Fog light trim won’t fit - bumper tweaked?

[ps2cho]

So my lower fog light surround/trim piece fell off on my passenger side on the Allroad.

I got a new one - however it won’t “clip” in place. Upon closer Inspection the “upper” painted part of the bumper assembly isn’t clipped into the lower gray primed assembly.

I plan to pull the bumper off to see what is going on, but wanted to post if anyone had any other thoughts? Could the bumper just be misaligned?

FYI it was repainted at some point by the dealer due to “rock chips” they say...my guess is a parking lot scrape or something, but there’s no evidence of damages anywhere.

[Spawne32]

they can be difficult to clip into place especially if its an aftermarket bumper, usually requires alot of force

[ps2cho]

they can be difficult to clip into place especially if its an aftermarket bumper, usually requires alot of force

Factory bumper - I think bumper off will help because it doesn’t quite line up with the fender right now so I wanted to pull it off and make it align up properly on that edge anyway.

[Slick_B8]

Is it an oem bumper grille?

[ps2cho]

Is it an oem bumper grille?

Yes everything is Genuine parts on the car.

Plan to pull off the bumper Saturday and realign everything.

[harryn]

I was going to say to check the plastic tabs on the fog light grills, but you got new grills. One thing you can do is put some felt tape underneath the plastic clip on tabs. It will push the tabs up and snap in tighter and hold tighter.

[MacRoadie]

When I bought my 2015 allroad used, both front foglight surrounds (Audi calls it a "Lower Grille") were being held in with double-sided tape. I pulled both out and couldn't find anything broken or missing on the grille or the bumper, and for the life of me couldn't get them to snap into place. Went and ordered two new grilles at $74.00 a piece from Audi. When the new ones arrived, they looked identical to the old ones, with all tabs in place and nothing bent or missing. I swapped out the lights into the new grilles and tried installing them but still couldn't get them to snap into place. It felt like they just weren't pushing in far enough for the clips to engage, and pushing harder just deformed the bumper cover.

Finally, in a "nothing to lose moment", I put a wadded up rag over the grille, and gave it a good whack with the palm of my hand at the end opposite the light bezel. Voila, heard a solid click and the grille was seated properly. Repeated the process on the other side. Decided to just keep the new grilles as the old ones had a few nicks and scratches on them anyway.

[ps2cho]

When I bought my 2015 allroad used, both front foglight surrounds (Audi calls it a "Lower Grille") were being held in with double-sided tape. I pulled both out and couldn't find anything broken or missing on the grille or the bumper, and for the life of me couldn't get them to snap into place. Went and ordered two new grilles at $74.00 a piece from Audi. When the new ones arrived, they looked identical to the old ones, with all tabs in place and nothing bent or missing. I swapped out the lights into the new grilles and tried installing them but still couldn't get them to snap into place. It felt like they just weren't pushing in far enough for the clips to engage, and pushing harder just deformed the bumper cover.

Finally, in a "nothing to lose moment", I put a wadded up rag over the grille, and gave it a good whack with the palm of my hand at the end opposite the light bezel. Voila, heard a solid click and the grille was seated properly. Repeated the process on the other side. Decided to just keep the new grilles as the old ones had a few nicks and scratches on them anyway.

Thanks good info!

I found on eBay (from Lithuania by you) they were $41/each free shipping and they are clear genuine Audi parts so a good deal info for future readers.

I’ll give that a try when I come home. Maybe a swift smack will notch it in far enough. I have a feeling your description matches what I’m experiencing to the T.

[MacRoadie]

Thanks good info!

I found on eBay (from Lithuania by you) they were $41/each free shipping and they are clear genuine Audi parts so a good deal info for future readers.

I’ll give that a try when I come home. Maybe a swift smack will notch it in far enough. I have a feeling your description matches what I’m experiencing to the T.

Yeah, it defied explanation to be honest. The grille plastic is soft/malleable and so is the bumper cover. A solid, direct smack won't crack the plastic (unless you really wale on it).

[ps2cho]

Yeah, it defied explanation to be honest. The grille plastic is soft/malleable and so is the bumper cover. A solid, direct smack won't crack the plastic (unless you really wale on it).

Well that did the trick!
...however a little tug pops back out again, so either way I think the lower part of the bumper isn't properly aligned with the upper piece so bumpers coming off for sure saturday morning.

[MacRoadie]

May need to smack it a little harder.

[ps2cho]

May need to smack it a little harder.

Well the original one fell out somehow by itself while driving and I didn’t hit anything, so somethings not right.

[MacRoadie]

When it snaps in, you'll need a trim tool to pop it back out, so something is definitely not right.

[ps2cho]

When it snaps in, you'll need a trim tool to pop it back out, so something is definitely not right.

What’s the correct removal technique to ensure nothing gets broken?

[MacRoadie]

I just used a trim tool to gently work around the edge, stating at the end opposite the light (closest to the centerline of the bumper).