amfsumo

any idea how the "hooks and side spacers" work on 2010 front bumpers? am helpng work partner change his fogs this wkend. does one just pull out the bumper on front wheel arch areas similar to this link i found for a civic (see step 3- which talks abuot hooks and side spacers - same principle in rdx?)?

http://www.greenhybrid.com/discuss/f...dlights-17176/

amfsumo

of course we'll work on removing the screws and clips etc. just didnt want to ruin the bumper itself and hvnt worked with these hooks/side spacers for honda.

amfsumo

sorry for the multiple posts-cant seem to edit (guess i hvnt reached the requrd posts to edit).

as addendum quest: so we tried to "pry out" the 2010 rdx bumpers at the wheel area areas to release it from hooks on the side spacers this early morng. we stopped and the car's now just in the garage of my center city (philly) friend LOL. how much force should we exert to pull this out anyway? (note all screws are out) yet there seems to be hooks on the headlight and side spacers near the front fenders... any insights? thansk

InfamousJamous

I was able to remove the bumper easily. Remove the plastic fasteners on the top (around the grill area between the headlights) and botton (connecting to the splash guard). Remove the screws on the wheel wells (there's a screw on the bottom).

Now that the fasteners are removed, the bumper is now held in place by snap-in-like areas around the headlights. Just gently pull on it (starting from the corners of the headlights) and it will pop out.

InfamousJamous

Oh and watch out for the fog lights, there's not much slack on it so you'll have to detach the bulb to prevent damage.

amfsumo

thanks. just a clarification before we proceed (and to avoid becoming a nightmare putting it bk on), does the 2010 bumper have holes (eg. literally perforations) to snap it back in around the headlights - we cant seem to see there's holes in there and dont want to tear out the perforations if there are by pulling too hard. we'll pop it out gently, how do we "pop it back in"? is it like a "tongue and groove" system similar to flooring systems?

thanks again.

amfsumo

infamousjamous, when you pulled it, how did you ensure the bumper doesnt stretch/get deformed. trying to avoid that too (seems like a thin bumper). thx

wspy

Just yank it off (gentle but firmly) . The bumper is quite flexible and will not deform

InfamousJamous

What wspy said

It has "tongue and groove" attachments.

I was able to take it off by myself (using my knee to keep it leveled as I removed both sides and the fog light connections) when I installed my 3000k HID fogs kit (only $38 off ebay!). I got help to put it back on tho.

amfsumo

cool thanks wspy and infamousjamous. so we took it off, it was not difficult - installed new fogs - but the problem came upon re-installing. seems like the bumper doesnt fit as "snug/tight" between the headlights and the side (near left wheel well). granted, we tried to remove and reattach again but still a bit of a very very small gap between left headlight (where the signals lights show up) and bumper.

is there any way to correct this issue? or shld it be expected then given that we already removed and reattached and therefore shldnt expect as tight a fit vs. factory. (eg. its plastic so if you pulled it out (even gently), dont expect the exact same fit when reattached)

FWIW, it's not very noticeable unless you really go close - prolly the gap is the size of 1/16th to 1/8th of an inch maximum (hence why i didnt bother posting pic). we just noticed it comparing my 09 to his 10 RDX (but he's got nicer fogs now LOL)

care to share your experiences?

amfsumo

we remeasured: my friend's 2010 rdx bumper to headlight gap is closer to 1/16th rather than 1/8th of an inch. however, my 2009 factory installed had even less than 1/8th of an inch - acceptable?

amfsumo

correction, my factory installed is even less than 1/16th of an inch gap b/w headlights and bumper. cant edit my posts still so apologies

amfsumo

just a question on this portion since it seems to be the issue - to snap it back in (on the reinstallation) - we just pushed on it gently (more like nudged and spanked) - correct? it should " lock into place" right? (we tried to keep nudging on it to eliminate the minute gap LOL)

InfamousJamous

Yeah it should pop back in place. Perhaps a tongue was not in its groove? It should pop right back in as it was before you removed it. I almost made the mistake of reassembling the bottom splash guard wrong (on the wrong side of the fastener).

amfsumo

hmmm. double checked, it all popped into place.

however i stand corrected, what i can see now are the "holes" in the bumper and the side spacer "locks/hooks" (just as the bumper meets the front fender, headlights vs bumper have no gap). it's aligned for sure, just that there's a very very small gap no (need to use flashlight to see the gaps, lock/hooks). i guess the bumpers a bit too flexible (both good and bad that when i pried it out i had to re"fold" it (to turn it back to orginal state - which i didnt). no biggie though i think part and parcel of pulling out and putting back bumpers in. just wont be the same as factory "tight".

thanks fr the help

MyHondaFix

Here is a link to a good front bumper removal video for the 06-12 RDX. Thought I would share it here if anyone needs it.

CSmoney28

Thanks!

mrgold35

I ordered replacement plastic clips before removing my 08 RDX front bumper to replace my HID bulbs. Half the clips were either missing or broke during removal because of age. I got an assortment pack because some of the holes on the under side wore larger than the standard clip size. The extra clips came in handy for my 06 TSX, 11 MDX, and my daughter's Mazda 3.

Amazon, $14 for 240 clips:

Amazon

Amazon

CSmoney28

I ordered a similar kit on eBay that also came with the tools to pop out the different clips. Let me know if you would like me to post the link or photos of the kit here.