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Old 05-11-2020, 01:10 PM
Frank T Frank T is offline
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Default 1965 Lemans front bumper mystery

In high school I had 65 Lemans with a rusty front bumper. I picked up a really nice straight one with good chrome at Carlisle one year, brought it home and it didnt fit. It was definitely a 65 bumper, but it was much "flatter" than the one on my car. Almost like it was pushed in at the center point. I never really figured out what was going on with it and eventually sold it with the car with a bunch of other parts.
Did Pontiac make two different bumpers in 65, one for GTO / Lemans and one for Tempest? If so, I assume the new one Ames sells (B199W) is the GTO/Lemans version?

Thanks
Frank T

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Old 05-11-2020, 02:24 PM
Chief of the 60's Chief of the 60's is offline
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There was only 1. Are you sure it wasn't a '64 bumper or perhaps a bumper for some other line of car? Not everybody in Carlisle knows what they're selling. I once bought an NOS '65 headlamp bezel for $5.00. The guy said it was for a Ford Galaxie.

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Old 05-11-2020, 02:31 PM
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Chris65LeMans Chris65LeMans is offline
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I've seen '65 bumpers that were repaired after a wreck and re-chromed. Sometimes they look very straight, very shiny, but don't fit.

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Old 05-11-2020, 08:28 PM
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Jerry H. Jerry H. is offline
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Didn't happen to buy it from the 'Bumper Boyz' did you?

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Old 05-11-2020, 08:53 PM
Frank T Frank T is offline
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Chief -Definitely not a 64 bumper, I knew the difference and had been looking for a couple years in yards and swap meets... I couldnt find a nice straight one until I found this one at Carlisle. (actually bought a pair of grills for my 70 lemans for $5, guy had no idea what they were).

Chris - It didnt seem bent at all, I could remember paying more for it than I wanted to because it was so nice. When I was putting it on, it matched my bumper perfectly except for the angle of it. If there was only one bumper in 65 then I guess I have to say it must have been bent

Jerry - Who did I buy it from? uhhh going on the sliver of memory I have left from purchasing it 30 years ago, it was definitely, ummmm, a guy.

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Old 05-12-2020, 12:05 AM
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Sirrotica Sirrotica is offline
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I've owned 3, 65s over the years, I can tell you most likely what happened that deformed the front bumper that probably many people never ran into.

Back in the day (1971) I had a car hauled from an accident by a wrecker with a sling (back in the 70s there were no wheel lifts wreckers yet), When those cars were picked up with a sling on a wrecker, it bends, and rolls the lower horizontal bar under the car. There are no marks on the car and the chrome doesn't separate. It looks like it came from the factory like that.

Back in the day after my cars bumper got bent, I noticed other 65s that were also deformed, just like mine was. A combination of thin metal and no bracing behind that lower bar, would bend them whenever one was towed from the front, with a sling style wrecker.

Maybe that answers your question, maybe it doesn't..................

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Old 05-13-2020, 06:37 PM
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geeteeohguy geeteeohguy is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Chief of the 60's View Post
There was only 1. Are you sure it wasn't a '64 bumper or perhaps a bumper for some other line of car? Not everybody in Carlisle knows what they're selling. I once bought an NOS '65 headlamp bezel for $5.00. The guy said it was for a Ford Galaxie.
A couple of years ago I picked up a 'Thunderbird' hood scoop at a swap meet for $1. It was actually the insert for a '65-'67 GTO hood!!!

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