Front Bumper

[joselu43]

Will a front bumper from a 1980 450SLC fit a 88 560SL?

Thanks.

Jl

[Strife]

Yes, and no. If we are talking about US bumpers and not Euro bumpers, the hydraulic mounts for the older bumper will be a longer and the bumper will stick out more. For this reason, I think the 86-89 US bumpers look better. But they are probably only good to 2.5 MPH vs the earlier mandated 5 MPH bumpers.

[joselu43]

Thank you Strife, that is the kind of info I needed. I guess I can always use the old mounts. Your comment about 5 mph vs. 2.5 is making me think though. You would think the newer models are better protected, right?

[cth350]

protection is in the eye of the beholder. A crash, even at 5 miles an hour can do damage. Do you want it done to the human or the car?

The things that make your car "pretty" are the things that will fall off, break, bend and in general look ugly after a crash. Add the cost of labor and the cost of replacement parts and repairing an accident gets expensive fast.

How to make it cheaper (other than to crash somebody else's car rather than your own?) Find a car with less expensive parts that requires less work to make it pretty. In other words, don't crash the car.

-CTH

[Strife]

Well, I draw the line on Euro bumpers.No question, they look great when they are new and straight, but around here, they would be Accident Magnets. The 86-89 bumpers are a good compromise to me.

BTW, you would not believe how strong the (apparently FORGED) aluminum bumper bars are. I had a little dent in one when I bought the 86, and I had it straightened out (it was very tiny, otherwise this would have been impossible). It put a bad strain on a industrial hydraulic press and the shop owner had never heard his machine strain before.