Fitting St Rear Bumper

[Albcreative]

Hi Everyone, think the forum is fantastic and you guys certainly know your stuff, found so much info that has helped me so much, its been a god send.

I am a newbie on here but was hoping that you guys may be able to give me some advice. I bought a new focus 2.0 titanium tdci and loved the inside and spec, (previously owned a mk1 and then a mk 1.5.) I don't want to offend anyone but the outside of the mk2 in my opinion was a bit of a disappointment did not like all the black plastic lower bumpers- so started off colour coding. Then coming across this place I started to get the urge to take things a little further so along came a set of ST alloys, then decided to get the Side skirts , and then the front bumper and now just collected a complete rear bumper. Which brings me to my question. Sorry I do tend to babble a bit.

On the current bumper I have the reverse sensors but on the St bumper there is no holes I have seen the guides on here and also noticed the guides on the inside for drilling but was wondering will the existing sensors come out of the original bumper and be able to use them on the ST one? I did have the panel off for spraying but did not really pay much attention to them. Or will I need to buy any brackets etc.

With the weather being so bad I don't really want to take the panel off until I have finished spraying the ST bumper and ready to fit the new bumper.

Thanks for any advice you can give me. :)

[salsheikh]

Hi Alb

the sensors will come off your existing bumper and you will need to drill holes to fit them on the ST bumper. I think the bumper already has markings as to where to fit them. check the guide out to be on the safe side.

[Dee_82]

on the inside It has the markings, at least on the 2.5 any way, in order to stop making a mess when drilling I found the best way to drill it was to locate the centre of the hole , based on the circle behind the bumper then using a screw driver push out a small bump so you can feel / see the centre of the marker from the outside, then punch in to that bump to form a dent, then drill from outside in, the dent will keep It from slipping and outside in will stop any visible mess on the edges.

[Albcreative]

Hi guys,

thamnks for your replies and yes you are correct there are marks on the inside for drilling - I took one of the sensors out to measure for drilling and realised I had a problem, the sensors on the mk2 bumper pre facelift are in the seperate bumpr strip and on the inside it has moulded fixing for the sensor which is pushed in from the inside and locks into place. On the ST bumper there is no fitting like that and I dont know how it will fix and hold in place also I noticed that the sensor does not have a lip on the outside.

I have attached a few pics to show what I mean. I have looked at the aftermarket options andn they dont look bad but would not be able to use my existing wires and module etc. Would prefer to use the existing OEM sensors but not sure how to

Any ideas would be greatly appreciated as I have nearly finished painting the bumper and was hoping to get it fitted next week but cant risk it as I need the reverse sensors working as I have a very tight driveway and have to swing in and around the wifes car for parking and only have a couple of inches clearance either side.

Many Thanks

[salsheikh]

Could you not fit the sensors higher or lower than its original location?

I think just above the diffuser would be best. Just for any clearance issues by trial fitting the bumper first

[Albcreative]

Thanks but clearance is not the problem there seems to plenty of space to put them in the marked places, the issue is if I drill the bumper holes to the same size as the sensor how will they secure in place no lip on the front of the sensor to fix it to the bumper wont they just fall through, thought about using araldite and sticking them but if a sensor packs up I would be unable to replace it.

Not sure what the best option is?

[salsheikh]

Oh i see your issue noe. Well you can canle tie the sensors to cable tie holders which sit in place using sticky pads. Let me find a link for you.

[salsheikh]

Something like this link

http://pages.ebay.com/link/?nav=item.view&id=321531857610&alt=web

[salsheikh]

Or create your own holder.

You will need some pvc tube for the sensors to fit in. Drill 2 big holes big enough so that a cable tie can fit though it.

Mount tube to bumper so its permanent and put the sensor in place and feed the cable ties though it so that it holds the sensor securely.

I can see it in my head but its difficult to describe.

[Albcreative]

Hi,

You are a legend! that's a great idea, I think that would work well, I think I know what you mean, thinking about it I bet I could cut the existing ones out of the old bumper strip and fix them onto the inside of the ST bumper, I will have to have a mess around at the weekend. will let you know how it goes.

Many thanks for your help :)

[salsheikh]

If the old bumper is gonna be scrap then cut the holder AND surrounding area out so that you can affix it to your bumper from the inside

[Albcreative]

yes I was not planning on using it again, the front bumper is sitting in the shed waiting to go the dump so will cut the old holders off as you said, should be just the job

thanks again for your help

[Stoney871]

You should be able to get proper sensor mounts that push in from the outside which grip the sensors when fitted from the inside.