Has anyone put a stiffener inside the chrome bumper?

[pinetreeporsche]

Even folks who complain most about how flimsy the fiberglass downgrade bumpers in the late Vanagon years will not have much praise for the original chromed steel ones still a good deal too flimsy I got a bad bend in my r one just backing into a low (invisible-ish) bollard. The dent/distortion luckily came out pretty well with a few minutes under a hydraulic press (after removal from the van, of course). SO I wondered about getting something in behind to beef it up a bit. A shaped piece of hardwood would be nice, but shaping it, even if I make a packing-foam full-scale mock-up, is a job for major power tools. So I wondered if 3/8 or 1/2 in hardwood finish strips, maybe 3-plus inches wide, which could bend, could be doubled or tripled up inside there to vastly increase the rigidity. Thin enough to bend, esp if pre-loaded when wet to approximate the curve. Use the existing holes the rubber strips go through, and maybe a couple more, to mount them inside? Has anyone done some clean-looking (virtually invisible) reinforcing, after deciding the really heavyweight ones made by several suppliers are out of scale with the ? Add a photo if the answer is 'yes'. -C

[0to60in6min]

wood will break easily....if you want a strong bumper but keeping the same look, you should consider Burley bumper. Your chrome bumper will fit over it nicely.

https://burleymotorsports.net/product/high-clearance-trailer-hitch-for-metal-bumpers/

[pinetreeporsche]

Thanks, 0 to 60, but I already have a hitch, which I use only very seldom. AND I could put the almost $500 (...and shipping?!) into a Propex or similar, which would bring more reward-- at least unless or until I get clobbered bad from behind. If they made just a hollow rectangular pipe, maybe one-by-four, with a matching curve to the stock bumper, I'd buy. Any entrepreneurs out there want to make and sell that?

[hdenter]

My bumper gets stiffer on it's own when a hot syncro goes by...
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'79 triple white convertible bug
'84 sunroof vanagon
'85 weekender

[0to60in6min]

you could take the bumper off and weld a steel plate or steel tube flush between the bumper brackets and both side - any welder can make it for you, even a muffler shop...

[bobbyblack]

I am also interested in stronger bumper! I would like to know one other thing about Vanagon bumpers tho:

What happened to the '5 MPH bump not destroying the car' part??? There used to be a sort of shock absorbed built into bumper mounts. Now, if you even so slightly bump anything, especially on a bolt-up point, your bumper sub-frame is hosed!
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'87 Westy 'Flossie','86 Westy 'R1','86 tintop GL - Subi2.2 'J2','83.5 stock tintop L 'ZoomBus','74 Karmann Ghia, '63 Notch

[Finagon]

[Zeitgeist 13]

I'm quite positive that the hit from the recent rear-ending and subsequent smack into the vehicle in front of our EV would've resulting in a total loss had it happened in a Vanagon. The detachable crumple bumpers and 5mph styrofoam filler material did their job and protected major body damage from occurring. If either of the bumpers had been stiff steel beams, then all that impact would've been transferred to the frame members...and my wife
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Casey--

'89 Bluestar ALH w/12mm Waldo pump, PP764 and GT2052
'01 Weekender --> full camper
y u rune klassik?

[WestyBob]

Back to vanagons .... I've seen steel tubes welded inside the flimsy stock chrome bumpers as already mentioned but I think some bumper upgrades from one of our vendors is the next best thing. Especially to replace the later fiberglass bumpers unless you are trying to keep the stock look. I wouldn't bother with wood which has a very low impact threshold in auto collisions.

[Zeitgeist 13]

Uh...my point was increasing stiffness might not produce the desired effect unless there's some structured "give" engineered into the design.
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Casey--

'89 Bluestar ALH w/12mm Waldo pump, PP764 and GT2052
'01 Weekender --> full camper
y u rune klassik?