Why don't cars have bumpers anymore?

Question

Seems like they've been almost completely phased out over the last 10 years. I know newer materials dent less easily, but it seems like bumpers (especially the rubberized kind) didn't get scuffed up or dented....

Answer 1

They just look like they don't. with the EPA demanding better fuel economy on their CAFE ratings, the makers need to reduce wind resistance and improve air flow. Plus they are trying to reduce weight and improve the appearance of the safety bumpers. Look at the 73 and 74 cars with their safety bumpers. Now is quite an improvement.

Answer 2

There are several reasons why cars don't have true bumpers anymore, some nice, some not but basically comes down to money - either yours, or more likely, the automobile manufacturers' money. Lighter (i.e., cheaper) bumpers weigh less and that minimally improves your gas mileage. Don't laugh - it adds up and adds to a company's CAFE numbers. It also lowers the initial cost of the car so you can buy it a little cheaper than otherwise. But the automotive manufacturers are not acting magnanimously on your behalf as much as, as you likely suspected, on their behalf in order to shave several dollars and make profit. A manufacturer really only has to *sell* you a car in order to recoup the majority of their investment ... and that leads us to cost-cutting on parts and labor. A generic polyurethane bumper that can take the same paint that the body takes not only saves on cost and labor but it looks better, too ... and for the same reason; it's the same paint. To you, the owner and eventual repairer when you scuff it, that beauty is literally only skin (read: a few microns) deep but it's enough to get you to buy the car in the first place. After that, it's your skin. Literally. A final consideration is that a bumper's ultimate purpose is to protect the occupants at any cost. Manufacturers are acutely aware of this as fault-of-design can be not only litigious and expensive but really, really bad p.r. Think Pinto. This is why cars now have extensive crumple zones, both front and rear, that absolutely destroy a car compared to the 1940's rigid battleships with heavy, chromed bumpers that could smash into anything without a wrinkle ... but all the occupants died. F=Ma: Force equals Mass times acceleration. That goes both ways - in stopping as well as speeding up. If your car does not absorb and dissipate the energy of a crash then ... well, *you* and your friends do. I hope that this helps. Good luck.

Answer 3

Cars With Rubber Bumpers

Answer 4

New cars are junk, plain and simple. They don't have bumpers because it's cheaper to manufacture and the dumb *** public doesn't demand a real bumper. In the old days you could bump into another car bumper to bumper and there wouldn't be any damage. Today a slight bump could cost thousands. Give me a car that doesn't cave in to the front seat any day over the junk that's being manufactured today.

Answer 5

Bumpers are still on cars, they just are more integrated with the rest of the body for styling and aerodynamic purposes. Underneath the outer plastic covering in the bumper area is a reinforcing bar or other impact absorber.

Answer 6

They ALL have bumpers. (dummy)
I must disagree with Dodge Man -- today's cars are far superior than old ones as far as safety is concerned. Just because cars aren't equipped with battering ram bumpers doesn't mean they aren't strong. The composite bars used under the plastic covers absorb much more force than a 'conventional' steel chrome unit. Many people pine for the days when "cars were made of real steel". Believe me, more people walk away from hideous crashes now than they EVER did back in the fifties and sixties.

Answer 7

Cars have bumpers - they are just covered up with the sculpted aerodynamic covers. most of them have energy absorbing foam and some actually have hydraulic shock absorbers. they also have specially made crushable brackets that are easily and cheaply replaced. there are US Govt and most govenment - requirements for bumper performance and replacement cost.

Answer 8

they do still have bumpers, but they are hidden under the front and rear bumper covers. these are in place to make the car more aesthetically pleasing.

Answer 9

They still do have bumpers they are just hidden behind a plastic moled cowl

Answer 10

all cars have bumpers. but some bumper covers are becoming more stylish to accommodate the look of the car.