Front Wings, Fitting

[Brian]

I have found that the front wings on my series 1 are rotting and one has "parted company" with the bumper. Can someone please tell me if replacing them together with a bumper is a DIY job for a novice? I can see that the attachment from bumber to wing is bonded to the plastic therefore I assume the bumber and its plastic valance will also need replacing? Any suggestions would be gratefully received

[noz]

Hi Brian,

Obviously the answer to your question is dependent on how novice is novice. In most cases enthusiasm can make up for a lot for lack of experience. My advice would be give it a try. The purpose of this and other forums is to give you assistance when you get stuck.

The bumper and wing parting company should not need the replacement of both. The bumper attaches to a braket which is screwed or clipped to the wing. If the wing is rotten then the bracket will still be attached to the bumper and will have parted company with the wing. Replace the wing, part the braket, fix one half to the wing and present the bumper back to the car. The bracket should mate with it's other half on the bumper and hey presto - good as new.

The wings themselves are bolted on. A couple of bolts are accessed on the front pillar by opening the door. another is hidden behind the indicator. There's a row of bolts on the edge revealed by opening the bonnet and there are a couple hidden behind the bumper.

Go on, have a go and let us know how you get on.

Cheers

noz

ps
on holiday for the next two weeks so it may explain no immediate answer in the meantime.

This post has been edited by noz on July 08, 2004 07:12 pm

[Brian]

Thanks Noz. It all looks so corroded that it appears that the fixing on the bumper is actually bonded to the plastic? There being no solid metal left at all to see. removal of the wings does not sound too tricky from your advice so I will try and source and give it a bash....thanks again
Brian

[noz]

I took my bumper off last night after I'd made that post.

There are two screws under the front grille, two behind the indicators, two under the wheel arches, two behind the number plate and two underneath the car on the bottom of the valance. After that it's easy.

The two accessed from the wheel arches are the worst. Citroen have used 30mm long bolts where 10mm would have done the job. They are all corroded. Its best to hacksaw most of the bolts away by bending back the plastic wing liner rather than try to unscrew all the way.

Cheers

noz