[jerry m.]

Today I installed the rear bumper protector. My wife likes it now because she doesn't have to worry about scratching the bumper with the kids stroller. It is made by Vmaxx which I found out about here on the forum. Ordered from autoxclusive.com for about $145 delivered. I thought it was a bit pricey but I figured it would cost more to keep repainting the bumper.

What do you think??
http://i82.photobucket.com/albums/j262/jetlt1/bumperafter.jpg

[ctryboy78]

I really like the way it looks. I saw them on the web last night and wondered how they looked in real life. Thanks for the picture. How bad is the installation? 3M Double sided tape? My wife has a white Journey and I know what you mean about strollers and such.

[jerry m.]

ctryboy78, on Jun 20 2009, 09:06 PM, said:

I really like the way it looks. I saw them on the web last night and wondered how they looked in real life. Thanks for the picture. How bad is the installation? 3M Double sided tape? My wife has a white Journey and I know what you mean about strollers and such.

Installation took about 10 minutes, mostly prep time. There is 3M tape on the pad but I bought some more and doubled up on it because it did not look thick enough to me.

You also have to remove 4 plastic push pin fasteners from the bumper itself right under the weather strip. Simply use a flat head screw driver or pair of pliers to pull back the center head of the push pin, then the rest of the push pin comes right out. Here is a pic with the plastic push pins removed

http://i82.photobucket.com/albums/j262/jetlt1/bumperbefore.jpg

The included directions are pretty clear. Line up the protector with the holes, I installed the push pins, then remove the backing on the 3m tape. Firmly press in place.

http://i82.photobucket.com/albums/j262/jetlt1/DSC03469.jpg

[Jcolmenar]

It looks great in a grey car. I installed it in a black car and you almost do not notice it.

I ordered the bumper guard and when it arrived it surprised me very favourably because it is made of a rigid plastic of very good quality.

I mounted it myself in only 5 minutes: You only need a plane screw driver to take out 4 plastic kind of screws, clean the surface (it is provided a 3M clean towel), take out a bit the adhesive paper on the back of the new bumper guard. Put the new bumper guard in place, fix again the plastic screws, and then take out all the adhesive paper from the back of the new bumper guard and press.

I put some pictures. No more scratches in the bumper!


http://www.freeimagehosting.net/uploads/7a9dd607ad.jpg

http://www.freeimagehosting.net/uploads/a9152f0a0c.jpg

http://www.freeimagehosting.net/uploads/6404e6e994.jpg


Cheers

[kmorse]

Thank you so much for posting this. I looked all day for the bumper protector before finding this site and your post. Thanks again.

[kchillh]

Jcolmenar, on Jun 22 2009, 07:24 PM, said:

It looks great in a grey car. I installed it in a black car and you almost do not notice it.

I ordered the bumper guard and when it arrived it surprised me very favourably because it is made of a rigid plastic of very good quality.

I mounted it myself in only 5 minutes: You only need a plane screw driver to take out 4 plastic kind of screws, clean the surface (it is provided a 3M clean towel), take out a bit the adhesive paper on the back of the new bumper guard. Put the new bumper guard in place, fix again the plastic screws, and then take out all the adhesive paper from the back of the new bumper guard and press.

I put some pictures. No more scratches in the bumper!


http://www.freeimagehosting.net/uploads/7a9dd607ad.jpg

http://www.freeimagehosting.net/uploads/a9152f0a0c.jpg

http://www.freeimagehosting.net/uploads/6404e6e994.jpg


Cheers

I noticed in the last pic that you have a cover for the little bit of trunk space behind the 3rd row seat...did this come with the car or did you buy it afterword...I wonder if they gave those after the first ones rolled off...when was your Journey made?

[Jcolmenar]

kchillh, on Jul 20 2009, 11:42 PM, said:

I noticed in the last pic that you have a cover for the little bit of trunk space behind the 3rd row seat...did this come with the car or did you buy it afterword...I wonder if they gave those after the first ones rolled off...when was your Journey made?

The cover came with the car. We bought it last february 09 in Madrid (Spain). It's the RT diesel of 140CV. I think it was made in Mexico by may 08.

Cheers. :D

[Black_Pearl]

WOW that looks really nice I am going to have to get one of these for mine. I just have a question does it fit snug to the vehicle as I live where it gets cold and I wonder if snow/ice would form under this?
Thanks in advance any replies to this

[brwengel]

I just received my protector two weeks ago from Sherwood Automotive. There is double-sided tape down both ends and one piece the entire length near the bottom edge. It certainly isn't water-proof so I suppose water could get under it and then freeze, but it is pretty firmly held in place.

One note is that I'm a bit disappointed regarding the material the protector is made from. I guess I expected it to be a bit more rubbery, instead it is made entirely from plastic and is pretty stiff. If you were to scuff this protector it would surely leave a mark, and while you have protected your bumper cover, you're left with a permenant mark on the bumper cover. For more than $130 I expected better quality, although the fit is great and the installation is a breeze, they could have used a better material choice. Just my two cents worth.

[Black_Pearl]

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Thanks for this info on this....I was out pondering this by the vehicle today. I was wondering if I could have that spray in bedliner stuff put in this area.. I know body shops do this and it would be fairly cheap. My vehicle is black so it wouldn't matter for resale on it. This would ensure no water gets under the rubber/hard plastic cover or anything else. It would be permanent in place.

[kjsieps]

Black_Pearl, on Sep 2 2009, 01:46 PM, said:

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Thanks for this info on this....I was out pondering this by the vehicle today. I was wondering if I could have that spray in bedliner stuff put in this area.. I know body shops do this and it would be fairly cheap. My vehicle is black so it wouldn't matter for resale on it. This would ensure no water gets under the rubber/hard plastic cover or anything else. It would be permanent in place.

You can buy the spray on stuff in a can at Walmart and do it yourself. Just tape off the area and protect your car with plastic and it turns out pretty good, especially since your car is black already. A friend did this with his Calibar and it turned out great for about $8 invested.

[A12Rag]

Thanks for the information on this. I got my Journey about 2 weeks ago and had already ordered the scuff pad from Autoexclusive. It fits like a GLOVE !!! Mopar sure should have made that standard !

[Philster]

Did any of you notice how the Export Journey R/T above has the additional lights built into the rear bumper. Sad how they cannot keep the vehicles similar across the board save the location of the steering column. It's the first R/T I've seen with only a single exhaust pipe as well.

[BAC]

Here's the second export R/T you've seen with a single pipe. Firstly without the tail pipe trim...

http://pic100.picturetrail.com/VOL715/4152637/20464771/358668495.jpg



Now with!

http://pic100.picturetrail.com/VOL715/4152637/20464771/362185298.jpg

I'd be interested in one of those bumper protectors. The best I've seen here in the UK is about £60 on E-Bay.

[radrob]

so i'm reading what you folks are saying about the bumper gaurd and or the skuff pad!, i myself am thinking of just putting on that 3M PROTECTOR film that thier putting on the front of bummpers and hoods.the plastic skuff pad takes away from the look. just my thoght ,(wow look at the size of that plate!!lol)

[brwengel]

Just my two cents worth, I have the clear film on my front bumper and mirrors. While this film is great for protecting against small things, it's not going to protector against scuffing or scratches while loading and unlaoding. It's just not thick enough, think of it as an extra layer of clearcoat on your paint!

Hope this helps, and Happy Motoring...

[RAV]

I can't get past the cost of this item - $145!

I like the idea of purchasing the spray on bed liner material and doing a small patch in the area in question.

I might just wait unit I see how scratched this area becomes before I proceed with this upgrade.

[brwengel]

Yeah I was floored by the cost, but I don't know about waiting to see how much it gets scratched. If $130 will save a scratched bumper then it's worth it to me. You can always pull the cover off when you go to sell your car someday and clean up the double-sided tape and it looks like new (except for maybe it won't be as faded as the rest of the bumper).

As I said in a previous post, the protector is plastic and not a rubber material, so if you scratch it, the scratch will be a lighter color and the scratch will show. I have a dog and her claws can leave some visbible scratches that you can faintly see but can't feel.

Hope this helps...

P.S. I think I found a 10% off coupon that covered my shipping cost.

[RAV]

I found this roll of ULTRA-WIDE HEAVY-DUTY VINYL MOLDING -

http://www.jcwhitney.com/ULTRA-WIDE_HEAVY-...0;0;2008789;0;0


For $68, looks like I can get enough to do the rear bumper and all of the door sills.

I may try this.

[brwengel]

I took a look at the vinyl molding, and it looks thick enough to protect your bumper. I just wonder with it being 1/8" thick how well it will conform to the highs and lows of the molded bumper. It will probably only sit on the high spots and since I noticed that you live in New England, what will happen when you get some freezing rain or snow under the low spots.

Just thinking out loud....