Removing & disassembling W124 front bumper

I want to have my front bumper cover (1993 300CE) repainted. Removal is easy enough. After removal, I believe that I will only need to disassemble the black impact strip and the chrome strips on top.

It appears that the impact strip is held on by three screws at either end and a number of pressed in plastic tabs along the front. Is this correct? Do I need anything more than a screwdriver here?

The chrome strips across the top of the bumper are held on by special clips. The repair manual CD notes that there is a special tool to remove these clips. Is this tool really neccessary? Can I just pop them off with pliers or a screwdriver? Will I need to get new clips to put these strips back on, or will the old ones still be serviceable after I get them off?

Finally, what does one do to prep plastic? Do I just sand with regular sandpaper?

Sincerely, Eric

[pmizell]

Eric:

You don't need a special tool to remove those clips. Simply pry them off with a screwdriver and the old ones are reusable -- they should just pop back into place.

As far as the impact strip goes, all I remember was that mine was very easy to remove/very straightforward, so I don't think you need anything more than a screwdriver. If you break a clip, they're very inexpensive from the dealer.

Prepping the bumper before painting it? I'm not sure how you should go about it. I would imagine sanding it down with some coarse grit sandpaper to remove some/most of the old paint, then a fine grit to smooth it out.

Good luck!

~Paul

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'91 300E, 208k miles