Boxster Loses Battle with Curb
 

My wife took out the car and apparently had a little incident with a parking curb :matchup:

So there is a pretty significant dent on the bottom corner of the front bumper. I'm assumming that the bumper will need to be replaced. Given the bumper seems plastic is it even possible to have that repaired without a replace?

Since I will likely be investing in a new front bumper are there any good aftermarket bumpers for a 987? Just want to look at my options before I put on a stock one. I'm not really interested in going to a Cayman bumper.

Mnboxster or others in Minnesota, do you have any recommendations for good body shops with a reasonable price. I will be consulting with the dealer but wanted to see if anyone had a recommendation.

I'll post a pic if I get a chance.

Can't a shop just fix as much as they can,then bondo and then refinish?

If the paint is not cracked, sometimes you can heat up the area with your wife's hair dryer and push the dent out. If will not be perfect, but it will look a lot better.

Replacing a bumper is an easy DIY job, just buy one that's the same color.

I thought bondo was for the metal surfaces of a car, not sure if you can bondo a bumper. Since the bumper is flexible wouldn't the bondo break off? I'm not expert so it may be possible, I'll talk to some shops after this weekend and see what I can find out.

Suggest a mobile bumper guy. If they can fix it, it will save you some dough.

I know 996 bumpers fit 986's... so do 997 bumpers fit 987's? If so Id get a GT3 bumper, or look into the 987 aerokit if its a big difference, I think ive seen a pic and it just had a little lip is all.

My Choice* http://articles.motortoday.com/news/...laGTR650-1.jpg

Good suggestions. I'll talk to some body shops on Tuesday and see if it is possible to fix it. I am also attaching a picture.

Not sure if a 997 bumper would fit but I really like the 997 aerokit bumper if that fit.

Ouch! This is why my wife never drives my Boxster. This is why I never taught her how to drive a manual.

That looks amazing. :eek:

The pic does not look too bad. If you want to DIY use the hair dryer to heat up and it should "pop" back into shape. A little body filler and some paint and it could look as goos as before.

Don't think a 997 and a 987 bumper because the headlights are differnt, boxster 987 lights aren't circles, they are round with a corner that points inside to the bumper. The 977's are just round, no corners or nubbs to disrupt that.

The hair dryer method was very effective. I heated it up and molded back to shape. It is certainly not perfect and needs some paint work but I don't think I need to replace the bumper anymore. Here is a picture after the hair dryer treatment. Only took about 5 minutes.

Doc,

That looks good enough (in the photo, at least) that I'd probably leave it alone 'till the next mishap. For me, it seems inevitable. I'm on my third bumper cover. :(

Burton, wow, that looks much better. I agree with Grizz too. All you need now is a little touch-up paint.

Great call , Paul!

Did the touch-up paint and it looks OK, wouldn't be noticed by most people unless you were looking for it. So I think that temporarily will work. However, being the typical completely anal Porsche owner I think I will have sleepless nights until it is completely fixed.

Instead of paying for a new bumper or having a body shop putty and repaint, I have a third option to consider.

Buy the front air splitters!! I kinda wanted them anyhow but now I have an excuse. Here is the link, seems like they would cover the area in question.

http://e-partssales.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=P&Product_Code =987splitt&Category_Code=987ext

I'll at least wait awhile to see if I can live with it the way it is, but seems like a reasonable option.

Thanks again for the advice, will end up saving me alot of $$$. This is why forums can be so valuable.

Heyyyyy! I like those!

Burton, good idea on the splitters. If you do it. let me know, I'd love to see the finished product in person.

very nice man, since you appreciate the help on the forum, i suggest you send a $20 paypal donation to all of us hehe

and wow man, thats really nice how you cleaned it up with the hairdryer

Spoken like a true enthusiast. Good for you!

On the way to church last week, my wife spilled a little coffee on the passenger seat (my fault), I tried to explain that we had to get some GT3 seats to replace the stock seats rather than just wiping the coffee off, but I don't think I have made any headway there. I will keep the forum updated on any progress.

i got a CEL again, thats it...time for a supercharger.