Problems with Stillen's Front Bumper Fascia Body Kit

[bhs07c]

I just recently bought the Stillen Front Bumper Fascia Body Kit for my 2007 Altima 2.5S and to say the least, I was not entirely impressed with the quality of the product. This really surprised me since Stillen is usually top of the line when it comes to any body kit products for Nissan and Infiniti. Anyways, I've already had it painted and installed and even though the flaws are really unnoticeable to people who don't know their cars, they're stilling annoying the hell out of me. The first thing that bothered me was that the Urethane came raw (with no additives or primer) so that cost even more when I had it prepped and painted. However, that wasn't a big deal. Then, during my installation, the two parts wouldn't fit right (Stillens front fascias come in two parts that you have to bolt together). If you tightened the bolts too tight, the urethane morphed, but too loose, and the pieces wouldn't connect. My friend and I even had to drill extra holes in order to keep the two parts together tight. THIS IS THE PROBLEM: Stillen is selling their fascias in two parts when it could be ONE. However, the lower panel was originally made for the Coupe but can be used on the Sedan as well but it doesn't fit entirely. All in all, even after the installation, the pieces still don't bold together well. The top panel sags leaving a huge gap between the hood and kit and there is even a little space between the lights. I will post pictures up soon because I need help. What can I do to prep it even more than what I've done? Surely Stillen should have offered a better buy for the price they charged, I hope to talk to them and see if they'll help me...

[JDRosenberg07]

The fascia comes in two parts to reduce the risk of damage during shipping. if it was one piece you would most likely have gotten it in pretty bad condition. i would have cause UPS pretty much destroyed the box mine came in but my fascia was fine.

As far as tightening bolts go.. you would have the same problem no matter what your fastening together wether its metal or urethane you will either warp it or strip the bolts, or it will be lose and hanging.

As far as the gaps go.. im all for tryin to install it yourself for the gratification of a job well done but if your not experienced in that in any way shape or form then i would have taken it somewhere. Gaps and sags will happen if you dont know what your doing, esp if you took out the support brace behind the grill.

No offense man but i dont really think you can blame Stillen for doin it yourself and messin up cause there are a lot of other people that have the exact same kit and have no problems with it. just my .02

[kyle@stillen]

Hello There!

First off, please go ahead and send us the pictures so that we can see what's going on and walk you through the installation process. My email address is [email protected].

Secondly, to address the issues you are having I will do my best to explain everything in an easy to follow way. There have been some questions regarding the fascia and I don't think I've done a good job of explaining everything.

Two piece design- This was done for two reasons. #1) freight costs. If we did not design this fascia in two pieces then we would not be able to offer the free freight program. To ship an entire fascia around the country is EXTREMELY expensive and would have added another $150+ to the cost of the kit. This was a major PITA for us and actually doubled our mold cost and nearly tripled our development time. It ended up costing us ALOT more to do it this way but we felt that it was necessary to help cut down on freight cost to you guys.

Bumper sag- This has been an ongoing question that should be answered by the instructions. There is a factory support brace on the back of the stock fascia. If you do not re-install this brace on your STILLEN fascia it will sag.

Finally, why we don't send it out prepped...Primer is very much like paint. If you twist, bend, or drop a part that has been prepped with primer, it will crack or weaken just like paint. If your paint shop honestly thought that they would just pull this out of the box and spray a coat of paint, they're nuts! The ONLY reason that factory metal parts come with primer is to prevent rust. Even then, a good body shop will remove that primer and start with their own fresh prep. Factory ABS plastic parts usually come in a raw, untreated finish just like our urethane.

[xeene]

i think you did something wrong, because i personally installed this fascia on my car and didn't have problems. it wasn't easy bolting two pieces together, but if you're handy with tools it's doable. i've heard about sagging from other people, but i followed stillen's instructions and don't have any sagging. here is the proof... only thing i added was rivets to the center section where tape is, just to make sure.

[3ugene]

Yes no sagging, but you should lower the hood to tighten the gap. You may do so by twisting the two rubber pieces found in between the hood and body.

[xeene]

i've done that before, but then noticed there were a little bit of travel to it(maybe 2-3mm) when it's locked. now it's nice and snug.

[bina12834]

i was uncertain of whether or not i was going to get the fascia for my super black sedan....but after seeing you car Xeene, it makes me want to get it. i just love having my fog lights though....oh well....i guess i can do without them.

[eight3six]

The main reason I never got it as well is I like my fog lights. I've been MIA as of recently and havnt really followed up on the car mods and such. Has anyone found a way yet to have the front end and keep the fogs?

[xeene]

not unless you want to use custom fogs

[bina12834]

i think the new ATI front fascia has spots for fogs

[eight3six]

Meh really not feeling theirs. I have a custom grille for my car as it is and could use it with their front, but I just want to rid of the billet grille along with my lower billets.

Guess time will tell.