I think the picture is self explanatory… So to get around this issue I was thinking of indenting or cutting the bumper slightly to provide some clearance for the belts and pulley. Would this be legal?
I know that there are simpler solutions to this problem but as of right now we cant move the planetaries or the bumpers, nor change the pulleys.
You cannot change the profile of the bumper in that way and still be compliant with the bumper rules. I would recommend moving the versaplanetary upward in order to remove the interference with the bumper.
Ok. Would temporary compression caused by the intake folding over the bumpers violate the rules? I.e if I put a shield around the assembly, would it be illegal for this to compress the bumpers while it is down?
That should be fine, yes. There’s no rules about not deforming your bumper, just rules about how your bumper must be constructed and attached.
Also, could you just lower the bumper, bumpers, or that particular section of bumper? Making a separate chunk of bumper just for that area just to lower it there would be a bit extreme, but would also be legal. It looks like you might be interfering with the hard part of the bumper, so this might be your only viable option.
Correct. They must be at least 4" off the ground and no higher that 12". If you are able to lower the bumper and still have a ground clearance of 4" you should be fine.
As long as by “lower our bumpers” you mean in a permanent, non-articulating way. Have you read the rules? Section 4.7 is all about bumpers. R23 specifies non-articulating.