O.K....here you go. 1973 Comet Front bumper: Now.....a really big picture of a 1973 Maverick front bumper:
It's the same bumper. It just sticks out further on a Comet. See all the room in front of the headlite? Also, note the Maverick stone guard wraps around the side of the fender, while the Comet stone guard does not wrap around the fender at all....it is just straight across.
I have noticed that. I thought you ment the actual bumper was different.. Definetly looks odd on the Comets once you know the differences.
And looking at those pics it seems the bumper is out slightly more if at all. The bump out of the Comet might be making it seem it is out further noting the measurement/spacing at the center..
Ok , maybe they ran out of Comet bumper brackets late in the run and decided to switch to the 74 bumpers early rather than produce another run of bumper brackets. These valences would be a Comet-only piece then.
Another theory shot in the butt .... Maybe they just did it "because they felt like it" .... that logic seems to work for a lot of women that I know ....
A Comet bumper sticks out approx 3" further than the Maverick bumper (I am just quessing on the measurment). That is what I am thinking. We need more 1973 Comet owners to chime in.
I will look at my 73 Comet when I get home. I have been all over it and don't recall seeing the brkt.
Maybe an aero thing .... they figured out that jutting the bumper that much further out made the valance go flappy and they needed the extra bracing to stop it.
Is there a date/plant code stamped anywhere on the valance? It may shed some light on the origins of these brackets.
Out of all the cars I've stripped and junked, there was only one 73 and it was a Maverick. It did not have those brackets. But now I will look at every 73 Comet I see, if I ever see one again that is.
