DIY - How to install front euro bumper on us spec E21

[ButteDorFrank]

alright, I have searched and there was not really a good information source on how to install front euro bumper on us spec e21 so I tackled it with what I could find and decided to do a write up of how I did it.

and for those who does not have the euro brackets and does not want to cut into their car, bmac320i makes a bolt on bracket that uses the old bumper's mounting point : http://macfarlandperformance.com/?pa...21&id=12129224

I started off by removing the front valence



then took the hack saw to it to cut the first layer (I did not know how to install it at this point , inside or outside the frame rail, so I cut a little wider to see if it fits inside the rail, but it would need alot more cutting and fitting so I decided to install it outside the frame rail)



then took the drill to tackle the second layer


then I went inside the wheel well and cut off this piece that is in the way






then with some test fitting I found the right position, marked it and drilled the holes right through both layer of the frame rail




and this is what it looks now without the bracket and the 2 mounting holes


and this is inside the engine bay, 2 new holes on each side (little hard to see)



then just do the same on the other side





I ran out of daylight, so I went and picked up some 2.5" long bolts to mount the brackets to the car.
I will update once its all done and everything works.

and I know this is not the perfect write up, and not the best job, but if it can help someone save a bit of time and thinking well my mission is accomplished !
and I am sure there's some other ways of doing this that would work better too if you had a welder handy but I don;t at the moment.

hopefully this can help someone

cheers

Francois

[midlifebmw]

Nice write up on the install. I've seen some strange bracket locations and offsets to get this to work but this one with the pics really does show clearly what an owner will be up for given a conversion.

Thanks!

[C.Hutch]

so that's what those holes are for. good work.

[ButteDorFrank]

thanks guys ... the hardest part about all this was bolting both sides right at the end of the fender ... holes and everything are already there but itès just one of those things that makes you want to blow up the damn car ! I hate this piece of shit right about now ! the M10 engine is something that should not even exist, along with open diff ...

here's what I ended up with, and I needed to grab longer bolts (3") wich are not installed yet , right now the bumper is held on by the two bolts on the side of the fender and just resting on the brackets.

[jaredmac11]

Did anyone have to chop up their front valence? I think its just a difference between the early and late. I think Ill need to trim up the valence. I was planning of filling in the holes from the old bumper shocks anyways so I figured it wouldnt be awful, just not ideal. Probably scrape less than a quarter inch off the holes for the front valence.
Also, the early models do not have holes for the bumpers unfortunately. Im not a fan of how much chopping you need to do to get this in, probably gonna lose my lunch for a turbo swap if I ever go down that path.

I know there are products available to make this a bolt in affair for US models but thats a lot of $$$

[pofo]

Just buy a euro front valance, if you have to spend time doing all that work to fill and then paint just start with an oem part.

[dreiermann]

I followed the ButteDorFrank instructions for my pre-facelift front bumper euro-swap, and did not have to modify anything on the valance. Eventually, I will weld up the extra holes (when I paint the rest of the car), but you can't see the holes with the bumper on. That being said, the bumper droops very slightly in front, but I think that the reason for that is the location where I drilled the support bracket holes. I probably got it slightly wrong, and didn't have time to fix it before I wanted to get the car back on the road for the summer. Getting it lined up will be one of my projects this winter.

[jaredmac11]

I followed the ButteDorFrank instructions for my pre-facelift front bumper euro-swap, and did not have to modify anything on the valance. Eventually, I will weld up the extra holes (when I paint the rest of the car), but you can't see the holes with the bumper on. That being said, the bumper droops very slightly in front, but I think that the reason for that is the location where I drilled the support bracket holes. I probably got it slightly wrong, and didn't have time to fix it before I wanted to get the car back on the road for the summer. Getting it lined up will be one of my projects this winter.

Good to know. I think I just need an extra set of hands to make sure it all fits ok.

Just buy a euro front valance, if you have to spend time doing all that work to fill and then paint just start with an oem part.

This is the best solution and is my plan when I have some $$$ to throw at it. For now Im going the cheapo route. I do like the pre-facelift valence as well.