Replacing a bumper cover

Blarghy

Ok, so I was stupid and badly cracked the front bumper cover of my 2009 Corolla CE on a curb. Took it around to a couple bodyshops and it looks like it would cost about $1000 (Canadian) to fix. Looking online, I see that I can buy a painted bumper cover for about C$450 (including shipping). Looking at Youtube walkthroughs on replacing the bumper cover, it looks doable myself in about an hour with just a few tools that I can borrow. Before I commit to this, I just want to ask to more experienced car folk that if this is a job that someone with absolutely no prior DIY car repair experience could handle. Any potential issues that I might be overlooking?

[Michael]

I replaced the front bumper cover on my 2006 Civic early this year. I've got next to no DIY skills but managed to do it in 2 hours. I bought mine off of eBay for around $200 (a bunch of companies paint to match replacement parts), and some clips on Amazon. I resorted to zipties for some of the attachments spots I couldn't quite get, but they're out of sight entirely. So not a 100% legit job like a body shop would do, but way cheaper and no issues after almost a year.

BlindZenDriver

It should be manageable.
Us the bumper one where there is lights like fx. fog lights, of so then it can be a bit more involved but otherwise I certainly would give it ago as long as I have a location to do it - a drive way and decent weather should do it.
If you can get a friend to lend a hand do so, it will make things easier even if is mainly for positive spirit and holding tools and such. Also make sure you have like a rug or something to lie on if needed as it is just nicer than crawling around on concrete/tarmac.

T-bolt

It should be doable, though could be a bit frustrating if you have to remove other front pieces and if you are particular about it not being a little bit crooked.

I didn't crack my front bumper on my '10 VW Golf, but scraped it and had it pop out a bit on one side. I enlisted my brother's help, and though we had to remove both of the headlights and the front grill and it took a bit of fiddling to get it straight we managed it. Only cost me a 6-pack of beer.

mRahmani

Assuming it's not shattered, you can make it look okay by drilling holes and using zip ties as stitches. That's what I did when my wife backed into our Cruze... I wasn't going to spend $500 to patch up a $3000 beater.

Spoiler for large pics:

The damage


Bumper removed


Close up of "stitches"


Final product

Total cost: $5 and half an hour

In terms of "is it doable?" absolutely. If it's your first time attempting something like this, one thing that helps me is threading the various screws back into place as soon as I've removed the piece they're holding. That way they don't get lost, and I remember where they go.