Can anyone shed any light on what would cause this drooping on the lower edge of our Panda's rear bumper? The bumper is an OEM replacement Fiat part put on a week ago and professionally resprayed by a reputable bodyshop. We will be taking it back for them to look at, too - but wondered if anyone had come across this before?

would be helpful if the car wasn't soaking wet.

silkblack said:

Can anyone shed any light on what would cause this drooping on the lower edge of our Panda's rear bumper? The bumper is an OEM replacement Fiat part put on a week ago and professionally resprayed by a reputable bodyshop. We will be taking it back for them to look at, too - but wondered if anyone had come across this before?

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Its been bent if its the small triangular swelling at the bottom? Can be fixed with a little heat from a heat gun carefully applied and massage the shape back.

Cheers Ffoxy - it is the traingular bulge - and the heat gun makes perfect sense! Thanks again!

It seems to me that the one who painted the rear bumper has used a stand to put the bumper on or hang it on during paint (this is quite normal). But one must be extra carefull putting it in the dryoven, baking the paint with normal, metal heat. Probibly this has been a point the bumper was mounted on, the weight of the bumper pulled the bulge in...

Thanks Arno - I am sure you are right - there is a similar matching bulge at the other side of the bumper in the same place i.e. along this bottom edge! As Ffoxy suggests, I will try to bend the bulges back slowly with heat when it is a bit warmer. I don't have a heat gun but swmbo has a v powerful hairdryer with a narrow nozzle attachment - I guess this will be ok? Any comments welcome!!

Be extremely carefull heating the bumper, it's best to heat the surface from the back, don't use the heater on the painted side ! Paint probibly will change color with the heat right at it a fraction to long, and you wil only know when it's to late. I would take a jack, a flat piece of wood on top(less conducting of heat) and raise the jack up until the bulge is under enough tension. Only then ! apply heat from the non painted side of the bumper and the bulge should even out automaticly when enough heat is supplied. In this way you can add just enough heat to smoothen it out because the bumper itself will tell you when it's hot enough, and you minimize the chance of overheating.