Advice needed with stubborn bumper bolt

[nc-grayson]

After dealing with this one last bolt needed to remove my fat-lip bumper for ENTIRELY too long, hours of frustration, and $$ spent on specialty tools designed for this situation without success, it's time to cut my losses, and pony up to have a "professional" remove this for me. What should have been a few hour long drive-way job, has turned into much, much more.....more than I/my tools are capable of handling.

So I need some advice on what to do to get this damn bolt out. So I can remove my bumper. Finally. As you can see, I've gotten it about half-way out, but now the bolt head is so rounded I can't get anything to bite. I've spent more $ on bolt extractors than I care to admit, and they've only gotten me half-way.

I am literally at the point where I have to take it to someone who has better tools/more experience. I'm tired of dealing with this, seemingly simple task.

Not sure if I need to get it cut off, (no grinder), or have something welded to it, (can't weld), or what to do next.

Who should I take it to? trusty mechanic? auto-body shop? metal-fab shop? I would literally be willing to bet that it'll take the right person with the right tools 5 minutes to free me from this dilemma.

I'd love some ideas. Photo is taken looking down through the grill area. Driver's side. Please help :hiding:

 

[ShooterMcGavin]

If there are any flat sides at all, this may be the tool to do it. I have removed seemingly round bolts with it.

Vise Grip Locking Wrench

 

[seank]

PB Blast or Kroil it, let it sit 12 hours and do it again. Wait 12 more then try and remove it. The newest 3rd gen is 14 years old making all bolts, especially ones that have never been removed, more difficult to remove. The penetrating oil really helps with that.

As for being rounded, I second the vice grips after the oil. If there's no flat surface and you stated you don't have a grinder, try a dremel if you have one or a file if you don't. Or better yet borrow a grinder, or best buy a grinder. They come in handy for all sorts of things, not just old trucks. Plus worst case you could simply cut the bolt off while you regroup.

Sent from my Nexus 9 using Tapatalk

 

[JRZEE2000TR4LTD]

If you can thread it back in, do so. Maybe use a different size, smaller size 12pt SAE socket. Hammer it on. Clean up the exposed threads with a small wire brush. Put whatever penetrate you have on those threads and wrench it back out again. Work it in and out, reapplying penetrate. If all else fails, get a cut off wheel or grinder and take of the bolt with the back nut and use a nut and bolt in it's place.

 

[Yoter]

You can remove the bumper skin without the crush support thing. So you can take the bumper off and it will give you much more room to work on that bolt.

 

[ian1006]

Heat, a lot of heat. I used a small torch today working on a friends 4Runner front tie rod lock nuts and then a pipe on a wrench to break it free.

 

[infamousRNR]

Hammer it on. Clean up the exposed threads with a small wire brush. Put penetrating oil on it. If all else fails, get a cut off wheel or grinder and take off the back of the bolt .

This

Heat, a lot of heat. I used a small torch .

And this

 

['01T4R]

After dealing with this one last bolt needed to remove my fat-lip bumper for ENTIRELY too long, hours of frustration, and $$ spent on specialty tools designed for this situation without success, it's time to cut my losses, and pony up to have a "professional" remove this for me. What should have been a few hour long drive-way job, has turned into much, much more.....more than I/my tools are capable of handling.

So I need some advice on what to do to get this damn bolt out. So I can remove my bumper. Finally. As you can see, I've gotten it about half-way out, but now the bolt head is so rounded I can't get anything to bite. I've spent more $ on bolt extractors than I care to admit, and they've only gotten me half-way.

I am literally at the point where I have to take it to someone who has better tools/more experience. I'm tired of dealing with this, seemingly simple task.

Not sure if I need to get it cut off, (no grinder), or have something welded to it, (can't weld), or what to do next.

Who should I take it to? trusty mechanic? auto-body shop? metal-fab shop? I would literally be willing to bet that it'll take the right person with the right tools 5 minutes to free me from this dilemma.

I'd love some ideas. Photo is taken looking down through the grill area. Driver's side. Please help :hiding:

If i see correctly, you're working with the wrong bolts if you're only looking to remove the plastic part with the chrome (or plastic insert). See this diagram. From what I can tell, you're trying to remove the bolts circled in blue...you only need to remove the ones circled in red. You do not need to remove the "front bumper reinforcement" to take off the "Front Valance panel", the "front bumper" and the "front bumper cover" that is the wording on the pic for reference. You should only need to remove the bolts i've circled in red. I just took mine off and these are the ones I removed.

 

[JNYD401]

Grinder.

 

[rossgoldie]

Angle grinder and a cut off wheel. Thats what I did when I had rusted out bolts in my shock towers, worked like a charm. Just a really really loud charm with sparks and testosterone

 

[ChildrenOfBodom]

If i see correctly, you're working with the wrong bolts if you're only looking to remove the plastic part with the chrome (or plastic insert).

This!!^^

There's two nuts per side holding on the bumper to the black brackets. No bracket removal necessary.

If those 4 nuts don't come out, then you could opt to remove the brackets which bolt to the crash beam.

2 ways to remove the bumper without even touching the bolt that's rounded!