Narrowed, Shaved, and Tucked 75 Dart bumper mod.
So in the rear it was a little more cut and dry really. I knew it needed to be narrowed, but all of the different lines and curves needed to work well together without many hours of work. So I did find that these bumpers are absolutely offset in their design. I found this when I went to remove the same amount from both sides. It turned out one side was longer by roughly 3/8".
That was 3/8" wider from the center to the "peak" at each side. (The "V" where the quarter panel peaks)
Anyhow, here we go.. Huge gaps of course!!!
So in order to not distort the curves and make more work for myself, I made my cuts inside of all of the detailed curves. This basically allowed me to just move them back, up, and inward.
I cant remember exactly how much I removed from each side but it was roughly 3/4"
So after I had narrowed the bumper as much as I could (and still keep it lined up with the body lines) I wasn't happy! I had narrowed it enough for the "peak" at the tail light housing to match the peak in the bumper. I wasn't so disappointed with the gap that was to the outside of the body as much as I was with the giant hole directly under the tail light at the peak. You can see the hole here...
You'll also notice the gap or overhang past the side of the car. That was actually necessary because the bumper wraps around the body itself and is very close to touching the body on either side of the car.
SO.... The hole.... I decided that the biggest eye-sore was the fact that you could see right through to the ground. A quick remedy that worked out quite nice was to make a filler panel across that gap.
So final fitment! Here is the end... Shaved all bolts and filled any remaining holes. Beat a few dents out and had to generally "tweak" the bumper for a good fit.
New "tucked" side profile...
Here you can see how ill-fitting these bumpers are from the factory... Look at the rear bumper hanging off the side of the car! Crazy!
And I of course had to get a few shots of the A-bodies together!
Hope ya like em!
So in the rear it was a little more cut and dry really. I knew it needed to be narrowed, but all of the different lines and curves needed to work well together without many hours of work. So I did find that these bumpers are absolutely offset in their design. I found this when I went to remove the same amount from both sides. It turned out one side was longer by roughly 3/8".
That was 3/8" wider from the center to the "peak" at each side. (The "V" where the quarter panel peaks)
Anyhow, here we go.. Huge gaps of course!!!
So in order to not distort the curves and make more work for myself, I made my cuts inside of all of the detailed curves. This basically allowed me to just move them back, up, and inward.
I cant remember exactly how much I removed from each side but it was roughly 3/4"
So after I had narrowed the bumper as much as I could (and still keep it lined up with the body lines) I wasn't happy! I had narrowed it enough for the "peak" at the tail light housing to match the peak in the bumper. I wasn't so disappointed with the gap that was to the outside of the body as much as I was with the giant hole directly under the tail light at the peak. You can see the hole here...
You'll also notice the gap or overhang past the side of the car. That was actually necessary because the bumper wraps around the body itself and is very close to touching the body on either side of the car.
SO.... The hole.... I decided that the biggest eye-sore was the fact that you could see right through to the ground. A quick remedy that worked out quite nice was to make a filler panel across that gap.
So final fitment! Here is the end... Shaved all bolts and filled any remaining holes. Beat a few dents out and had to generally "tweak" the bumper for a good fit.
New "tucked" side profile...
Here you can see how ill-fitting these bumpers are from the factory... Look at the rear bumper hanging off the side of the car! Crazy!
And I of course had to get a few shots of the A-bodies together!
Hope ya like em!
