OEM Bumper Cover Identification

[newv]

I needed a rear bumper cover and had a friend pick one up from his local junkyard. I took the gamble because, no surprise, they are not plentiful out there. Before I go through the time and trouble of shipping it I was trying to confirm if it is an OEM part. Anyone done this before that could point to identifiers? I thought a molded-in "GM" block logo with a part number would be the thing to look for, but he couldn't locate that, nor could I see any other seller who had intentionally or unintentionally put that in a photo . He did find tags inside stating "Nascote Industries" which is a part of "Korte" industries and I see they are a parts manufacturer but I can't tell if they were ever an OEM supplier to GM or strictly an aftermarket maker, and if so of what quality? Any insights would be appreciated.

 

[mickeytee]

There are no aftermarket bumpers. If you see one its oem

 

[newv]

Interesting - are they stamped with the GM logo? My body guy says he found an aftermarket option from one of his suppliers - but he wouldn't risk buying it because the quality can be bad.

 

[mickeytee]

Many companies list parts they dont have. Some buy reconditioned parts and call them aftermarket.others buy rejects and sell them as aftermarkets
Keystone list actual new oem fronts for the v as aftermarket.

No company has ever made aftermarket bumpers for sale for the xlr

 

[RubyRod]

I haven't removed the rear cover but I have removed the front cover. The front cover has no identifying marks. I would assume that the rear cover would be the same. Given the flexible nature of these covers it is not surprising that there are no identifying marks. Molding or etching them would distort the material. They MAY have had a sticker when they were installed at the factory but I doubt it would have survived intact on the cover after 20 years.

 

[mickeytee]

You may be correct . ibmw and mercedes all have numbers on the bumpers made into them. also they are required to have a series of production clocks stamped into them. They show shift day month year they are made to identify failure runs. Ive not needed to lookfor numbers in years but i did just look at a used 09 and it does have the vin id sticker required by federal law and the original part number sticker still attached.the numbers molded on them are usually in ares that dont show and the material is plenty thick enough to not result in any shadowing. Ill look at a bew cover i have . i looked at all the undertray pirces and they all have the numbers on them
Federal law used to require all plastics to be marked with the type of material they are made of. That may have changed

 

[mickeytee]

Had me curious so i looked again at the 09. Numbers still there with all the other info