Hi Nathan, back in 1974 I ordered a '74 diesel for European delivery. I had seen the '73's, but not a '74. How disappointing those new bumpers where. When I got the car back into the States, I took off the bumpers and removed the 4 "shocks" that hold them. You can remove the cover from the shock, and then have a mounting plate with 4 holes welded onto it. Remount the bumpers with just the shock cover/plate. Now there's no more shock and the bumper is closer to the car. The car edges of the bumpers will be very close to the car, so that looks good. You have to trim off the ends of the rubber caps on the front bumper, as they will hang out into the front wheel opening.

Overall, it looked better, but not as nice as a Euro edition or a pre '74.

Ron

PS I sold that car in '77, was Mercedesless for years, and 2 years ago started playing with the M-B's that are topics here. They are fun!

__________________
1971 220D, daily driver, new paint, 142K
1973 220D, low compression
1975 300D, back on the road! 166K
1971 220D, salvage, rear hit, engine excellent
1972 250, bad cam, but runs!
1971 230, engine stuck
1971 220D, low compression, rusty
1976 240D, salvage, engine excellent
1966 230SL, water in oil after rebuild