How to Remove the Front Bumper on a 2020-2022 Toyota Corolla

Watch the full video on YouTube

The front bumper on a 2020-2022 Toyota Corolla comes off with two tools: a 10mm socket wrench and a flathead screwdriver. Ten 10mm bolts run along the bottom edge and into the two lower corners, three more hide up top under a plastic cover you pop off with the hood open, and the sides are held by clips you release with the flathead. Some trims also have a sensor plugged in behind the bumper. Pull all of that and the bumper lifts off the car.

We filmed this on a 2022 Corolla LE that came in damaged on one side. The whole bumper is one piece on this trim, with the grille built in, so a replacement means moving the grille and trim over to the new one. The video runs about 26 minutes because it covers the full swap. Every step below links to its moment in it, so you can jump to the bolt you are hunting for.

What tools do you need to remove a Corolla front bumper?

A 10mm socket wrench takes out every bolt on this bumper, and a flathead screwdriver pops the clips and push pins. Those two cover the removal. A power tool or impact driver speeds up the bolts if you have one, but the job is doable with a basic hand set, which is how the video does it.

• 10mm socket wrench
• Flathead screwdriver, or a plastic panel tool if you have one, for the clips and push pins
• A regular screwdriver for the grille screws when you move the grille to the new bumper
• Optional: a power tool or impact driver for the bolts

The bolts are small and there are more than a dozen of them. Drop them in a cup as they come out so you are not crawling the floor later.

What holds the front bumper on a 2020-2022 Corolla?

The 2020-2022 Corolla front bumper is held by thirteen 10mm bolts, a row of side clips, a few push pins, and a sensor plug on some trims. Here is where they sit, in the order you take them out.

Along the bottom, 10mm bolts run across the lower edge of the bumper, and each lower corner has one too. Count them off as you go; there are ten down low on this car. The two sides are held by clips at the wheel well, two per side, one near the bottom and one up higher, plus a plastic push pin. Up top, with the hood open, a long plastic cover runs across the top of the bumper. Pop its push pins, lift it off, and you reveal three more 10mm bolts: one at each side and one in the middle. Behind the bumper, in the center, some trims have a sensor you unplug. That is everything holding it on.

How do you remove a 2020-2022 Corolla front bumper, step by step?

Work from the bottom up and from the outside in: the bottom and corner bolts first, then the side clips, then the cover and the three top bolts, the sensor, and last the pull. Take the bumper off once nothing is holding it.

1. Remove the bottom and corner bolts

Start underneath the front of the car. Ten 10mm bolts run along the bottom edge of the bumper and into the two lower corners. Follow the lower edge with your socket and take them all out. The tech counts ten off this car before moving on.

The job starts at the bottom. Work along the lower edge of the bumper, where the 10mm bolts run across and into both lower corners.

Watch this step at 1:01

2. Release the side clips at the wheel well

Move to the side of the bumper at the front wheel. Turn the front wheels to open up room at that wheel well. Wedge the flathead into the seam between the bumper and the fender and twist until the clip pops. There are two clips per side, one low and one higher up, plus a small plastic push pin that pops out the same way.

The flathead wedged into the seam at the side of the bumper, by the wheel well. This is the damaged side, which is why the panel is bent.

Watch this step at 2:58

3. Pop the top cover off

Open the hood. A long plastic cover runs across the top of the bumper, held by push pins. Slide the flathead in beside each push pin and pop the center up, then lift the cover off.

Hood up. Prying the push pins that hold the plastic cover along the top of the bumper, next to the headlight.

Watch this step at 4:56

4. Remove the three top bolts

With the cover off you reveal three more 10mm bolts along the top edge of the bumper: one at each side and one in the middle. Take all three out.

With the cover off, the top mounting edge of the bumper is exposed. The three 10mm bolts sit along it, one at each side and one in the middle.

Watch this step at 5:24

5. Unplug the sensor, if your Corolla has one

Some trims have a sensor plugged in behind the center of the bumper. Reach back there, press the tab on the connector, and unplug it. Do this before you pull, so the wire does not get yanked when the bumper comes loose.

The sensor connector unplugged behind the bumper. Only some trims have it.

Watch this step at 5:53

6. Pull the bumper off

With every bolt and clip out and the sensor unplugged, grab the bumper at a corner by the wheel well and pull it outward to release the side, then lift the whole thing away from the car. It can drop once the last side lets go, so keep a hand on it and watch any sensor wire you did not unplug.

With every bolt and clip out, the bumper pulls away from the body. Start at a corner and pull outward.

Watch this step at 6:17

Moving your grille and trim to the new bumper

On the LE, the grille, the upper trim and the lower bumper are one piece, so the grille and the small parts move from your old bumper to the new one. The tech in the video starts to call the top piece separate, then catches it on camera: on this trim it is all one piece. Flip the old bumper over and take the screws out of the back with a regular screwdriver, then press the plastic tabs around the grille with the flathead to release it. The main grille with the Toyota emblem has to come off before the inner grille will release. Peel the foam block off and keep it clean so it sticks to the new bumper, and pop the fog light covers off by releasing the white locking tab on the back of each one. Then snap all of it into the new painted bumper the same way it came out.

Watch the parts come off at 7:02 and go back onto the new bumper at 16:10

Installing the new bumper

Install is the removal run backward. Lift the assembled bumper onto the front, line the top edge up with the brackets and clip the corners under the headlights, then start the bolts. The video flags two things that trip people up. First, the top of the bumper has to line up with the mounting bracket, or the bracket gets pushed to one side and the bumper will not sit right. Second, down at the bottom, the engine splash cover has to sit on top of the bumper's bottom flange, not under it, before you tighten the bottom bolts. Get those two right, work the sides in, plug the sensor back in, reinstall the top bolts and the cover, and the job is done.

Watch the install at 19:46

Which painted bumper fits your Corolla?

The 2020-2022 Corolla front bumper is not one part across the whole line. The one shown here came off a 2022 LE sedan, and the tech notes on camera that the design is different on some other versions of the Corolla. On our site the SE and XSE take their own front bumper, the hatchback takes another, and the hybrid is different again. Even LE and XLE sedans split by where the car was built: the Japan-built cars have a tow hook hole and the US-built cars do not. Options on your car, like whether it has that center sensor, can change the exact part too. So the version has to match your trim, where the car was built, and your options, not just the model year.

Pick the painted 2020-2022 Toyota Corolla front bumper that matches your trim, build and options, painted to your factory color code, which you choose from the listing. If you are not sure which version you need, our guide to ordering a painted part correctly walks through confirming the part number from your VIN with your dealer and finding your paint code. Please do not guess the color.

Frequently asked questions

What tools do I need to remove a 2020-2022 Corolla front bumper?

Two: a 10mm socket wrench for the bolts and a flathead screwdriver for the clips and push pins. A plastic panel tool works in place of the flathead, and a power tool speeds up the bolts, but the video does the whole job with a basic hand set. You will also want a regular screwdriver to move the grille over to the new bumper.

How many bolts hold the front bumper on a Corolla?

Thirteen 10mm bolts on the car in our video. Ten run along the bottom edge and into the two lower corners, and three more sit up top under a plastic cover you pop off with the hood open. On top of the bolts, the sides are held by clips, two per side, plus a plastic push pin, and some trims have a sensor plugged in behind the bumper.

Does a Corolla SE or hatchback use the same front bumper?

No. The bumper in our video came off a 2022 Corolla LE sedan. We sell the SE and XSE front bumper as a separate part and the hatchback bumper as another, so neither takes this one. Even among LE and XLE sedans there is a split: cars built in Japan have a tow hook hole and cars built in the US do not, which makes them different bumpers. Match your trim, where the car was built, and its options on the listing before you order.

Do I have to move the grille to the new bumper?

On the LE, yes. The grille, the upper trim and the lower bumper are one piece, so the new painted bumper comes as that skin and you move the grille, the fog light covers and the foam block over from your old one. Take the screws out of the back, release the plastic tabs, pop the main grille off first, then snap everything into the new bumper the way it came out.

Will a painted Corolla bumper match the rest of my car?

We paint each bumper to your factory color code, and it is backed by our paint match guarantee. The guarantee has one exception: the car cannot have been repainted before, including an earlier accident repair, because body shops usually blend paint onto the panels next to the one they fix. If yours has been repainted, read our paint match guarantee before you order. The same page has a section on sending in a paint sample.

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