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What's needed for CTS-V bumper?

108K views 206 replies 60 participants last post by  Rahdrd 
#1 ·
I know there has been a lot of talk about what is & not needed to complete the CTS-V Bumper swap, so I’m making this write up of what it took me to get the swap complete for other members that want to do this.

In this swap, I changed both the front & rear bumper covers to the “V” bumper covers.

The parts that are needed for the Front “V” Bumper:

Front "V" Bumper cover
Front Upper Grill
Front Lower Grill
Fog Lights
Fog Light Bezels
Left Brake Duct (1 piece)
Right Brake Duct (2 pieces)
Left & Right Front Half Inner Splash Shields
Lower Bumper Trim
Front "V" Bumper absorber

Once you have all of the parts needed & ready to get them installed, you should start by removing the old bumper. In order to do this, you need to do the following:

1) Remove the 6 plastic twist screws that hold down the plastic/seal that runs over the top of the radiator.
2) Remove the 2 plastic retainer clips that are at the far end of the bumper cover next to the headlights.
3) Remove the 2 10mm screws that hold the grill to the radiator core support.
4) There are 2 plastic retainer clips on each inner fender/splash shield that need to be removed. These hold the bumper cover to the inner fender. Once you have them removed, there is 1 10mm screw behind the inner fender on each side that holds the top of the bumper cover to the bottom of the fender. There is no need to remove the wheels. I was able to get the clips & the bolts of by just turning the wheels to either side.
5) Next there will be plastic retainer clips that hold the bottom of the bumper cover the lower engine cover. I forgot how many.
6) Once you have all of the clips & bolts removed, pull each side of the bumper cover away from the fenders.
7) Grab the grill & pull the bumper cover away from the car keeping the bottom of the bumper cover in an angle to keep the fender arch of the cover away from the fenders. Once you have the bumper cover free, set it on the ground.
8) If you have headlight washers, locate the hose that connects to the jet. There is a white retainer clip that holds the hose in. Press the clip & pull towards the end of the cover.
9) If you have fog lights, unplug them at this point.

Here are some pics showing where & what needs to be removed:











Now that the Front Bumper is off, there are 2 tabs on the bumper reinforcement bar that need to be cutoff cause the fog light housing on the "V" bumper sits in this area.

In order to get to the top welds of the tabs, the Bumper absorber needs to be removed. There are 3 plastic retainers that hold the absorber to the reinforcement bar. Once these are removed, the absorber will come right off.

These are the tabs


Area in red is where they are welded


This is what it looks like when removed




I ground down the welds & painted the bare metal




Next you need to swap out the front half inner splash shields. These are held in with some plastic retainers. Once you have them removed, its just a matter of taking out the old splash shields & putting in the “V” splash shields. Then connect the brake ducts to the splash shields. Last you need to install the “V” absorber. Bring the “V” bumper cover over to the car & connect the fog lights & headlight washers. Now the “V” bumper cover can be installed onto the car. From this point, the installation is the exact reverse of the removal.
 
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#2 ·
Re: CTS-V bumpers on a 08 CTS How-to

Now for the rear “V” Bumper Cover

Unlike the front, the rear “V” bumper cover is a lot easier since it is a direct swap. Nothing needs to be removed or modified.

Parts that are need for the Rear “V” Bumper:

“V” Bumper Cover
Lower Diffuser
Lower Grill Inserts
Lower Trim Covers
The Reflectors can just be swapped from the old bumper to the “V” Bumper

FYI: The Rear “V” bumper cover that I bought came complete with everything…….trim, reflectors, absorber, parking sensors etc. That being said, I’m not 100% sure that the regular CTS bumper absorber will fit the “V” bumper cover since I just used the one that I got with the “V” bumper & never tested the fit of the regular CTS absorber.

Once you have all of the parts needed & ready to get them installed, you should start by removing the old bumper. In order to do this, you need to do the following:

1) If you have the rear parking assist, unplug the connector from under the car.
2) Remove the 2 plastic retainers in each inner splash shield.
3) Remove 1 7mm screw in each fender well behind the splash shield.
4) Remove the 3 plastic retainers on the bottom of the bumper cover under the car.
5) Open the trunk. Lift up the bottom part of the rubber trunk seal. Along the edge of the cover, you will see 5 clips that hold the cover. Use a flat head screw driver & press in the middle of the clip & slightly pull the cover away from the rear of the car. Do this foe each of the 5 clips. Once you have all 5 clips release, you can pull the rear cover off of the car.

Here are a few pics showing where & what needs to be removed:





Once you have the old bumper cover off, set it aside & remove any reflectors, parking sensors & wiring that might need to be placed on the new “V” bumper cover.

The only issue that I came across during the Rear swap was the rear side reflectors. When I was preparing the “V” bumper for paint & removing the side reflectors, the plastic tabs that hold them in cracked. Knowing this when I was removing my original CTS Bumper & now need to swap the reflectors, I used my heat gun to soften up the plastic tabs to prevent them from cracking. I also used this same method when installing them in the “V” bumper & it worked great.

At this point, the “V” bumper is now ready to be installed onto the car. The installation is the reverse of removal with the exception that you don’t need to release the clips near the trunk, just push the cover to lock the clips around the tabs on the cover.

Now…..step back and admire the new look of your CTS. I know I did. :smilewide:



 
#6 ·
Re: CTS-V bumpers on a 08 CTS How-to

What a great write-up! Thanks for sharing the very detailed instructions and taking all the photos.

What LED bulbs did you use for the DRLs? Was it a plug-and-play installation and are they as bright as the stock bulbs were? Did you replace the blinkers with LEDs, too (and what bulbs)?
 
#7 ·
Re: CTS-V bumpers on a 08 CTS How-to

What a great write-up! Thanks for sharing the very detailed instructions and taking all the photos.

What LED bulbs did you use for the DRLs? Was it a plug-and-play installation and are they as bright as the stock bulbs were? Did you replace the blinkers with LEDs, too (and what bulbs)?
The DRLs dont seem to be "as" bright, but I havent had any problems seeing them during the day.



Stock vs LED


They are made by a company called Plasma Glow (http://www.plasmaglow.com/5202-h13-9009-led-foglight-bulbs/) You can also get them at JC Whitney (http://www.jcwhitney.com/plasmaglow-5202-led-fog-light-bulbs/p2027079.jcwx?filterid=j1) They come with a 10 year warranty.
 
#9 ·
Re: CTS-V bumpers on a 08 CTS How-to

GREAT job and write-up!! I plan to do the V rockers and rear bumper after winter. Just curious...did you put the V headlights in aswell or did you paint your housings? Enjoy!!
I pulled the lights open, removed the reflector & color matched the outer part of the bezel (its a 2 piece bezel) & swapped out the OEM lens & replaced it with a E30 lens.
 
#10 ·
Re: CTS-V bumpers on a 08 CTS How-to

They turned out great....I couldn't take mine apart, just couldn't do it!! I've had bad experiences with taking headlights apart on previous vehicles but ideally I'd like to take the housings apart and paint them white diamond and smoke the orange lens...could I send mine to you? :thumbsup:
 
#12 ·
Re: CTS-V bumpers on a 08 CTS How-to

They turned out great....I couldn't take mine apart, just couldn't do it!! I've had bad experiences with taking headlights apart on previous vehicles but ideally I'd like to take the housings apart and paint them white diamond and smoke the orange lens...could I send mine to you? :thumbsup:
If you are serious & want to ship them to me to open, then send me a pm.
 
#18 ·
Re: CTS-V bumpers on a 08 CTS How-to

I got the rear bumper complete for $450 shipped.
The front bumper with trim, fog lights & bezels was $280 shipped
upper & lower grills were $410
Paint was $600 w/discount
New parts were about $120 w/discount

Total was about $1860

Might cost less if you can get better deals
 
#20 ·
Re: CTS-V bumpers on a 08 CTS How-to

Do you happen to have the GM part numbers for:

The front bumper support/absorber
Front left & right splash guards
and the left & right brake ducts??

I am passing by the dealer on thursday and would like to order them for my bumper.

Thanks!!
 
#22 ·
Re: CTS-V bumpers on a 08 CTS How-to

sfv, don't sweat it... I went to the local dealer's parts department yesterday and we were able to figure it out with the diagrams they had in the computer. I ordered everything except the front bumper absorber since it was a 250$ part and not something that seems critical to the install process imo. Thanks again.
 
#23 ·
Re: CTS-V bumpers on a 08 CTS How-to

sfv, don't sweat it... I went to the local dealer's parts department yesterday and we were able to figure it out with the diagrams they had in the computer. I ordered everything except the front bumper absorber since it was a 250$ part and not something that seems critical to the install process imo. Thanks again.

The front bumper absorber is the part that protects you (as much as anything can) in a head on collision. I have heard that the CTS absorber does not fit in the CTS-v bumper, so you are basically riding around with a hollow bumper. Definitely would recommend you get that ASAP. It's only $87 on gmpartsdirect.com


Do you happen to have the GM part numbers for:

The front bumper support/absorber
Front left & right splash guards
and the left & right brake ducts??

I am passing by the dealer on thursday and would like to order them for my bumper.

Thanks!!

As for part numbers, just order your stuff here. Its less than half of what the stealership will charge you.

www.gmpartsdirect.com
 
#26 ·
Re: CTS-V bumpers on a 08 CTS How-to

Ok guys thanks for the info.

So does anyone know why there were 2 diagrams for the CTS-V coupe bumper? One diagram had a one piece front bumper absorber which cost 250$
and the other had upper & lower absorbers they were roughly 150$ each. Do you know which ones I need? And I see what you're saying about gmpartsdirect but like everyone has pointed out, by the time you factor in shipping (to Canada), duty fees, etc. I think I'll just save myself the headache and buy from the dealer...
 
#28 ·
Re: CTS-V bumpers on a 08 CTS How-to

you will find two parts illustrations for both the coupe front bumper and the sedan/wagon also

the difference is RPO B3T (pedestrian protection) - i know this type of safety feature is big in europe now

i'm not sure exactly how it works or if any US cars are equipped with it

but

B3T does not have anything to do with the actual bumper cover

there are two different part numbers for the bumper cover due to CE4 (headlamp washers)
 
#30 ·
Re: CTS-V bumpers on a 08 CTS How-to

i just came from the dealer the guy was a lil slow at the parts section nd kept wanting a vin for the cts-v parts lol then said there wasn't a brake ducts so i don't if thats the write term for the parts then said the inner rear splash guards will be the same for the v and non v but the inner left and right front splash guards are different nd 63 bucks each and still just wondering if the 09 cts-v hood will fit the 2008 cts thanks a lot guys
 
#33 ·
The inner splash guard (the Blk liner) has 2 parts......the rest half & the front half. The front half needs to be replaced with the CTS-V splash guard. It's also a direct swap. The brake ducts also need to be replaced with the CTS-V part. The driver is 1 piece while the pass side is 2 pieces.

These parts are not needed to complete the swap, but do help tie everything in together......like it should be.
 
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