Front Bumper Slid Down About 1/4"

[TC KER]

1990 Chrysler TC by Maserati 3.0 V6. This is my 30th year anniversary of owning the car. The front bumper is loose and it slid down about 1/4" on the passanger side and the driver side is a little loose. It did not run into anything or been hit, it just did it on it's own. I'm thinking that some bolt came loose and just needs to be tightened. I Iooked under the hood and couldn't see where I need to start. I tightened the bolts undereath the bumper with an allen wrench and that did not help. Can someone post a schematic so I can see what I need to do on this project? Has this happened to anyone?

Thanks, Kerry

Edited February 11, 2023 by TC KER (see edit history)

[Hemi Dude]

This is [AN EXAMPLE] only. But you can see how the IMPACT ABSORBER #6 is inserted into a hole in the front bumper support structure of the body. There are generally 4 bolts which hold it in place and allow for 'SOME' up/down adjustment of the bumper.  I would look in this area for movement down which could have caused this 1/4" gap.

I'd give you a better example, but I'm currently in a cast on my left hand and manipulating the computer is a little more difficult.

[ghostymosty]

Check the sliders on the sides, they let the bumper slide back and forth while holding it up. They are made of something not metal, hard plastic or fiber of some sort. If someone bumped your car in a parking lot it may have been enough to fracture the now old/brittle support/slider but still let the bumper go back into place. 

 

[Garnet & Gold]

The 2 Allen wrench holes on each side are to install or remove the amber light.

[TC KER]

Thank you all for the info. I'll post an update once I figure it out and repair it........

[TC KER]

Hi Hemi, Hopefully you can put me on the list of things to do after you get your hand repaired first. Garnet and Gold sent me an email with a photo regarding the slider but I haven't dove into that yet since when I pull up the bumper with my hand and look underneath the hood I can see movement in the area that you pointed out.  The #6 bolts in your diagram appear to be tight so I re-attached your diagram edited to point out where I see movement along with a “possible” solution. I’m wondering if it would solve the problem if I were to loosen up the 2 bolts pointed out in the diagram and then hold the bumper up and tighten them.  Perhaps try the same with the #6 bolts?

Are the holes for any of these bolts elongated?

Is the best way to access them by removing the headlight?

Could it be that something broke inside the area I see movement?

 

Thanks and get better soon, Kerry

[Hemi Dude]

[As I wrote above, THIS diagram of parts IS AN EXAMPLE ONLY] The picture I have of the absorber on the TC is far from being this clear, therefore visual observation from below the car is necessary to actually see the whole picture. I am in no position to be getting under my TC for a photograph.

As we look at this setup, there are 2 possibilities that could cause this 1/4" downward travel of the bumper on one side;

1. The bolt that secures the inner-most bracket DOWN against the unibody of the car. If that bolt comes loose or falls out altogether, it would allow the bumper to weigh down the forward end of the absorber and pivot on the large bracket in the middle of the absorber, therefore creating the gap,  OR

2. The center bracket retaining bolts could be loose, though that would be a stretch considering there are several of them. I do believe the bolt holes are elongated. 

 

Get under the car to get a better look.

[Garnet & Gold]

Here is a picture(s) of the front fascia that shows the ability to do a side-to-side on the elongated bolt pattern, next the end of the shock that gets mounted to the fascia that shows up-and-down elongation and the last picture is like a shim that goes between the two.  Bob

[TC KER]

Hi, I plan to get this fixed in a couple weeks; I'll post an update when completed. I'm adding these pictures of the issue just for the record. The photos are the passenger’s side; the driver's side is just a little loose too (the bumper has no evidence of being hit; it's just some type of reflection on the photos).  Kerry

[TC KER]

Picture 1 we removed the cover in front of the radiator and the cover over both lights.

We loosened the 3 nuts on the shock tube plate as shown on picture 3

Picture 2 and 3 shows me using a wrench to push down on the shock tube from the small space that is behind the headlight and lifting the bumper up at the same time as some else tightens back the 3 nuts on the shock tube plate. We did this on both passenger and driver side of the car. 

Picture 4 shows it completely repaired.

Hopefully we figured out the best way to do this; it took us about an hour and we did not have to crawl underneath the car.

 

Thank you both for your input. Kerry

[Hemi Dude]

It does appear that 'someone' tapped the bumper with their vehicle after all, or your car "tapped" something.

[TC KER]

My  cousin drove his Hellcat out to our place to orchistrate the repair; couldn't help to think of you when he opened up the hood...............