My left rear bumper is developing a gap:



I can push up from the bottom of the bumper to eliminate the gap:


The car did not have a recorded accident history on Carfax when I purchased it. The gap was not there at the time of purchase. I'm very meticulous in looking at those things when purchasing a used vehicle. I personally have not been in an accident with it. The only thing that I can think of is that the dealer created a paint chip in the bumper once. Maybe they bumped it hard enough to partially break a clip in the bumper? Regardless, it's been getting worse to the point where it's starting to leak water into the trunk wheel well area. Is this something that I can fix easily by myself, or should I take it into a body shop?

 

I would like to say that section is held in with a plastic guide and clip setup. I'd look for a parts exploded view for our rear bumpers.

 

It's probably a loose bracket. you could possible fix it by taking the bumper off and adjusting and tightening the bracket. Watch some videos on you tube and be careful with wires from parking sensor and radar.

 

If water's getting in, there's something else is going on. Water won't enter the trunk through gaps between body panels.

 

I reckon someone bumped it while you parked out out of sight. Bumpers don’t fall out like that. Was the bumper original or resprayed?

Look at all the clips that secure the bumper under the bumper. Are there any signs of them being pulled out?

 

I agree with this...I wouldn't think that gap would allow water into the trunk - the trunk has it's weather seal which isn't on the bumper assembly (that I remember) Generally the only other area where water could get in is where the wires, bulbs, mounting for the tail light assembly goes through. Although I'll be first to admit, I haven't torn my trunk apart or removed my bumper so there are probably folks who can speak to that in more depth.

This was my exact thought - someone bumped it while it was in a lot or parallel parked on the street. It doesn't take much of a bump to tweak/break things if it happens just the right way. It can often be very hard to see an impact in some situations. It just depends what the other car's bumper was like, was there anything like a license plate holder, the angle of impact, etc...