On 3/27/2017 3:29 PM, DerbyDad03 wrote:
My daughter lives about 2.5 hours from me and drives a Honda Civic. The front bumper
cover is really low and she hooked it on a curb when backing out, pulling the driver's side off
from where it clips under the headlight. A friend used a zip tie to hold it up so it wouldn't drag.

She took it to a body shop and they wanted over $600 to replace the bumber cover. They
said it was "cracked". She told them that she wasn't going to use insurance, but it didn't
change the price. I told her to wait until she was home so I could take a look at it. I know
that I can get a bumper cover on-line and install it myself for a lot cheaper, even if I to get
it painted (basic black).

So she comes home this weekend and I found the "crack" that they were referring to.
There is a single screw that holds the cover to the underside of the fender. The round "hole"
in the bumper cover was now a "U" instead of a full circle meaning that the screw would
be more of a pressure fit hold since it wouldn't be encircled by a complete hole. That's it.
There was no other damage other than a bunch of missing push fasteners that held
the splash guard to the bumper cover under the radiator.

I fixed the screw hole issue by drilling 1 hidden hole and using a (black) zip tie to secure
the bumper cover just as an extra precaution in case the screw loosened up. I used a
half dozen (black) zip ties in place of the push fasteners to reattach the splash guard.

A half hour of labor and pennies worth of parts that can't even be seen instead of $600+
to have the bumper cover replaced. What a rip-off!

Painted black or black colored?
Color sealed bumpers can be buffed out but painted ones need to be
painted and if that were the case $600 is high but not outrageous.
I've had encounters with both kinds. Color seal black, which I scuffed
backing into garage, I had buffed out but paint splattered ones on
wife's car had to be painted. Insurance paid all as it was a road
hazard (sloppy line painting not dried).