Silverado Front Bumper Question

Vortec-Z71 · February 2, 2009

I have an 03 Silverado with the textured black bumper cap. Are the smooth ones on the 2006-2007 Classics interchangeable with the ones on the 2003-2005s? I want to paint mine and it would be easier just to have a smooth one to paint. If they are interchangeable, could I have part number? Thanks.

Vortec-Z71 · February 3, 2009

I think I found the part numbers:

2003-2005 textured black GM Part# 15139805

2006-2007 primed, paint to match GM Part# 89025820

lvlagnum · February 3, 2009

Hello Vortec-Z71.

I work in the factory where the GMT-800 Chevy Silverado front bumpers were manufactured and where the GMT-900 Chevy Silverado front bumpers are still being made.

The answer to your question is that yes, you certainly can take the textured black top cap off of your Silverado's bumper and replace it with a top cap painted to match your truck. I'm not sure if prepainted topcaps are still available in a colour to match your truck but if they are, that's the way to go. If only the preprimed top caps are available, then I would strongly suggest that you have it professionaly painted by someone who knows what they are doing with a special paint formulated for such aplications, as the plastic top caps are very flexible and a poor quality paint would crack or peel when flexing.

If you really want to remove the textured black top cap from your silverado's front bumper and replace it with a painted one, the easiest way to do it is to completely remove the front bumper off of your truck first and put it on some kind of work jig like a pair of well padded sawhorses or such. It probably can be done with the bumper still on the truck but it it would be so awkward to do that I wouldn't recommend it. You wouldn't believe what a biatch of a job it was to put those top caps on, both the textured black and especially the painted ones. Some men and women worked on that assembly line for years and never did get the hang of it. The folks who could do it properly were well rewarded to do it for those who couldn't manage it when their turn came up.

If you want to remove the textured black top cap in one piece and save it for possible reuse or sale, the easiest way to do it is to pinch the plastic carrots (tabs) that stick through the metal shell of your truck's bumper one at a time with a pair of pliers and gently ease each one out untill the top cap is completely off. If you just want to get the textured black top cap off and don't care about saving it, just grab the edge of the top cap near the wheel well and yank it off. Most if not all of the carrots will snap off but if your not salvaging the textured black topcap for further use or sale, then that doesn't matter.

Installing the new painted top cap is very tricky. To do this successfuly, you should start by pounding the carrot that is in the center of the bumper all the way into it's hole first and then work your way outwards one end at a time from there. You must be sure to align each and every carrot perfectly in it's hole first before pounding it in or you will risk snapping the carrots off and you will be buying a new top cap. a good use for your old textured black top cap would be as a practice piece. If you can safely remove and install the textured black top cap a few times without damaging either it or the bumper, then you should be all right with the painted top cap. At work, we used rubber mallets with the end contact surfaces padded with self adhesive foam padding to pound the top caps on with.

I wish you much luck with this project and if there is any way I can be of further help, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Cheers, lvlagnum.

Vortec-Z71 · February 4, 2009

Hello Vortec-Z71.
I work in the factory where the GMT-800 Chevy Silverado front bumpers were manufactured and where the GMT-900 Chevy Silverado front bumpers are still being made.

The answer to your question is that yes, you certainly can take the textured black top cap off of your Silverado's bumper and replace it with a top cap painted to match your truck. I'm not sure if prepainted topcaps are still available in a colour to match your truck but if they are, that's the way to go. If only the preprimed top caps are available, then I would strongly suggest that you have it professionaly painted by someone who knows what they are doing with a special paint formulated for such aplications, as the plastic top caps are very flexible and a poor quality paint would crack or peel when flexing.

If you really want to remove the textured black top cap from your silverado's front bumper and replace it with a painted one, the easiest way to do it is to completely remove the front bumper off of your truck first and put it on some kind of work jig like a pair of well padded sawhorses or such. It probably can be done with the bumper still on the truck but it it would be so awkward to do that I wouldn't recommend it. You wouldn't believe what a biatch of a job it was to put those top caps on, both the textured black and especially the painted ones. Some men and women worked on that assembly line for years and never did get the hang of it. The folks who could do it properly were well rewarded to do it for those who couldn't manage it when their turn came up.

If you want to remove the textured black top cap in one piece and save it for possible reuse or sale, the easiest way to do it is to pinch the plastic carrots (tabs) that stick through the metal shell of your truck's bumper one at a time with a pair of pliers and gently ease each one out untill the top cap is completely off. If you just want to get the textured black top cap off and don't care about saving it, just grab the edge of the top cap near the wheel well and yank it off. Most if not all of the carrots will snap off but if your not salvaging the textured black topcap for further use or sale, then that doesn't matter.

Installing the new painted top cap is very tricky. To do this successfuly, you should start by pounding the carrot that is in the center of the bumper all the way into it's hole first and then work your way outwards one end at a time from there. You must be sure to align each and every carrot perfectly in it's hole first before pounding it in or you will risk snapping the carrots off and you will be buying a new top cap. a good use for your old textured black top cap would be as a practice piece. If you can safely remove and install the textured black top cap a few times without damaging either it or the bumper, then you should be all right with the painted top cap. At work, we used rubber mallets with the end contact surfaces padded with self adhesive foam padding to pound the top caps on with.

I wish you much luck with this project and if there is any way I can be of further help, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Cheers, lvlagnum.

I would not paint this bumper cap myself. I'm going to have the body shop do it along with a few other things. I'll probably go with the primed bumper cap as opposed to sanding down the old one (I've heard stories of them easily cracking). I'll have to see how much the body shop charges me to install the cap to decide if it's worth the trouble to do it myself. At least I know that the caps are interchangeable now.