My Sedan-to-Koup Front Bumper Conversion

[92 GSR-4]

I figured I'd post this up since I got the idea off this site. I recently had to replace the bumper on my wife's EX sedan, so after reading the multiple threads on this forum I decided to go with the Koup front bumper. I did a lot of reading and would like to give back some specific details about the swap. First, here are some pics:





This conversion was done on a 2011 Kia Forte EX Sedan. The parts came new from Kia, and were for a 2012 Koup. Here's what was needed:

Koup Front Bumper Cover: 86511 1M301
Lower Grill For Bumper: 86560 1M300

The splash guards underneath the car are the same for a sedan vs. a Koup, however the wheel well splash guards that attach at the corners of the bumper are slightly different. That's where the trimming takes place (very minor).

Here are a couple minor snags:

-Trimming of the splash guards mentioned above

- The center grille with the Kia logo does not match the screw holes in the bumper, so mine was left unsecured to the bumper. There's still a bunch of screws in it, so it's fine, but I'll probably get the Koup grille in the future.

- The bumper "cushion" (piece of styrofoam) was longer/wider on the sedan so it had to be trimmed.

-The clips for the bumper-to-fender connection are different on the Koup, so in order for it to attach correctly and sit flush with the fender, the Koup clips are needed. If you don't use them then you'll see that it doesn't line up perfectly (see pic below). I'm getting the Koup clips for it now.




Anyways, I hope this helps someone in the future.

[nitebleu]

Now that just makes me sick....you beat me to it! Just kidding - nicely done. If you're going to replace the grille anyway, you might consider an aftermarket version like the C-mod.

[Rawad]

I wont approve till you get a matching grille! Chrome on the koup bumper is just .. disorienting

[Vertiginouz]

What was the overall price for the bumper, paint, lower grill, etc? Also, did you get the fog light covers from ebay? I'm planning on getting the koup bumper as well for my sedan and I'd like to get the fog light covers without the fog light (for now at least). Also let me know where you end up getting the koup clips. Looks much better with the koup bumper but I agree with rawad, get rid of the chrome grille!

[zephyrusaurai]

Just plastidip the sedan grille and call it a day. way cheaper than buying a specific "koup" grille

[92 GSR-4]

Man you guys are vicious!! Just kidding. I agree on the chrome grille but at the time I didn't want to replace it. We hit a full-size semi-truck tire on the interstate and I wasn't trying to tack on additional cost. I'm likely going to plasti-dip it or replace because it's nagging at me. Parts list:

Koup Bumper: $213.57
Lower Grille: $154.32
Fog Light "delete" panels: $59.XX

All parts purchased from Kia. I'll get back and update on how much it cost for paint/labor etc. It was insurance work so I didn't do it myself. If I recall correctly, the shop told me about $300 to paint the bumper. So if you did the work yourself it would cost somewhere around $730 plus the Koup clips (I estimate $10 for them) and the new grille.

[_AnGeL_]

Ouch, that's pricey lol. I did mine for ~500 total, but mine was a salvage bumper that was already color matched , and I got the SX trim.

Looks good overall, I agree with the grill though, plasti-dip it. $6 a can.

[92 GSR-4]

What is the SX trim and I've seen some Koup's with a front lip, like the featured car on the front page. Is that factory?

[_AnGeL_]

Gloss black lower grill, and fog lights.

[_AnGeL_]

The front lip on the front page is a custom lip.

[92 GSR-4]

Okay, thanks. The fog light assemblies were about $130 per side IIRC, so being that her car didn't come with fogs to begin with I decided to get the filler panels. I read on here that the fogs weren't that hard to install and wire up, but was trying to keep cost down because I was paying the deductible plus any extra parts that weren't included in the repair quote.

I intentionally wanted the black parts of the bumper to be flat black as well. I'll plasti-dip the front grille and report back.

[xSilverX9x]

these koup "clips" you talk about. Can you take pictures of them? it sounds like you don't need to swap fenders to achieve a perfect fit...

[SubtleStyle]

Thanks for explaining the work required for the sedan and hatch owners, this is long overdue.

I've bought glossy black upper and lower grills and the foglights with glossy black covers off eBay for under $300 and received them in perfect condition in about a week and a half. It'd be a better deal for you to go that route but what's done is done. It's always a safer bet to go with the dealership anyway.

[_AnGeL_]

I got mine off eBay as well.

[Crispy boss]

Best looking font end for a sedan!