[Aaron169]

Just a quick question,
The chrome bumper inserts/strips on my 98 211 are corroded, and i've finally sourced a breaker with a 200 in stock who will sell me the strips.
The look to be sealed in rather well, so before i take my bumper off has anyone any advice as to removing and refitting them without damaging them?
Thanks!

While i'm here, has anyone got an R3 drivers side foglamp surround for sale?

[Lerich]

The bumper needs to be off the car to remove the chrome strips to avoid damaging them as they clip in.

The strips on my Vi have partially delaminated. I removed the rear strip (which snapped in the process) but the bit that remained intact is good enough to reuse on the front corner. I've sourced the plastic chrome strip (linked below) to replace the rear strip. It's not OEM but looks pretty decent. It's an unusual 16mm width that's needed, hence having to source from Germany!

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/231866878758

[Aaron169]

That's ideal, never thought of buying a roll of material. That would be better actually as then i could do my rear as well!
Is it a good match to the original?

[Lerich]

Is it a good match to the original?

Yes it's pretty decent. I've not fitted it yet (beyond a trial fitting) but it fits the channel perfectly. The only difference is it doesn't sit as proud as the OEM strip as it's not as deep.

How long it'll last as it's cheap chrome-plated plastic remains to be seen!

[Aaron169]

Well, i got the strips and thought i'd post the process!
After removing the bumper and flipping it over (on a sheet of course), it's not hard to push the existing strips out from behind. It doesn't matter too much if you break them, I certainly did!
I then cleaned the groove with thinners to ensure a good adhesion surface for the new strips. Getting the new strips in place is just a matter of threading the roll through the holes at each end of the groove, then sticking it down with the sticky back plastic that comes on it. The new strips are ever so slightly short for the groove, so I put them lower down so they look flush from above.
Flip the bumper over and cut off the excess roll. There was a bit of the trim sticking out at each end of the groove, so i cleaned the surface and stuck them down with epoxy resin. And after removing the protective film, it's done!
I've not got the bumper back on just yet but it looks great so far, and should really improve the front end looks of the car. There was also enough roll left to do the rear bumper too, which i'll do some other time.

[Paul_1978_yorks]

That looks good! I managed to get chrome strips for my front bumper on my R8 but the rear strips are not available. I might look into this option for the rear bumper on my 214 SEi!

[itcaptainslow]

Looks miles better! Flame Red is an awesome colour for an R3-one that’s close to my heart as it was the colour of my parents’ 200Vi.