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The lower apron on my 77 bmw 530i is well rusted through....

There is a 76 apron available for a good price; my sources tell me that the valance has changed from sep 76 onwards...

I am wondering if anybody knows of the differences between the valances and whether I can use the one from a 76 on my 77?

The older type, for cars with the gas cap on the rear, has a small section in the middle where it lowers, because the double-kidney grille is placed lower. And that is because the hood has a straight line in the front, no power bulge.

I don't know if there are other differences, but I think not.

ah, thank you for that. You actually saved me some trouble!

You can also use a valance from an e28, if that helps. E28 up to early '85 will look just like the one on your car. '85 and later will still work, but looks slightly different from yours. You might prefer an updated look...?

you're blowing my mind!!!

Well, the shape is somewhat similar, but they're not really the same. The E28 valance is more angular while the E12 valance has that more subtle, delicate (?) look to it. Still, it will bolt right on.

Here's a shot of an E28 valance and euro bumper on an E12.

http://bmwzone.ro/forums/index.php?act= ... t&id=29578

Giant photo, so I left it a link.

The old-style valance does fit, by the way.

but Wouldn't it look strange with the dip in the valance on a later model?

It is covered by the front bumper mostly, at least on the Europe models. The bumper is also a bit different on the early models, following the form of the valance somewhat. A couple of weeks I was sitting next to a post 77 car with the old style valance and I did not even notice until I took a closer look at it.

On the US 530i it looks like this anyway:

Falkenberg wrote:The bumper is also a bit different on the early models, following the form of the valance somewhat.

There is only one part number for the center section for all years, although there definitely is a difference between an early and late bumper. If you ever need to replace your center section through the dealer, you'll probably get a later version, and a shrug when you say your early one is different.

That could explain why many early cars have the later straight bumper.