warning about stainless bumpers out of Vietnam.)
Thanks again to all!

The bumpers came from Vietnam, but they were ordered and installed by Allison's Automotive in Upland, CA. You can find these bumpers on eBay for around $1k, or also on AutoRicambi for $1.3k which includes the necessary brakets for the swap. Can't comment on the install but I know it takes a little finagling to get them right. I wouldn't be surprised if the bumpers sold by AutoRicambi are also manufactured in Vietnam.

https://autoricambi.us/chrome-bumper-conversion-kit/

[TheBender]

Contact Csaba or Ramzi from AutoRicambi if you go that route. I believe they have been working on an update for the mounting brackets to make them fit better and install easier.

[Tcamp]

This is our 1973. Rears were purchased through Midwest-Bayless. Used and were 8/10. After metal polish and putting a ceramic finish on them, they make my eyes happy. Took months to locate them but happy with this look. I read somewhere they scooped the rear split bumper idea from corvette (stingray), maybe someone can comment on this ? I used shoe polish on the black strips and it worked well. The licence plates are mandatory here in BC. No idea where to hide them but they can make an onion cry!! All your car pics are cool. I saw a new set from Mr fiat 1250$ I think.

Todd.


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