Zender Rear Valence Mounting Question

[bpb99]

I know there has been lots of discussion over the years about euro rear bumper conversions + the zender valence, but unfortunately i cannot find any working photos regarding mounting.

With the information available for the euro conversion brackets, I was able to get the euro rear bumper mounted (although it seems to slightly droop at one corner, any ideas?).

My main question from this point is how exactly is the zender valance suppose to be mounted? I've seen somewhat conflicting information, but I was first under the impression the zender would just tuck right up flush against the stock US valence (when using a european bumper). Is it actually suppose sit proud (with the help of bracketry), or were my original thoughts correct?

Does anyone have any working photos of the way they mounted their valence?

If it does sit flush, do you have to remove the metal hooks that live underneath where the old bumper shocks used to go? The hooks I am referring are not like the main tow hook on the spare, there are four of them, each sticking out at an angle. Two stick outside the US valence, the others stick inside. Its not really clear what the hooks are used for (looks like tie down points maybe?), but they seem to get right in the way when attempting to mount the centre piece of the valence flush up. If I were to mount it proud of the US valence they may not cause any interference. So I thought I'd come here and ask others who have done it before instead of needlessly chopping bits off my car.

I appreciate any help you can give me.

Also trying to source some BMAC style front conversion brackets, if anyone has an extra set laying around let me know. Trying to avoid fabricating them as long as possible

[davew91]

@SILOKIN was doing a group buy here and on the FB group for some Euro conversion brackets that he was making. I'd hit him up. They look pretty slick. https://www.bimmerforums.com/forum/s...php?p=29929339

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[bpb99]

Thanks for the info! I sent John at silkokin automotive a message and now I'm just waiting for him to get me a quote on shipping. He said he has a kit in stock ready to ship. I was really dreading having to try to fabricate the front mounts! Now just for figuring out the rear valence mounting. Going to give it another attempt later this week..

[Domrizze21]

Hey,

I'm getting my e21 painted June 4th and have the zender rear valence as well. Did you ever find a way to mount them?

Btw, the euro bumper brackets silokin made were fabricated and tested on my e21 and they work out beautiful, so I would definitely pick them up. If you haven't already.

[Manny G.]

I picked up Silokin's brackets and already installed the front brackets on my E21. I havent gotten around to doing the rear, not sure if i will since i already had custom brackets.. I may use both since they both mount to different locations and will provide more support.

For the Zender rear valance, mine came with a metal bar that lined up perfectly with the 2 frame rail ends. There are 2 bolts at the bottom of the tow hooks, I used those bolts to mount the center section. The side caps were screwed from the bottom and to the lower rear quarter panels in the same holes mud flaps would use.


I will try to snap some pictures of mine later today, although Im not sure how much is actually visible for a picture after its installed.

[Domrizze21]

Awesome, okay pictures would be incredible if you find the time to share some. Glad it worked out,

[Manny G.]

So I tried to take some pictures, but the gap i have to see the bracket that holds the valance is barely an 1" wide, so the pictures were not coming out great. Best i got is 1 shot of the bolt that holds the bracket to the metal body hooks on one side... it really doesnt offer any help, sorry.

[bpb99]

Update:

I did end up purchasing Silokin Automotive front mounts, again thanks to davew91 for the heads up!.

They arrived quickly as I was promised, and they installed perfectly. Could not say enough good things. Highly recommended for anyone who needs bumper brackets, hit up John at Silokin!

Manny G I appreciate you trying to help! Out of curiosity where is your kit from, or was it an original? Were the brackets original to the kit or were the fabricated by a previous owner? Would be really curious to see what the centre section is mounted to, but its not the end of the world either. I know how hard it would be to take pictures of any of this stuff while it's fully mounted up.

I still haven't found too much time to work on the mounting the zender rear valence, but have made some slight 'progress'.
Mine is a fake/copy off of eBay (seller also has a website called classic euro parts), it came with no mounting hardware and no instructions. I emailed and asked for instructions and they were quite vague, no more help than I had already figured out by eye.

The side pieces mounted on o.k, I haven't put the euro bumper back on since fitting them to know if the mounting hardware will be hidden, but I am really hoping so. I installed it as directed, but instead of self tappers I used nut and bolts through the top recessed sections (the part that will be hidden by the bumper). The only upsetting part is that it seems to fit the slightest bit 'better' if i push on the side pieces near the lower section snugging it up to the body, indicating a second fastener located at the bottom would be ideal. I see know way of achieving that without it being visible, so I just left that issue for now. I am hoping that play will go away with the centre piece in place and bolted down, blocking the side pieces from that sort of movement.

The centre piece is a whole other question. Since it came with no mounting hardware, I determined it obviously had to be mounted off of the rear of the car about 2-3 inches (depending on what part you measure from), I fabricated some simple oversized 90 degree brackets that I could drill and re-drill until I found the desired distance from the car. That part went relatively well, aside from being a little bit time consuming. Then it became a matter of slotting the ends of the centre piece to fit into the two side pieces, which became the biggest feat of the whole job. Comparing the pieces its obvious the grooves that are designed to mesh together are moulded so poorly its impossible to mount them flush with one another. Out came the dremel and I attempted my best to shave the edges off the centre piece until it started fitting better together. Considering how bad the grooves were moulded, it wasn't even possible to trim to make them fit together, so i shaved them down so it would be more like two flat surfaces mating together. So essentially either end of the centre section were too long and moulded too thick as well.

Later that evening my sisters boyfriend was over and we were talking about the car. He mentioned to be that the centre piece looked slightly off centre, I marked with tape and realized he was correct and I was quite off indeed. In the madness of getting the depth correct, I hadn't bothered worrying about how the placement was in terms of being centred. Turned out to be an incredibly frustrating and embarrassing mistake.

The next day I shifted the centre piece over so it was perfectly even and spaced properly left to right, at that point I realized I had shaved too much off of one side of the valence, while the other side still needed more trimming. I will also have to re-drill my brackets to accommodate the shift in the bumper. So I left it there, defeated.

I have decided that I will continue trimming the other side until it fits flush/snuggly together, then will have to figure out the extent of my own damage. I may have to order another kit, but will likely try to repair this piece first if necessary.

Car is not coming out this summer, so I have procrastinated working on it quite a bit. Will need to finish the valence install before the fall/winter comes, so I will post another update when its all done.