02 Rear valance

Couldn't find much DIY's about the rear valance, did read about it in the service manual, but figured i would just ask to save me some future grief.

Do I have to remove the entire bumber to replace it? Haven t looked under the car yet for this, but i guess its just tons of bolts to remove? Any tips?:biggrin:

Thanks in advance

Nevermind this, found some info on it:tongue:

Yes, you have to remove the entire rear bumper, but it's only six or eight bolts IIRC.

Downforce has instructions on their website.

In a nutshell.

Disconnect license plate lamp harness. Use a tiny screwdriver to help desingage the connector while pressing in the locking tab.

Remove 4 clips and pull back the carpet in front of the tail lights. There are 2 X 12mm long acorn style nuts there.

Underneath where the bumper beam meets the frame
2 X 12mm staggered pattern bolts on each side

On each side behind rear wheels
Remove splash guard 4 X 10mm nuts
2 X 10mm nuts in the pocket covered by splash guards One is very high near the rear side marker lens...hard to see.

Before removal, protect the bumper by using painters tape or be really careful!

Get some help removing the bumper because it is quite heavy and awkward...much easier with 2 people. Pull it straight back and lay it down on some boxes or sawhorses or something. I put towels on these to protect the paint on the bumper.

Removing the bumper beam.
2 X 10 mm bolts on the top
2 x 10 mm bolts on the bottom.
Remove the beam and styrofoam. (Note how the styrofoam is oriented)

Remove a boat load of bolts that attach the lower valance to bumper.
There are two that come from the license plate area.
Remove the 3 screws at the top of the sides.

Pay close attention to which bolts are located where. They are different lengths for a reason. (I think the shorter ones are for the valance stay bracket)

Also pay attention to where the clip nuts go because you will be re-using them on the new valance.

Install the new valance by working from the center toward the sides. Make sure the valance is fully engaged to the bumper..tongue and groove. Install all bolts finger tight until you think its fully engaged. Install the 3 screws on the top of each side last then tighten all the rest. Make sure the valance is seated to the bumper before you re-install it.

The '02 valance requires a different "Stay" bracket than the early models. Check to see if there is a nylon nut supplied with the new stay. Mine was missing and I was left with a square hole...had to order it from the dealer.

Take your time and good luck! :smile:

Great writeup! thanks for the effort.

Will be doing the job this weekend

chippy said:

Great writeup! thanks for the effort.

Will be doing the job this weekend

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Your welcome, Let us know how it goes. The job can be frustrating sometimes. A nice cold beer helps.

Yeah having some hesitations though, i dont have that V bracket, Jonny@jetz told me to just use a longer bolt to make it fit with '91, can you confirm this can be done?

I just have the rear valance, no extra screws or bracket

installed it this weekend with great success. Did not need any 02 V bracket, it fitted perfectly on my '91.

Will be posting pictures as soon as the stupid snow stops falling from the sky:frown:

chippy said:

installed it this weekend with great success. Did not need any 02 V bracket, it fitted perfectly on my '91.

Will be posting pictures as soon as the stupid snow stops falling from the sky:frown:

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If you didn't use a 3/4" spacer and a longer bolt, then it didn't fit perfectly. Look under the car and you will notice that the lower part of the valance is curved upward in the center.

Just tackled this job this afternoon. It was alot more involved than I first thought. But this thread was a huge help. Also the info at the downforce site as well.

http://downforce.biz/manual/DF-AAA330.pdf

I didn't see this link in the thread, so I figured it wouldn't hurt to add it in.

Yeah I used abit more then a afternoon on this project:smile:

Same here. I am finally done (actually was done a couple days ago). But man, talk about a pain in the ass. Plus it didn't help that my car had previous damage, and who ever put the car back together totally sucked.

I put on the Seibon rear valance, and the fitment was ok I guess. Not the greatest by far. I guess you get what you pay for.:redface: So for me this was a lesson learned.

To those pondering this job, I'd say take a moment to realize what you're getting into. And be damn sure you buy a quality part from either Downforce or an OEM peice.

Difficulty level of this job was about a 3 on a scale of 1 to 10. However, lining up the body panels upon reinstallation sucked my balls. It did help to have another person with me when putting the bumper back on. Otherwise I probably would have scratched the hell out of my paint.

put mine on in about 30 min.

it makes the car look so much better

why didnt honda do this from day one.

all i need is the rear lights and sideskirts and Im done.

already have the Oem 02+ trunk with the built in thingy under the spoiler,
and Oem 02+ doors with the real door peices 02+ front fenders with the factory cut out hole for the side skirts, I love my pop-ups so no conversion for me. but the sides and rear lights are they only thing I really wanted to change from day one.

How the hell do you reach the topmost two bolts to get the bumper off??? This has been such a pain in the rear and I need to finish it up tomorrow. Was stuck on that bolt for hours and wasted the whole day. Help!

When doing the upgrade, did you get or are you using the two support braces that attach from each lower corner end of the valence to the [bumper or frame?].

Hence why I have been looking for an 02+ manual for those braces/brackets!

Hrant said:

When doing the upgrade, did you get or are you using the two support braces that attach from each lower corner end of the valence to the [bumper or frame?].

Hence why I have been looking for an 02+ manual for those braces/brackets!

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Everything is the same except the center bracket, and I've got everything disassembled except for those two bolts I can't get to from any angle. There must be something I am missing or some technique I haven't thought of.

The Jetz rear valance fit perfectly on mine. Too bad hes no longer around. I wonder where he went.

so you already have the bumper off and having trouble taking off the lower part of the bumper lower Valance? got a pic you can post?

or is the bumper still on the car and you can get a bolt off as its under the muffler?

kinda dont know what your needing. also a wide selection of tools is needed LOL

pics so we can help you

shawn110975 said:

so you already have the bumper off and having trouble taking off the lower part of the bumper lower Valance? got a pic you can post?

or is the bumper still on the car and you can get a bolt off as its under the muffler?

kinda dont know what your needing. also a wide selection of tools is needed LOL

pics so we can help you

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Hey Shawn,
The bumper is on the car I just took everything apart but I can't pull it off bc the left and right bolts by the taillights are holding it in. There is no room to get my hands in there to work those loose.

Edit: got it done

Nero Tenebre said:

Everything is the same except the center bracket, and I've got everything disassembled except for those two bolts I can't get to from any angle. There must be something I am missing or some technique I haven't thought of.

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Hmmm, you sure about that? Does your pre 02 valence also have a brace bracket at the two end corners of the bumper skirt?

Those two braces and the center bracket help stabilize the valence - otherwise they will flex and you can test that by hand how far they will flex and move.

Hrant said:

Hmmm, you sure about that? Does your pre 02 valence also have a brace bracket at the two end corners of the bumper skirt?

Those two braces and the center bracket help stabilize the valence - otherwise they will flex and you can test that by hand how far they will flex and move.

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Yup my car is a 95 and it has the side brackets. The df valence is very solid by itself and even more so all braced correctly. Their valence only came w the new v bracket and that's all I needed besides existing hdwr. Bumper removal is cake once you know how! Finished installing my side skirts today too and only need to do the door panels tomorrow. It was a long day of work though.

Here is the picture - courtesy of Niello Acura. Apparently there are NO brackets at the two ends of the valence, and no hole on the bottom inside edge for such bracket. 7 and 9 are for the bumper assembly not the "skirt" aka valence.

I'll have to see one on a lift to figure this out since a few have said there is a bracket - which makes sense for without it the valence is kind of loose.

if you tring to take off the lower valance with out removing the rear upper bumper then thats your problem.

the WHOLE bumper needs to come off. then the bolts that you cant reach are now in front of you and your done.

taking off the bumper take like 5 minutes,

6 big bolts then 6 10mm bolts for the fender liner, and that it.

now the lower valance is like 8 thick philips bolts including the license plate thing, and then 6 small thick screws.

the whole bumper needs to come off though.

shawn110975 said:

if you tring to take off the lower valance with out removing the rear upper bumper then thats your problem.

the WHOLE bumper needs to come off. then the bolts that you cant reach are now in front of you and your done.

taking off the bumper take like 5 minutes,

6 big bolts then 6 10mm bolts for the fender liner, and that it.

now the lower valance is like 8 thick philips bolts including the license plate thing, and then 6 small thick screws.

the whole bumper needs to come off though.

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Nope. Not trying to take anything. Just want to know if there are support metal brackets or rods that secure the end corners of the valence. Mine is aftermarket and has a hole which I assume was for the bracket yet I don't see such part on an OEM schematic.

Ideally, this can be resolved with a picture of an 02+ on the rack showing the inside corner from under the car right behind the wheel fender.

Isn't item no.9 the side bracket? That's what mine had on each end of the valence and it was for both the bumper and valence. Three screws go into the valence the rest attaches to the bumper IIRC.