RE: Aluminum Bumpers

[ToMoyer@xxxxxxx]

I see there is some debate about which are better and which look better;
the aluminum bumpers or the body color coded "plastic" bumpers.  Here's my
2" worth having E30s with both.

On December 16th of last year, my wife and oldest daughter were in a 4 car
chain reaction accident.  They were car number 2 and hit in the rear at a
speed of approximately 40 mph by a Chevy Lumina mini van.  My wife's car
was a Pristine '84 318i, therefore it had the aluminum bumpers, the black
trim inserts on the face and the black filler pieces between the car body
and the bumper.  It had the crash socks front and rear to which the bumper
was mounted.  To make a long story sort, both the wife and daughter were
injured, and the car was totaled because the van hit the bumper and jumped
up over it with out collapsing the shocks and pushed in the lower pan, the
tail light panel, took out both tail lights, pushed and bent the trunk lid,
put deep grooves on the top surface of the bumper and pushed the left rear
fender in just about 6 inches which also caused the driver's door not to
open or close correctly.  Otherwise the aluminum bumpers were nice, but a
pain in the backside to keep looking nice.

Now on my '91 318is, with the "plastic" body colored bumpers, the other day
I was at a dealer putting a deposit on a replacement car for my wife.  The
car was parked on the level, so the hand brake was on lightly and the
manual trans. was in neutral.  As I watched from the office window, some
bimbo who had parked behind me, thought that they were going to make it
around my car without backing up.   They hit my left rear and pushed the
car about a foot.  Granted, this collision was at less than 5 mph and what
also helped was the fact that my car was in neutral and the brake was set
lightly, but the "plastic" bumper of the Mercury Sable she was driving
really scuffed the black plastic trim of my bumper (which her insurance
company can pay to replace) and scuffed the plastic bumper on her's as
well.  Possibly if the car had been in gear and the parking brake set hard,
there would have been more damage because the shocks would have started to
move and it may have damaged the bumper and/or the fenders.

Bottom line, I think both types look nice and depending on the
circumstances, they will do what they were intended to do up to a point.
After that point, you will sustain body damage.  And by the way, both the
wife and daughter are fine, their injuries were mostly bruises caused by
the shoulder belts and seat belts.

tom
BMWCCA Member
'84 318i
'85 318i
'89 325ix
'91 318is

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