US bumper wars: winners and losers

Making an impact

The introduction of new US safety legislation in the 1960s and ’70s helped radically reshape many cars we now recognise as classics.

Those rules are the reason the E-type and Daytona lost their headlamp covers in the 1960s, and why, in the decade that followed, many cars sprouted bumpers that would have looked overkill on a fairground dodgem car.

In 1971, the NHTSA (National Highway Traffic Safety Administration) issued Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 215, which demanded cars built after September ’72 must be able to survive a 5mph forward impact and a 2.5mph reverse impact, with a fixed barrier, without sustaining any significant damage.

Things got even tougher a year later. Now cars had to be able to survive a 5mph strike in both directions from a scary-sounding pendulum device, and soon, a corner-strike test was added.

In 1982, under pressure from car makers, the NHTSA halved the speeds at which cars were tested. But by then the damage – at least to the aesthetic appeal of thousands of classic cars – had been done.

But not every model came off looking worse for wear. Join us as we look at 10 classics to assess the winners and losers of the US bumper wars.

1. Mercedes-Benz SL

Picking up where the pretty Pagoda left off was a tall order for any sports car.

But Mercedes’ R107 SL pulled it off, fusing the elegance of its predecessor with a tougher, more grown-up look.

Mercedes-Benz SL (cont.)

Sadly for US fans, their version of the R107 wasn’t quite so elegant.

The big European-spec lamps were swapped for a quartet of sealed beams, along with bumpers so huge they’re known colloquially as ‘diving boards’.

2. Fiat X1/9

Fiat’s pocket supercar burst onto the scene in 1972 with a modern targa-roof body finished off by a slim bumper at the front, and delicate quarter bumpers at the rear.

Fiat X1/9 (cont.)

While European cars kept their small bumpers until the end of the 1970s, X1/9s sold in the US between 1975-’78 were saddled with what looked like a small ladder strapped to either end of the car.

They were redesigned for 1979, and now looked more conventional, if no prettier. And this time X1/9s for the rest of the world got to feel the pain, too.

3. Jaguar E-type

Before the end of the 1960s the E-type had already been forced to adapt to changes in US safety legislation.

The early cars’ headlight covers disappeared, the bumpers and indicators grew, and inside, the original toggle switches were swapped for rockers.

Jaguar E-type (cont.)

The S3 E-type arrived in 1971 with muscular flared arches and a bigger grille opening to feed its new V12 engine.

But the bumpers still looked fairly elegant until 1973, when US cars got stuck with a couple of giant rubber overriders on the nose, which were joined by a matching pair on the rear for ’74.

4. Lamborghini Countach

The Countach was the most outrageous supercar of the 1970s, but if you lived in the USA it was almost impossible to buy one.

Cash-strapped Lamborghini couldn’t afford to modify it to meet the US emissions regulations, and how on earth was it supposed to comply with the minimum bumper-height rules?

Lamborghini Countach (cont.)

Though a few enterprising independent companies had certified a handful of these cars for sale, it was 1982 before Americans could buy a factory-approved Countach.

A Bosch fuel-injection system replaced the carbs, but the most obvious change was the massive new bumper that made the car look like a cow trying to lick its own nose.

5. MGB

When the MGA’s replacement arrived in 1962, MG was proud of its new sports car’s modern crumple zones.

But it still wore dainty chrome bumpers. When you think of a classic MG, chances are it looks like this.

MGB (cont.)

But if you were buying a new MGB after 1974 it looked like this. MG added thick plastic front and rear bumpers, but they weren’t the only changes foisted on the B (and Midget) by the new 5mph rules.

To make matters worse, the new minimum headlight height requirement left MG with no alternative but to jack up the suspension by 1in, spoiling both the looks and the handling.

6. BMW E21 3 Series

BMW’s successor to the massively successful 02 didn’t enter production until late 1975, and didn’t arrive in America until the 1977 model year, so you’d think the engineers and stylists would have had enough time to incorporate heavy-duty US-spec bumpers.

But clearly that wasn't the case. First, here’s the car in European form with its small bumpers.

BMW E21 3 Series (cont.)

And here it is in US-spec with park benches strapped to the nose and tail. The 5 and 7 Series cars fared no better.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, today it’s not uncommon for US BMW fans to ditch their ugly heavy bumpers for imported European-spec parts.

7. Chevrolet Vega

The Vega was Chevy’s answer to those pesky four-cylinder European imports that were increasingly popular with young buyers in 1960s America.

Launched in ’71 wearing a pair of slim chrome bumpers, it came as a notchback, hatchback, two-door wagon, or panel van.

Chevrolet Vega (cont.)

And here’s how it looked four years later: proof it wasn’t only imported cars that struggled to get a handle on the new rules without coming across heavy-handed.

The new sloping snout was actually quite handsome, but the motorway armco that passed for a bumper didn't do the looks or handling any favours. 

But by 1975 the Vega had developed such an awful reputation for poor quality that its ugly bumpers were the least of its worries.

8. Chevrolet Corvette C3

So far, we’ve been dishing out ugly awards, including to Chevy, but here’s the first of three cars that showed you could meet the regs and still deliver a great-looking car.

This is the C3 (third-generation) Corvette as it appeared in the late 1960s and early 1970s, clearly inspired by the earlier Mako Shark concept cars, and complete with handsome chrome bumpers front and rear.

Chevrolet Corvette C3 (cont.)

And this is how it looked from 1973, when Chevrolet fitted a smart new body-coloured front bumper.

A body-coloured rear bumper was added a year later, completing a very successful facelift, and giving us an idea of how the MGB might have looked if only BL had the funds to do the job properly.

9. Pontiac Firebird

Pontiac’s 1964 GTO is famous for launching the muscle car craze, but the ’68 was arguably just as influential.

It featured an incredible new colour-coded urethane bumper that was a godsend for imaginative car designers – and for clumsy drivers, too: it could bounce back from minor bumps, virtually unscathed.

The 1970 Firebird also got the Endura front end, and with only minor tweaks it was able to meet the ’73 regulations.

Pontiac Firebird (cont.)

The tougher rules for ’74 resulted in a more shovel-nosed look, as seen here, but the bumper was a fairly discreet black band.

And by the time the 1976 models rolled out, the Firebird had recovered its colour-coded mojo.

10. Porsche 911

We’ll finish our list with the best known, and one of the most successful of all the 5mph bumper transformations.

Porsche launched the 911 in 1965, and apart from minor trim and detail tweaks it looked broadly the same through to 1973. Fans call these desirable early models pre-impact bumper cars.

Porsche 911 (cont.)

When the 911 reappeared for 1974 the long bonnet, horn grilles and delicate bumpers were gone.

But by colour-coding the new bumpers and cleverly covering the gaps between them and the body with rubber, Porsche’s stylists did a fantastic job of integrating them into the design of the car.