The rear bumper on my Double Cab is made out of 1/4" walled drill caseing -
it weighs about 50 lbs and it isn't bending.  But, if someone hits it -
something must bend.  10 : 1 says it is my frame.  At least I will do
severe damage to the person who hit me!

At 20:44 11/17/98 EST, MW575@AOL.COM wrote:
>Hey folks;
>
>I recently replaced the rear bumper on my '85 Westy with a new one (old one
>was a little crunched from the PO).  I guess I've always known how flimsy
they
>are, but installing the new one really got my attention.  I doubt this thing
>could withstand a 1 MPH bump and not fold in half.  I'm not to concerned
about
>the bumper itself - they're relativity cheap compared to the other costs (and
>hassle) that would occur from a small bump - say 5 or 10 mph.
>
>I don't like the looks of some of the aftermarket bumpers or the home-made
>tubular ones.  Are the non-carat bumpers used in the late 80's or 90 (looks
>like black rubber from a distance - I haven't been close enough to examine)
>any better supported than the cheap stuff used in the early 80's?
>
>I went to a local welder and asked about welding something that would fit
>between the brackets the bumper bolts to, and would fit inside of the current
>flimsy bumper.  He said he could weld a 2" x 3" tube between the brackets,
but
>was concerned about what might happen in a crash to the frame - it could be
>bent more than it would without such a modification.   The welder said he
>could do the job for $100, which seems like a cheap insurance policy in the
>case of a 5-10 mile bump, if it would do the job of protecting some of the
>engine.  Any thoughts anyone?
>
>

-- David Marshall                                    --
-- 78 1.8L VW Rabbit, 80 2.0L VW Caddy, 87 Audi 5KSQ --
-- 85 VW Cabriolet, 88 2.0L VW Syncro 16" Double Cab --
-- Volkswagen Homepage   http://www.volkswagen.org   --
-- Volkswagen/Audi Parts http://parts.volkswagen.org --
-- mailto:david@volkswagen.org - Quesnel, BC, Canada --