Hayk

iTrader: (1)

I have two areas of concern that have existed since I bought the car. My primary attention was on the mechanical side of things, since that's what I'm good at. I feel like I have finally finished repairing and/or replacing everything, so I would like to get the body work in order.

1. I will be paying everything out of pocket.
2. I have no idea how involved and how expensive this work might be.

Give me some ideas, before I go talk to a body shop. I live in Bergen County, NJ (North East of NJ). So I guess that qualifies me for the highest labor rates. I'm looking for quality repairs.

1. Passenger Door (what it used to look like)



What it looks like after I touched it up



2. Driver side rear corner (The taillight was replaced prior to the purchase of the vehicle)



Up close



After my work



The rear dent is the more complicated one. The gap between the trunk and the fender is not parallel. The top left corner of the trunk is sitting about 1/8" inch higher than normal. The left tail light is sticking out about a 1/4" from the rear.



Would the whole fender and door have to be repainted after the dents are pulled out?

Thanks for any help you may provide!

01LEXPL

iTrader: (10)

the door can be banged out and smoothed over, the quarter.... not so much. To get it to your standard it would require cut/weld. It seems as if the prior impact made a ripple on the inner trunk lip which is why the gaps are off. [had the same happen when i was rear-ended the quarters opened up into more of a 'Y' shape vs. clean gaps. If that makes sense.

Is it really worth the few grand it will cost you...

Hayk

iTrader: (1)

Is that how much you think it will cost? It really bothers me, I want to be done with the "restoration".

01LEXPL

iTrader: (10)

^ Wouldn't surprise me, I've been around this industry [on the side] and see prices/quotes once in a while.

Paint/prep/removal.

The door you're looking at a couple hours, assuming they can get it to match without blending the fender/rear door.

The quarter, they can cut/jerry rig a filler piece, either way that is hours of work, and then forming sheet metal since they do not make factory or aftermarket quarter panels for these cars, they're from scrap yards to the tune of 500$+ for outer skin. This is a labor killer since little pieces like this are nothing but a **** around simply put. 80$/hr adds up quick.

Tack weld, filler, primer, then paint. Which can be tricky since you blend the quarter to the bumper/trunk/door, and not to mention the roof & both quarters are one piece. A knowledgeable shop can make it work with masking part of the quarter off and then blending it, but then you deal with having to get the orange peel out and buffing it all together.

I know everything is more expensive over here, but then again you said NJ is grossly overpriced in the US.

RXGS

iTrader: (2)

I had a rust spot bought the size of a quarter on my rear quarter panel on the wheel well. i sanded down to metal and used touch up paint, the rust stopped, so i figued id see how much it would be to fully repair, and everyone quoted around $600. Let me remind you, it was the size of a quarter. I said thanks, but no thanks, and i just keep an eye on it hoping it doesn't spread. I'm assuming with the dent where it is and what it did, at least a grand, the door i feel will be much easier/ cheaper

Hayk

iTrader: (1)

I guess I should just go to a shop and get an estimate. At least it will give me an idea if I should put some money away for body repairs or move on.

About the rear dent - I was thinking that maybe they could pull it out, instead of cutting/welding. I feel like they can pop it out with carefully welded pins and a slide hammer.

ohsimachi

I've seen dents like that in your quarter pulled with a stud welder/puller. It usually doesn't help the panel gaps, but is a hell of a lot cheaper than cutting and fabricating a patch piece.

Hayk

iTrader: (1)

I visited a few body shops today, will be receiving a written estimate some time today. I visited the shop that I liked and then visited another one across the street to see if they're in the same ballpark. I decided to do the rear dent professionally and pull the door out myself. I was told that they can pull the dent out of the rear fender without cutting/welding. A rough estimate for the rear quarter is about $1000 (+/- $200).