Tom F&L GoR
Enthusiast
There are two good posts about removing the front fascia, but stupid me still didn't get it until this time. (I'm replacing headlights.) These are the telling pictures that explain that the urethane fascia is push-pinned to the fiberglass bumper, the fiberglass bumper is bolted to a steel plate, and the steel plate is bolted to the end of the frame rail. You only need to remove the 4 (four, only four) bolts (besides all the little ones underneath and in the wheel well) holding the plate onto the end of the frame rail and the assembly comes off.
Two (one on each side) of the four are visible through the grill. You only need to undo the outer ones. The inner ones you can see through the grill only attach the fiberglass to the steel plate. The upper bolts you need to undo (one on each side) are behind the fiberglass bumper. You need to remove the air duct over the radiator to get to them. What fools you is that the nuts you can see under the headlight do not need to be removed.
Here's the right side. The nuts labeled "B" are visible, but do not need to be removed. The extra hole next to them isn't used. The upper bolt labeled "A" is behind the bumper and is reached from the center of the car (reaching in from where the air duct was.)
Here's the left side and how I had mistakenly begun to take it off. The plate is still on the end of the frame rail. I removed the "B" nuts (didn't need to) and only the bottom of the "A" bolts. You can do it this way and while it maintains your fascia alignment, it is truly a PITA.
In a previous post about removing the fascia there was a comment about removing a second part of the air duct. To do so requires removal of two push pins, as shown here. Removing this helps reach the upper, hidden, bolt attaching the plate to the frame rail.
Once you know all this and practice once, the fascia can indeed come off in 20 minutes. But doing it this way means you have to position the assembly relative to the headlights and hood again.
I thought it would be quick to replace the headlights; took me most of a day. Could probably do it in 3 hours next time.
Two (one on each side) of the four are visible through the grill. You only need to undo the outer ones. The inner ones you can see through the grill only attach the fiberglass to the steel plate. The upper bolts you need to undo (one on each side) are behind the fiberglass bumper. You need to remove the air duct over the radiator to get to them. What fools you is that the nuts you can see under the headlight do not need to be removed.
Here's the right side. The nuts labeled "B" are visible, but do not need to be removed. The extra hole next to them isn't used. The upper bolt labeled "A" is behind the bumper and is reached from the center of the car (reaching in from where the air duct was.)
Here's the left side and how I had mistakenly begun to take it off. The plate is still on the end of the frame rail. I removed the "B" nuts (didn't need to) and only the bottom of the "A" bolts. You can do it this way and while it maintains your fascia alignment, it is truly a PITA.
In a previous post about removing the fascia there was a comment about removing a second part of the air duct. To do so requires removal of two push pins, as shown here. Removing this helps reach the upper, hidden, bolt attaching the plate to the frame rail.
Once you know all this and practice once, the fascia can indeed come off in 20 minutes. But doing it this way means you have to position the assembly relative to the headlights and hood again.
I thought it would be quick to replace the headlights; took me most of a day. Could probably do it in 3 hours next time.
