Best E39 M5 rep front bumper?

[freethrowdunk]

I, too, cannot vouch any more than I have in threads like these for OEM bumpers. That being said, I recently bought one from Umnitza and the fitment is 95%+ close to perfection--it is exponentially better fitting than the DDM variant I ended up with during that bumper-buying frenzy that took place here three or so years ago. It was cracked and really ill-fitting, so I needed a change. I would have bought OEM this time around, but I have plans on buying the Hamann competition front bumper for e39 M5s in the future, so this will suffice for now.

There is also this. I stumbled upon it while doing some research on this topic around here. I PM'd him asking for some clarifications, but he has yet to respond:

http://forums.bimmerforums.com/forum...9&postcount=53

here's a helpful tip when reinstalling the bumpers. Take off the side clips on the fenders and slide them onto the bumper before putting the bumper back on . Once its on tighten the two bolts that hold the bumper in place and then tighten the plastic clips to the fender. I've done this with two bumpers and fitment is 100% perfect with my rep bumpers. No sag, and everything lines up. I don't even have the 1/2 or 1/4 inch gap between the edge of the fender and bumper. I got my first bumper off a member here who said he got it from DDM, and my newest bumper is from a guy on craigslist selling preprinted ones for $325. Paint is decent, but I have jet black so paint match isn't too much of an issue.

[AHay5]

Do it once and right. Go OEM. I have seen too many friends with replica's in disapointment due to fitment issues.

[hon2bmw]

it functions fine, it's not like the bumper cover is supposed to withstand an impact. the rubber seal was a long weatherstrip type thing that goes along the top and causes the bumper to hang too low. it's probably not on the OEM bumper

Yes, it is on the OEM bumper the engineers who designed your car put it there for a reason:

BMW part # 51118191149

[d1984]

Your spending it either way as your not doing basic maintenance tasks yourself. I'd offer to help out if I stil lived in the Bay Area. $700 goes a long way in a DIY garage.

the valve cover gasket job is a huge PITA and i don't have 8-12 hours i feel like setting away for it. i had them change my spark plugs and fuel filter at the same time too so that's some of the labor cost, forgot to mention it in my previous post

$700 for valve cover gaskets?!. . . daaamn

540i is a big job

the cost was for spark plugs and fuel filter too

Yes, it is on the OEM bumper the engineers who designed your car put it there for a reason:

BMW part # 51118191149

probably just protects the bumper edge from cracking due to weather and vibration after 10+ years. not too worried about it. none of the M5 style bumpers fit with that piece on there, in fact it's one of the main reasons a lot of people can't get good fitment

[hon2bmw]

probably just protects the bumper edge from cracking due to weather and vibration after 10+ years. not too worried about it. none of the M5 style bumpers fit with that piece on there, in fact it's one of the main reasons a lot of people can't get good fitment

Actually, its for aerodynamic efficiency, to help keep water and debris from accumulating in the engine space and in minimal capacity, to help ensure proper air flow over the radiator.

My rep bumper seems to fit quite well with it?

I'm just trying to get the point across that if you had a "professional" install your bumper, and their solution to get it to fit right was to leave out parts that where put there for a reason, you may want to find another body shop.

[sean911sc]

51118191149

Prevents two hard surfaces that flex from rubbing against each other I would gather.

I spent a week working with a DDM bumper cover looking at all options to get fitment spot on. It wasn't going to happen unless I modified parts or went with another REP bumper that wouldn't have fitted any better.
The reason(s) one does/doesn't perform their own maintenance will vary.

[d1984]

Actually, its for aerodynamic efficiency, to help keep water and debris from accumulating in the engine space and in minimal capacity, to help ensure proper air flow over the radiator.

My rep bumper seems to fit quite well with it?

I'm just trying to get the point across that if you had a "professional" install your bumper, and their solution to get it to fit right was to leave out parts that where put there for a reason, you may want to find another body shop.

the bodyshop i used has done a ton of M5 front bumpers. i don't see how it could be for aerodynamics since there isn't even a gap without it and it's not an exterior piece

[hon2bmw]

The seal keeps air from flowing through the gap that SHOULD be there. Body panels whether they are metal or plastic are never butted right up against each other for various reasons, the front bumpe is not supposed to be in direct contact with the other body panels for many reasons, mostly because it is supposed to be able to move with the compression of the bumper shocks in a low speed impact. The rubber strip keeps air flowing past the joint between the bumper and rest of the car body instead of through it, while allowing the bumper to move as needed.

E30 people spend good money buying the EVO hood seals from BMW for their cars for aerodynamic purposes. You probably won't notice the difference and honestly if you cared enough you wouldn't have been okay with them doing what they did.

But just be aware that BMW didn't add the rubber strip willy nilly because they thought it would be fun to make life more complicated. If anything we should be lucky enough that the bean counters didn't decide it was to expensive to include, let alone flagrantly dismissing its existence.

[d1984]

Interesting. I wonder if I should buy that part and put it back on

[hon2bmw]

Interesting. I wonder if I should buy that part and put it back on

Like I said, it probably won't make much of difference at this point, very few people, go through all the trouble of buying the correct fender liners, duct work, and aerodynamic pieces that go along with the mtech bumper in the first place. I certainly didn't.

There's a reason why "doing it right" costs so much, and also a reason why so many of us buy the replicas in the first place.

[webdesigner]

I really hate when you can see the ground through the bumper because people don't run the undertray, looks like a Honda with a bodykit. That's the first thing I always notice about non-M's

[donbruno]

...very few people, go through all the trouble of buying the correct fender liners, duct work, and aerodynamic pieces that go along with the mtech bumper in the first place. I certainly didn't.

have you noticed any complications or problems with that being the case?

[hon2bmw]

have you noticed any complications or problems with that being the case?

I'm running my stock 540i underpanel, and trimmed the fender liners, there is a gap where the Mtech "pork chops" go on the bottom, and it I believe I had to trim some plastic in front of the radiator as well.

I have not noticed any problems, everything fits securely with the exception of the fender liners, which tend to come out of place from time to time, and, after an unfortunate run in with a puddle that required me to purchase another Hella euro healdlight assembly I am not happy with the fit of fender liners nor the opening in the bottom from the missing "pork chops."

I plan on buying the full OEM setup at some point, including the bumper, simply because I think it looks a little ratty at times especially when looking at it from the rear three quarter view, however it is relatively expensive and will probably cost close to $1k when all the parts are included, luckily I can do the paint myslef and don't mind re-using the replica bump strips, grill and fogs.

[RVAE34]

So you currently have the Umnitza reps? I was thinking of getting mine from them in ABS.

[derekmw]

I think a lot of the opinions here don't consider the situation for 'upgrading' to M5 bumper.

OP stated that his current bumper is in bad condition. So he wants to 'fix' it...which is different than someone with a bumper that has no issues, but wants to just upgrade to an M5 bumper.

If you're purely doing it for looks, it probably means you won't be happy with a bumper that doesn't fit perfect.

If you're doing it because your bumper is torn, you're doing it more out of necessity.

In the latter case, you prob don't want to spend 1/4 - 1/6 the value of your car on a front bumper. And you prob wouldn't mind 1/4" off compared to a torn bumper. At least that's why I went with DDM.

It wasn't a perfect fit, but mine came out less than 1/4" off on the fender and I couldn't be happier with the change from a ripped front bumper to fresh M5 looking bumper.

[Der Krieger]

I think a lot of the opinions here don't consider the situation for 'upgrading' to M5 bumper.

OP stated that his current bumper is in bad condition. So he wants to 'fix' it...which is different than someone with a bumper that has no issues, but wants to just upgrade to an M5 bumper.

If you're purely doing it for looks, it probably means you won't be happy with a bumper that doesn't fit perfect.

If you're doing it because your bumper is torn, you're doing it more out of necessity.

In the latter case, you prob don't want to spend 1/4 - 1/6 the value of your car on a front bumper. And you prob wouldn't mind 1/4" off compared to a torn bumper. At least that's why I went with DDM.

It wasn't a perfect fit, but mine came out less than 1/4" off on the fender and I couldn't be happier with the change from a ripped front bumper to fresh M5 looking bumper.

OK; this is where I am. I am also speculating that as time goes on, every E39 will eventually have an M5 bumper cover. Here's why.

Those who don't much care or think about their cars still think it's OK to roll right up to a curb or parking block. They then destroy their bumper cover as it snags when they back up - and then spend an inordinate amount of time whining in forums because the car was 'designed wrong'. [Yeah; right. It's not like you could be expected to know how long/wide/low your car is before doing something stupid, could you?] Then, there's a car like mine that needs a cover. Of course, there are no OEM non-M covers because they've all been dragged over curbs. So now we're left in the aftermarket where there's no real compelling reason not to sell M-style bumper covers. After all, they look better to most people and they're far more plentiful at cheap prices. So an M-style cover it must be unless you want to spend cubic yards of cash for new OEM.

Still, I wouldn't say 'no' to a used stock white OEM bumper cover being replaced by an M-style ...

[umnitza]

to throw our hat into the ring, though it's already been thrown, we do offer prepaint at $125, but that's going up now to $150 for prepaint. If you want to order, we have many in stock for $129 already and with shipping it's the best deal going

[FlipredE36]

I'm quite pleased with my PP M5 bumper from Umnitza. Sure it's not perfect, but for 1/5th the price of an OEM M5 bumper, I wasn't expecting it to be.

[hon2bmw]

So you currently have the Umnitza reps? I was thinking of getting mine from them in ABS.

I currently have the PP DDM rep, before that was an ABS rep, not sure from whom since it was on the car when I bough it.

[aa240sx]

Thumbs up for DDM. Read through and I still see guys commenting to go OEM. Go for it if you got the bucks, but the reps look identical to me.

I've had mine now for over 2 years with no complaints.

[E36 328is]

to throw our hat into the ring, though it's already been thrown, we do offer prepaint at $125, but that's going up now to $150 for prepaint. If you want to order, we have many in stock for $129 already and with shipping it's the best deal going

For the front bumper does the ABS upgrade for $99 correct the bumper being short on the sides?

[joel540i]

For the front bumper does the ABS upgrade for $99 correct the bumper being short on the sides?

+1 I would like to know this as well. Is there an actual noticeable difference with this bumper?

[senser]

+1 I would like to know this as well. Is there an actual noticeable difference with this bumper?

I'm interested as well. I've read other places that ABS is easier for paint to adhere to so it's easier for a body shop to work with.

Not entirely clear on that though.

Is anyone running a ModBargains brand rep bumper?

[RVAE34]

I will be buying the ABS rep bumpers from Umnitza and painting them myself in a few weeks so I hope to update on fit/finish and ease of prep/paint also using PPG base/clear like I did with my trim and pillars.

[Frankie]

I will be buying the ABS rep bumpers from Umnitza and painting them myself....

I think this is what I will do too (but will let a pro body shop do the paint-match).