Potential??? Not for the pure at heart

[peterlund]

Ok.... I was doing some cleaning up after dismantle of another rusted relic... I was pulling the rust-split rear bumper and as I took it from the car and rested it in the corner, I noticed another chrome bumper nearby that looked real close to the arc and size of the Alfa's notoriously poor design. What do you think? I just have it loose without the rubber insert in place, but would you throw rocks at me if you saw this completed??? Or would you ask what car the rear bumper came from???
Again... I know this is not for the purists out there, but it might give us a good working alternative to driving around with a split rear bumper.
Let me know.

[bshorey]

Quote:

Originally Posted by peterlund Ok.... I was doing some cleaning up after dismantle of another rusted relic... I was pulling the rust-split rear bumper and as I took it from the car and rested it in the corner, I noticed another chrome bumper nearby that looked real close to the arc and size of the Alfa's notoriously poor design. What do you think? I just have it loose without the rubber insert in place, but would you throw rocks at me if you saw this completed??? Or would you ask what car the rear bumper came from??? Again... I know this is not for the purists out there, but it might give us a good working alternative to driving around with a split rear bumper. Let me know.

[Tifosi]

I'd guess the rear bumper off a small pickup or the front bumper off a utility van myself.

It really doesn't look that bad, but what would you do with that center part that looks like it used to have an inser in it?

[peterlund]

Hi All. The bumper does have a black rubber insert that is yet to be installed as this was a opinion only venture to date. The car that donated the bumper was a 1984 BMW series 3. The bumper is maybe 2 inches wider than my dream would be, but the contour is almost perfect. The area where the rubber insert sits has the depth to hide the bolts to secure the bumper shocks from a standard Alfa setup, and with a smallish spacer, would look quite nice following the trunk shape. I might just go ahead and finish up the fabrication and get some more input

[Tifosi]

Quote:

Originally Posted by peterlund The car that donated the bumper was a 1984 BMW series 3

[peterlund]

GRIN.... Lots of Beemer lovers might disagree, but it was boxy square and slow... closer to a truck than the sleek Alfas we so cherish. But their bumpers did seem to survive quite well.

[HeavyMetalAlfa]

I like it. I have often thought of trying some 60's chrome bumper pieces from British cars [okay, blast away!] or maybe even some early American cars. You know, the simple chrome ones. You know, now that I think about it, kinda like 60's and 70's Alfa GTV's. Hmmm...

The one you show reminded me of a GTV6 bumper core.

[vf31rhill]

Just by coincidence I saw one of rhe suspect Beemers in the parking lot tonight, so I looked it over with your conversion in mind. It seems to me that the original Beemer black top filler is a bit wider that the original Alfa top filler. If you make this conversion and can somehow make use of the Beemer top filler as well, I have a suspicion that the Beemer top filler as applied to the Alfa would overlap the top of the bumper more than it does the on the Beemer. If this is correct, it would mitigate somewhat for the extra width of the top of the bumper. It would still be the same width, but you woud see less of it and this would give the optical illusion that the bumper is thinner that it actually is. Might solve the width problem you mentioned. Or is the width problem you mentioned up and down width, not accross the top width?
VF31rhill

[peterlund]

It is the left to right width that I am concerned about, but I understand your thoughts too. I will mount the bumper shocks more securely in the next day or so, and do a true fit to the parts car before I send her off to the scrap yard. I will keep you all posted.
Peter

[Legomedic]

I'm really impressed that your eye picked this up. I love to see people making a plan, no matter what the purists may think.

As far as HeavyMetalAlfa's possible project goes, English bumpers from the 60's are heavy enough to influence the tides . If you are only going to fit one bumper then maybe some ballast in the other end may help to keep the car on the straight and narrow (possibly an anvil ). You may also want to fit a turbo (plenty threads at the moment) to help pull that extra weight out of the garage after winter .

That Bee-em's bumper DEFINITELY looks better where it is now though.

[peterlund]

I agree. The sillouette of the Alfa is 4000 % more attractive than the BMW's classic refridgerator profile. Wish me luck, and any suggestions/tips would be helpful/appreciated.
Peter