Just went out this morning and noticed four very clear screw head marks on the silver part of my rear bumper! (Took a picture but have not found a public web site to post them on yet. ) Last night, I was parked and the person behind me parked very close... every other car I have ever owned I could VERY slowly back up and gently nudge the car behind to exit a site parallel parking spot... NOT with the E.

When I bought my E the dealer tech had put a nice footprint on the top of the same silver painted plastic apparently when they installed the air diverter. The dealer gave me the "rear bumper trim" to cover it up.

Has anyone found a silver piece of exterior rubber that would fit? I'm going to look for one, maybe from a different car/mfg's side door or bumper trim.

Otherwise love my E, but all the plastic inside and out seems to be delicate for an "activity" vehicle.

PM me and I will give you an emial address to send the pictures to.

I had the same thing happen to me, but it was my fault. My daughter called me at 2:26 to pick her up from her job. When I got home I backed up - right into my other car. It was a very low MPH, but now there are 3 dimples and the impression of my other cars license plate bracket. I will probably buy the bumper cover and replace it, but it really should be a little tougher.

Anyways, I told my wife I need a backup sensor now and she went for it! So that's my next project...

hmm... weird... I've been erar ended 3 times, all very low mph... once by an old guy at a drive through who forgot to step on the brake, once from a guy at a red light who looked down to answer his cell phone, and one in a parking lot from someone who was backing out...

... but the rear bumper has come out unscathed in each instance!

I guess if the cars that hit you or objects you back into don't have anything sharp (i.e. license plate screws) maybe the materials honda used flex... I guess one bad trait means another possible good one.

I'm wondering if the Xpel 3M material used for the headlight covers I just purchased (yet to install) would cover the entire silver bumper cover and proof it against stepping or the afore mentioned back up damage. I'll post what Xpel thinks about bonding to that type of cover plastic.

If anyone finds a cover for the back of the bumper, let me know. I backed into a newspaper box and it left a scratch. :oops:

sspiller - that's not a bad idea, but it might cost more than the bumper cover itself. It might be worth it, though if it was pretty thick. It could be thicker than a hood covering because you are not really concerned with letting the color of the paint be visible.

It would also have to have a satin finish, too. A shiny bumper cover would look strange. :shock:

I just ordered the Xpel clear "bra" kit ($109) and the headlight kit ($34), I also ordered a 12"x12" sheet of the thicker 12mm headlight material to cut out custom fog light circles. I think the 12"x12" sheet was $15 or less. I'll try some of the extra material on the silver bumper cover after I talk with Xpel on bonding to non glass like surfaces.

It is shiny vs. matt finish, could look reflective but I have a rear bumper trim piece (black plastic foot guard) that I have yet to put on so that would be on the top portion.

Seems like all the plastic on the E was made one formula too soft, wonder if the 04's will correct this. I did hear that Honda just released a "Plastic Panel Spray" to remove scratches on E panels, wondering if that is a permanent solution or just like the 3M product people put on every few weeks?

just read on another E forum a guy that put a standard piece of black rubber moulding on his bumper and use the honda rear bumer trip (plastic step like on the side steps) to overhang the top edge of the moulding... asked him for a picture... wondering how you would finish the ends of the moulding...

my thought was to find a piece of silver side door moulding off another vehicle that is approx. the same width as the E bumper... but i was not sure how that would look with the rear bumper trim i have not installed yet...

i do like the clean look of the silver cover though, hence the idea on the 3M material... decisions decisions decisions!

Would the bumper cover fit sideways, that is, be mounted facing rearward? I always thought it was non-functional, in that anytime you are loading heavy stuff, your tailgate would be down protecting the top anyway. However if it fit on the back, it would be functional. Might look like crap, though. Can anybody Photoshop a picture?

Interesting idea, but suspect it would look like hell! I actually can see a use for it, everytime I wash my E I have to step on the bumper to get to the center of the moon roof... I guess I could open the tailgate and step on it too...

Interesting, I have been looking at most new cars and they all seem to be bare plastic bumpers or with a color keyed piece of moulding. Maybe one of those things you just go with and resign to the fact that cars will get dings, dents, chips, etc...

Yes the back bumper does scratch easily which is negative but if you look at it differently. If you had an accident, it won't cost you an arm and a leg to replace the bumper. Their is a give and take on this issue :D

I rather have gouges and scratches than pay 3 times more for a metal/fiber glass bumper :shock:

Good point, anybody priced out the silver bumper insert plastic, if a fender is only $40 maybe this is only $20 in which case, no bitch... replace it!

... why did I spend $108 on the bumper trim!

FYI - you can replace your entire rear bumber for $174.07 and the rear 'garnish' is only $28.89. So keep this in mind relative to cost of any guards or other protection.

[quote:8de703e13b="buckaroo99"]FYI - you can replace your entire rear bumber for $174.07 and the rear 'garnish' is only $28.89. So keep this in mind relative to cost of any guards or other protection.[/quote:8de703e13b]

29 bucks, huh? I might have to order a few and put them on like those Motocross guys do with face shields.

$29, I'm in... going to order one ASAP, did you get the PN by any chance, by "garnish" I assume you are talking the silver insert, right?

I saw a new CRV with a rear steel guard on it. If you are worried about the rear bumper then maybe you should check that out. If you want the cheap way out I have seen people put a rubber door guard strip across the back bumper. It looks cheesy but it serves its purpose.

I backed into a dumpster and cut the silver portion of the rear bumper, which was my second self-inflicted scratch. I thought it would become an insurance company issue until I learned that the whole piece was only $42 to replace! So go ahead, scratch-away! :D

At least honda used there heads on this one.

These bumper guards are the ticket I think to protect your bumper. Only thing is they just make them for the CRV. I wrote them and asked about making one for the Element. More of us should do the same perhaps.
Check out www.waag.com

LittleDogBox
Arlington, Va.

Littledogbox, I just e-mailed Waag about their plans for the E.

I called WAAG today, www.waag.com at their toll free number. They definitely have plans to make a rear bumper guard and also something called the frontrunner to protect the front bumper as well. This is not a brush guard like you see on most SUV's though they do carry those as well. I like the frontrunner better. I will order both the front and back when it becomes available. You can even have a choice of colors or have it custom painted ! :)
Check out some of the photos in their gallery and imagine what it would look like on the Element.

LittleDogBox
Arlington, Va

[quote:8105e78664="Hank"]I backed into a dumpster and cut the silver portion of the rear bumper, which was my second self-inflicted scratch. I thought it would become an insurance company issue until I learned that the whole piece was only $42 to replace! So go ahead, scratch-away! :D[/quote:8105e78664]
That's awesome (pricewise). I have four odd scratches on mine .. not sure where they came from, but I"m pretty sure there was no dumpster involved ! :)

That is funny how cheap it is, my dealer put a nice rotating foot scratch on the top (apparently by the tech installing the air deflector) and instead gave me the rear bumper trim ($64) to cover it. Lucky I have not installed the bumper trim yet, so I'm off to the honda dealer to order a new silver insert... i still would like to have it parallel park proof especially after i put the bumper step on...

I had the same thing happen to me at work in the parking garage. I hate these people who use the bump and feel method of parking.
The same person at work did it to my car TWICE ! I left a note on their car about it but whats done is done. I don't park on that level anymore. Parallel parking is a killer on any bumper unless its a JEEP. The best thing to have I found is a removable hitch. This has saved one of my vehicles over and over again. No one will mess with you. Nothing else works better. You would have to find some heavy duty type stripping and if you don't put it in exactly the right place depending on the height of the vehicle that is going to gouge your bumper it won't do much good anyway.

LittleDogBox
Arlington, Va.


Just went out this morning and noticed four very clear screw head marks on the silver part of my rear bumper! (Took a picture but have not found a public web site to post them on yet. ) Last night, I was parked and the person behind me parked very close... every other car I have ever owned I could VERY slowly back up and gently nudge the car behind to exit a site parallel parking spot... NOT with the E.

When I bought my E the dealer tech had put a nice footprint on the top of the same silver painted plastic apparently when they installed the air diverter. The dealer gave me the "rear bumper trim" to cover it up.

Has anyone found a silver piece of exterior rubber that would fit? I'm going to look for one, maybe from a different car/mfg's side door or bumper trim.

Otherwise love my E, but all the plastic inside and out seems to be delicate for an "activity" vehicle.