Removing front bumper valance / air dam

[baxterdown]

I keep hitting parking bumpers all over the place. It's ridiculous! Has anyone removed the black trim piece under the front bumper?

 

[VinceL]

I know people have trimmed it, but not heard of anybody outright removing it. We drag ours across the parking bumpers all the time. My thought on the topic is, do it enough times and it'll sand itself down to a point where it won't rub anymore

 

[JDraper]

Maybe you shouldn't park so close to the parking berms.:


Only times I've whacked mine is when I've been offroad.

 

[harlenm]

I know people have trimmed it, but not heard of anybody outright removing it. We drag ours across the parking bumpers all the time. My thought on the topic is, do it enough times and it'll sand itself down to a point where it won't rub anymore

Not if you rip it off first.

 

[waskly]

I keep hitting parking bumpers all over the place. It's ridiculous! Has anyone removed the black trim piece under the front bumper?

why not stop parking on top of them?

 

[Dr Plastic]

LOL! This thread reminds me of an old friend that said one his wife's mantras was..."I just pull up until I hear the crunch"! I too will just let itself wear to a point where it won't crunch any more!

 

[phareous]

I wished it had front parking sensors and perhaps a camera...its very hard to see the front and know how close you are to the stupid concrete bumper.

 

[obie]

You could always lift it a few inches...

 

[yahya_c]

Front Parking Camera

I wished it had front parking sensors and perhaps a camera...its very hard to see the front and know how close you are to the stupid concrete bumper.

Is there any custom front parking camera/sensor kit that one can install to help against these concrete bumpers? I'm talking about sensors or a camera that can be activated on-demand when parking into such spots.

 

[rmp301]

I hear it scrape when I back out! I don't realize I'm on top of it at times, and I try to park it far enough away, but to no avail at times.

 

[SWEET ST]

90% of the time when i park i back into the spot, because i like to just pull out of parking spaces unless signs states head in.

 

[Blue Raptor]

If it is the air dam that you are talking about i would suggest not removing it as it brings air into the engine area for cooling purposes.

 

[peterk9]

If it is the air dam that you are talking about i would suggest not removing it as it brings air into the engine area for cooling purposes.

I believe they are talking about the front air dam that is fixed to the front bumper and which is part of the aerodynamics of the vehicle. What you are talking about is the air scoop under the Explorer. This redirects air for cooling when towing. Some members have removed it and reinstall it when they tow.

Peter

 

[jnbhobe]

When I would hit a parking bumper it would cause the air dam to pop out on the ends, so I put a screw in each end and solved the problem.

 

[milliganus]

air dam removal

We had the side portions cut off so that it is level all the way accross. Works great. No hitting of the curb.

 

[peterk9]

We had the side portions cut off so that it is level all the way accross. Works great. No hitting of the curb.

Were you aware that the air dam is part of the overall aerodynamics of the vehicle? I'm not an expert on the exact function of it but I'm guessing it is to redirect air flow under the vehicle and to some extent out of the front wheel wells. The other parts of the package are the small deflectors in front of the rear wheels.
I rubbed it on a curb once and now I just simply don't pull as close any more.
Problem fixed.

Peter

 

[milliganus]

I did research this before I did it. Several posters on this forum have done this. I have seen no issues with it whatsoever or any degradation in performance. It was a very poor design in the first place. I don't know about you, but mine would rub if I went up a very steep incline such as a driveway or pull-in. This was unacceptable. Plus, my memory isn't as good as it used to be and I'd still pull to close to the curb.

 

[meganjoe]

I drove mine up on ramps, ran a piece of masking tape along the ridge in the plastic to use as a guide and took a die grinder to it... Looks good and no more scraping...

Joe

 

[edub]

I drove mine up on ramps, ran a piece of masking tape along the ridge in the plastic to use as a guide and took a die grinder to it... Looks good and no more scraping...

Joe

pics?

 

[meganjoe]

I will take some tomorrow..