Advice on fixing fascia

[dn010]

So this happened about 15 years ago. I want to refinish my rear fascia and take care of this so it’s not a damn eyesore. The rear fascia is one of the main reasons I don’t take the car to shows. I can do metalwork or fiberglass all day, I’m not really a plastics guy but I can definitely get it done with some guidance. Any advice? Assbassidor?

[Michael]

3m makes some AMAZING plastic bumper repair adhesive. If done right the repair is guaranteed not to break. Once the repair is done, a light skim with some good filler(the filler I like the best is Evercoat polyester glaze and it's available in flexible) and paint and you are done.

The bumper repair I use is just a 3m flexible plastic universal adhesive but it is available for all types of plastic all with different set times. Maybe someone who knows the type of plastic our fascias are made of can chime in (tpo, tpc,..etc?). In your case the semi rigid universal would probably work. Flexible is better for my repairs since most of my cars are new with thin bumper covers, but the DeLorean fascias (especially in that area) do not need to bend much at all.

[painterdave72]

the DeLorean bumpers are urethane like most vettes and such back in the 80s.. you can heat it and melt it back together a little bit using a heat gun and a flat metal scraper or putty knife... then use the adhesive to glue it and like micheal said use a light skim coat of bondo .. working plastics takes a bit of getting used to to sand and make look nice.. Dave

[David T]

What they said. I will add go to a local auto body supply shop. One that supplies the local body shops. They can recommend the best way to repair it and sell you what you need. The problem is you must buy a minimum quantity, some stuff only comes in gallons or large tubes and you will only use a small amount. The stuff doesn't have long shelf life so you will be throwing away a lot more than you will use. 3M makes great products but not all places sell it (it's expensive and most body shops use the cheapest stuff they can get). The repair will mostly be underneath, the cosmetic repair is going to be where you see. To do a good job you will have to paint the whole fascia and if you do the rear you should do the front too.

[Rich_NYS]

I followed Michael's good advice and used 3M stuff....

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[Ethan Rode]

I had to repair a few cracks and major split in my rear fascia, and also had excellent results using 3M's Semi-Rigid Plastic Repair (#34240). It's best to use a reinforcing mesh behind your repair, like 3M 04904. No need to use any sort of specialty surface primers, just clean well and wipe down with a wax and grease remover before applying your adhesive. I used these products on an early Volvo 240 and a late 80's Saab 900 over five years ago, and the repairs are still holding up well.

It's important to note:

"Polyurethane is a thermoset plastic. In the molding process, two chemicals are mixed and injected into the mold. It forms a solid through a chemical reaction. The molecules form crosslinks throughout the solid, like vulcanized rubber. Because of this, thermoset polyurethane is not meltable." according to Polyvance, a leading suppler of plastic bumper repair products.

So, while you will need heat to help manipulate the "memory" of the plastic, be aware that there is no super-malliable state before the plastic burns.

It may also be helpful to think of the adhesive as more like hot glue, than a weld. There is no actual fusion of materials.

Spend the time to bring the bumper as close to original shape as possible, then make sure that the adhesive has plenty of good surface area to grab on to. I second Evercoat Flex Poly Glaze. It's an excellent filler that doesn't seem to harden up over time, like many "flexible" products do.

Polyvance have an excellent video on PUR bumper repair that shows a "hot" repair method, that a shop might use. Prep for the 3M Glue is similar.
HERE

[Michael]

The only time I use heat is to reshape deformed plastic to get it at least close to the original shape. I try to get it to where I can use the least amount of filler as possible. Heating it up to the melting point to glue it is not what I would do as you risk seriously damaging the fascia, and the joint will not be very strong plus it limits the adhesive from entering the joint to create a bond. The 3M adhesive is applied to the rear. I like to use latex gloves and push it into the joint cracks but the factory recommends you grind a 45 degree angle at the mating surface(probably to enlarge the glue surface) but in your case I think just roughen the back with some 120 and clean. The reinforcement mesh is also good advice(go to Lowes and get drywall repair mesh, it's the same stuff and a lot cheaper). You can go to their website and view the proper repair procedures. If you have body experience this should be a cakewalk.

Here is one of my more "ambitious" repairs:
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[dn010]

Michael, guys - awesome and thank you for your advice! I'm waiting for the 3m semi-rigid to come in and then I'll give the repair a shot. Next question is - what are people using to paint the black portion of the fascias?

[Bitsyncmaster]

You can use a soldering iron to test if the plastic you need to repair will melt and bond.

[painterdave72]

is what I used on my black sections and other bumpers that I do that are black.. works just like trim black but has flex additive to it...