Buick Reatta body gap size..?

[NCBRIJEN]

Reatta aficionados:

Does anyone know what the factory standard measurement of the gap between the hood and the bumper should be?  How can I adjust it if needed?

Edited January 15, 2018 by NCBRIJEN (see edit history)

[2seater]

That looks pretty normal. It all has to line up with the headlight doors, top and bottom in any case.

[NCBRIJEN]

Thanks.  I have seen a few other Reatta that have a smaller gap area between the hood and bumper area as shown.  Just wondering if there was a factory standard measurement or if it just depended on how the vehicle was put together by hand. 

 

Edited January 15, 2018 by NCBRIJEN (see edit history)

[SCOTT's 90's]

Mine has some problems then!!!

 

Is there a way to adjust this?

 

 

[2seater]

There are a lot of moving parts to get synchronized so perfection is hard to achieve but what I see looks pretty normal. The headlight covers have a limited adjustment where they are attached to the headlight bucket frame with studs and shim washers. I am not sure if the stop for the closed position itself is adjustable. The hood does have adjustable stops at the front outer corners. 

[2seater]

5 minutes ago, Frogware said:

Mine has some problems then!!!

 

Is there a way to adjust this?

 

 

The gap between the bumper and the trim piece does have issues. It almost looks like the center of the bumper is pushed down somehow. The gap to the hood looks pretty normal so hopefully someone that has taken all of that apart will chime in. That trim piece between the hood and the bumper is just a flexible composite material and I do not know how it is attached to the backing framework but it looks like moving that an appreciable amount will mess up the hood gap. Hard to tell but is it possible the plastic piece front lower lip is warped upwards?

[jonlabree]

All of that can be adjusted. I have had the bumpers off and there are shims you can use to adjust.

[SCOTT's 90's]

1 minute ago, 63viking said:

All of that can be adjusted. I have had the bumpers off and there are shims you can use to adjust.

 

Thanks I guess I will have to set aside a weekend and tackle this job and see if I can fix it.

[SCOTT's 90's]

5 minutes ago, 2seater said:

The gap between the bumper and the trim piece does have issues. It almost looks like the center of the bumper is pushed down somehow. The gap to the hood looks pretty normal so hopefully someone that has taken all of that apart will chime in. That trim piece between the hood and the bumper is just a flexible composite material and I do not know how it is attached to the backing framework but it looks like moving that an appreciable amount will mess up the hood gap. Hard to tell but is it possible the plastic piece front lower lip is warped upwards?

 

Yeah I am not sure if it is warped or if the bumper is just sagging. If you look at the second picture you can see how there is a large gap between the lights and the fender, so I am not sure what is going on.

[89RedDarkGrey]

44 minutes ago, Frogware said:

If you look at the second picture you can see how there is a large gap between the lights and the fender, so I am not sure what is going on.

 

I have the same. About 6mm gap around the turn signal modules. It looks as if a "baffle" could've been put there, like the ends of the tail light module. I guess we're so used to the closer fit and finish (that's what these dimensions are called) of modern cars, that any gap over 3-4mm looks wrong.

[SCOTT's 90's]

2 minutes ago, 89RedDarkGrey said:

 

I have the same. About 6mm gap around the turn signal modules. It looks as if a "baffle" could've been put there, like the ends of the tail light module. I guess we're so used to the closer fit and finish (that's what these dimensions are called) of modern cars, that any gap over 3-4mm looks wrong.

It just looks sooo sloppy I guess, I don't know. I still plan on making a weekend project out of it though just to put my mind at ease.

 

[89RedDarkGrey]

It just looks as if you're missing the "Shim" washers on that headlight door, or more as if something is put together in the wrong order. As you can see in my own photo- the doors have "pedestals" that fit down into the frame. If something is in the bottom of the mount hole- it will jack up the door.

 

[AZVET]

I just adjusted and lubed my 88's driver side headlight.  I removed the aluminum (?) cover by unscrewing the 4 studs that attach it to the headlight frame.  I had to remove the plastic bezel first.

The attaching studs are more like pedestals that raise or lower the cover and change the gap at the hood and the front bumper.  An adjustment on the rear will change the alignment on the front and vice versa.  It is fiddley to do and requires a deep 10mm socket.

While I was in there I installed new Sylvania Silverstar bulbs.  While not as bright as some of the fancier bulbs out there, they do a great job.  I paid about $50 for the pair at Auto Zone.

[89RedDarkGrey]

16 minutes ago, AZVET said:

I removed the aluminum (?) cover

 

Same "Thermoplastic" as the front fenders, AFAIK.

[KDirk]

The headlamp cover panels are an aluminum alloy, not thermoplastic. Interesting too that I've noted a minor revision in the molds where some have a cross-hatch on the underside  (almost as if to add some mild reinforcement) while others are completely smooth save for a few date stamp and ID markings. Be careful in removing the shim/spacer washers and against overtightening the nuts that go on the mounting studs as you can easily warp or dimple the cover noticeably in doing so. 

 

As far as vertically aligning the front bumper, I've found that it is good to support them with a wood block on a floor jack under the center when reinstalling them to be certain they are tight against the bottom edge of the front filler panel before tightening the bumper mounting nuts. Back bumper installation benefits similarily.

 

 

[Ronnie]

If the headlight covers can't be aligned properly with the hood by just moving the cover - you can insert thin body shims behind the frame of the headlight bucket at the top where it bolts to the body. That will move the whole assembly forward if needed. I had to do that to align the cover with the front edge of my hood on one side.   You have to insert body shims uniformly so you don't get anything in a bind when you tighten down the bolts. The aluminum frame could break if you get it in a bind.

[NCBRIJEN]

On 1/16/2018 at 12:24 AM, KDirk said:

As far as vertically aligning the front bumper, I've found that it is good to support them with a wood block on a floor jack under the center when reinstalling them to be certain they are tight against the bottom edge of the front filler panel before tightening the bumper mounting nuts. Back bumper installation benefits similarly.

 

 

OK how do I go about doing this... where are the front bumper bolts located exactly .. and how many are there?  Looking at it now..are there other parts that must also be removed to accomplish this?  Has anyone made a video on how to do this?

Edited March 31, 2018 by NCBRIJEN (see edit history)