Travis465

We're missing a part that goes just below the headlights, and we don't know what the name of the part is. You can see in the picture below where there is an obvious gap where something should be. What is the name of it? I tried looking up a diagram but no luck. Also, somebody said that it's the reason why the headlights won't point straight ahead but instead droop straight in the road, but I don't really see how that would affect it?









Are there any reproduction chrome bumpers for 73 Delta 88s? Does anybody have any experience getting their bumpers rechromed? What did it cost? I found some reproduction bumpers for Cutlasses but I've had no luck here. Our front bumper isn't so bad, but the back bumper is decorated with little rust volcanoes, as you can see below. I understand that it's probably not possible to get them out, but is it at least possible to get the rust that surrounds them off so that it looks more presentable in the mean time? I tried the old foil method and ended up feeling stupid after rubbing the bumper and seeing no change to those spots in 10 minutes. At least it got the surface rust off of a few spots. Ignore the ancient K95 sticker. I have no idea what my dad was thinking however many years ago he put that on LOL. He doesn't even listen to that station.










Sorry if these questions are a little newbish. I am a total newb to any cars pre-1998. Thanks!

nsnarsk65cutlass

The part you are looking for is called the bumper filler,rh side front .The head lights will not project the beam correctly with it mounted offset. The rh low beam is not not mounted right.Just look at it.Oh i may have that filler i'll have to check i know i have the lh one.

MDchanic

There is no place to get that filler, or the bumpers, except from another car or somebody's attic.

That filler has nothing to do with headlight aim. People say the strangest things.

Your headlights are aimed badly. If they will not aim correctly, they nylon aiming nuts may be stripped. Replacements can be gotten at most auto parts stores, but they may not have the exact nylon nuts that you need, so you may have to play with it a bit.
You can easily look at it by removing the headlight bezels, and can also unscrew the entire headlight assembly from the header panel..

- Eric

nsnarsk65cutlass

Is this what you are looking for?PM me with your info.

jaunty75

Figure 14-30 in the '73 Chassis Service manual officially calls this piece "outer filler." There's also a piece in the center position between the grills called the....ready for it...."center filler."

Obviously, it's the same color as the car, so if you find a replacement piece that isn't the same red as your car, you will have to paint it. The piece that Mr. 65Cutlass shows looks like the correct piece, and it appears to be the right color.

As others have noted, this piece has nothing to do with the aiming of the headlights.

Also, as has been noted, nothing in the way of body, trim, bumpers, etc. is reproduced for the big Oldsmobiles. Any replacements have to come from donor cars.

Nowadays, bumper rechroming is pricey. I would expect at least $500 per bumper.

I don't know if the headlight bezels can be rechromed. The ones on my '73 wagon are pitted, but just about a month ago, I found on ebay the one for the right side for $25 plus shipping. It had no pitting, so I grabbed it, and it looks great on the car. Now I just need the left side. The bezels on the two sides are not interchangeable. Rather, they're mirror images of each other.

Olds442redberet

I love a good scavenger hunt.

I just picked up the filler pieces for my 75 Cutlass at the local pick and pull. The parts are still out there, but you are going to have to hunt, ask around, and keep up with the parts being sold on forums like this one.

Good luck

Travis465

Hey nsnarsk, that looks like the right part. Do you have it for the other side as well? I'm actually missing it there too. >.< You can expect a PM within the next couple weeks when the money situation is a little better. How much are you asking for it?

nsnarsk65cutlass

Yes i have the lh filler too,as a matter of fact the center one too.Hows 50.00 plus shipping for all 3 pcs.

jaunty75

Cool! Travis465, I hope you realize how lucky you are to not only score these pieces so quickly, but to get all three of them, in apparently the right color, and in such good condition!

nsnarsk65cutlass

They will need to be painted the car color was the dark maroon color almost purplish i guess now faded so it looks like red its not.

Travis465

So I told my dad that I found the fillers online yesterday and then he tells me that he just ordered them from somewhere. XD I'll let you know if it falls through but it looks like it's already taken care of. Say, you wouldn't happen to have the back passenger ashtrays would you? It's pretty trivial but one of ours crumbled the other day from rusting all the way through, so if you have one that hasn't rusted all the way through I'll definitely take that.

nsnarsk65cutlass

Both of the ashtrays i have are pretty rusted the one is missing the deal that you knock the ash off,both are rusted inside and out.

2blu442

I've got the bumpers, both front and rear. But I'm out in Oregon and from the rust specks I'm guessing your in the Mid-west or on the East Coast. The bumper with supports weighs about 100 pounds and would likely cost more to ship than the purchase price.

John

Travis465

Yep, east coast here. If it's in really good condition, I would still be interested if the price plus shipping is still less than a rechrome job. I'm sure shipping is an arm and a leg though. It looks like the best option is to just have it rechromed. Only really need the rear one btw.

jaunty75

This isn't really a "standard" consideration when buying anything. If you need the item, you need the item. I've purchased numerous $2 and $3 items on ebay that cost $4 or $5 to ship. But so what. It's no different with bigger-ticked items.

I bought a bumper once out of Minnesota and had it shipped to Ohio. $100 for the bumper and $125 for the shipping. So it was a $225 bumper. It was what I needed when I needed it. I wasn't going to turn it down because of some arbitrary definition of how much is too much for shipping.

Bumpers especially are becoming harder and harder to come by, anywhere, especially in decent condition and extra especially for the big cars, which are being crushed regularly. Just follow the this site for any length of time and look at the number of people who post saying they need a bumper for their '60s or '70s 88, Starfire, or 98.

If the bumper out of Oregon is in good enough condition that it doesn't need to be rechromed, I have to believe that it would be cheaper, maybe a lot cheaper, to buy it than to have what he has now rechromed, even if the shipping turns out to be twice the cost of the bumper.

rocketraider

Something to consider is that you have rub strip bumpers, and experience tells me that after 40 years the nuts and studs that hold them to the bumpers are going to strip out of the rubber when you try to take the bumpers apart to rechrome them. Then there's no good way to reattach them.

If you can find a good clean set of western bumpers you'll come out ahead, even if you have to pay shipping with the added weight of the reinforcing bar.

If you try to take the bumpers apart, juice those studs/nuts up good with PB Blaster and let them soak a while. Then use an impact wrench on them to set up some hammer action. Sometimes that will salvage the rub strips.

I might have some stuff left from my 73 88 ragtop but I am rarely on here now. I'm down toward South Boston so only a couple hours from you.