2016 front bumper removal...they added 6 extra bolts that year, how to access? | Ford Explorer Forums - Serious Explorations

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2016 front bumper removal...they added 6 extra bolts that year, how to access?

MFE

New Member
Joined
September 23, 2018
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City, State
Tempe, AZ
Year, Model & Trim Level
2016 Explorer Limited
I want to remove the front bumper on my wife's 2016 Explorer Limited. Every thread, document, and video I can find shows this to be a fairly straightforward affair. However, all of them feature a model earlier than 2016, which has a slightly different, and more difficult mounting system. And the one video I could find that discussed the 2016 merely mentioned these extra bolts, and provided no detail about how to access them. There are 3 bolts up high on each fender lip, with the bolt heads on the engine bay side only accessible from above. I spent two hours on this job on Sunday before aborting the mission. What's the trick?
 



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Go on Facebook, and join this page: Ford Explorer Sport 5th Gen

Search for a member named "Timbo Gustafson" who did a PIU grill swap on his 2016 sport. He posted a "how to" for the grill swap, which involves removing the entire bumper.


Good luck.
 






They can be accessed through the inner fender liners. If you remove the wheels, you should have more room and may be able to get a better view on them, but it can be done with the wheels on the vehicle.

Please make sure your vehicle is on suitable stands (not a jack) if you remove wheels and get under it.
 






You can’t just turn the wheel one way to access the fender liner bolts?
 






Welcome to the Forum Justin.:wave:

Peter
 






Turn the wheel full lock one way. 5.5mm takes the inner fender loose. 6 or so 8 mm underneath. 10 mm across the top. Once you have the top of the headlights loose, there are 3 10mm bolts down and behind them. You can either wrench them out from the fender well, or use a long extension with a swivel from the top.
 






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